There are many people who think it would be absolutely fantastic if they had four arms. Like a robot, they could load the dishwasher, type on their laptop, and dress their child all at the same time. But since our brains are often already overwhelmed by multitasking with two arms, in the end, the laptop would probably end up wearing the pajamas ;-)

If we really want to achieve more without constantly distracting and overloading ourselves, we need to find a better way. Many studies have shown that it actually harms our productivity when we try to do too much at once. [1] [1] Just 3 seconds of distraction doubles the error rate: Altmann, E. / Henion, A. / McGlashen, A. (2013): Brief Interruptions Spawn Errors, in: Michigan State University Today [2] [2] Multitasking leads to stress: Mark, Gloria (2014): Stress and multitasking in everyday college life: An empirical study of online activity After all, we are not robots with four arms. People have feelings, completely different beliefs and talents – and all of this should be reflected in our daily workload. 

Do you want to find out for yourself how to handle your tasks more successfully without exploiting yourself? Then you can start right away: We have put together an exquisite list of the best mindful success books for you, which combine both. This will make it easier for you to become more productive with your two arms, your head and your heart while staying completely true to yourself.  

1. Gary Keller – The One Thing

Anyone who wants to make big dreams and projects a reality rarely needs more time. In the world of success, it is always only a very few selected efforts that lead to the majority of the results. American author Gary Keller calls it “The One Thing” – that is, “the one thing”. In exciting anecdotes and stories, he argues very convincingly how you can find this one thing for yourself. You will also learn why a crystal-clear focus on the (very!) few, truly important things will also lead you to a happier and more successful life. The principle behind his book was not only a source of inspiration for the 6-Minute-Journals®. The basic idea works so well that it has even become a central element of the 6-Minute-Success Journals.

This book is for you if:

• you often try to achieve too many goals at once
• you want to develop perhaps the most important habit of all: focus
• you want to read a whole book about one of the core elements of the 6-Minute-Success Journals

2. Robin S. Sharma – The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari

Robin S. Sharma, one of the most successful personal coaches worldwide, tells a powerful story in his first novel: A star lawyer who has truly achieved everything is torn from his life by a heart attack and reconsiders it. As a reader, you can follow his path and be inspired by the decision to simply step out. The novel became a worldwide bestseller – not least because it causes a change of mind in a captivating and poetic way. Success can go in many directions, and Sharma takes us on a journey to the extremes: from millionaire to Buddhist monk.  

This book is for you if:

• you love exciting stories about how life can turn around 180 degrees
• you are already convinced or want to be convinced that classic success does not automatically mean happiness
• you want to rethink your own working life or long for a change

3. Chade-Meng Tan – Search Inside Yourself: The Slightly Different Happiness Coaching

Google was one of the first companies to recognise how closely mindfulness and productivity are connected. The global player developed a workshop with which employees were taught more resilience, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness. Personal development at its finest, so! Because this concept was so wonderfully successful, Google veteran Chade-Meng Tan wrote it all down, thus also enabling the rest of the world to participate in a slightly different happiness coaching from one of the most successful companies of our time. 

This book is for you if:

• you are in the mood for a mindfulness training from one of the corporations with the highest employee satisfaction worldwide
• you appreciate simple, effective methods without a lot of fuss
• you want to acquire useful mental habits

4. Adam Grant – Think Again

Actually, you are no longer really happy in your job. But it is a permanent position and you have been with the company for ten years? The title “Think Again” summarizes it perfectly: It does good to rethink our own attitude every now and then. The easiest way is not always the best. But it will undoubtedly become the path we follow if we never question it. Success author and organizational psychologist Adam Grant distills research results and pointed stories into an elixir that will get your grey cells and perhaps also your working life going again. 

This book is for you if:

• you want to understand why you do what you do
• you want to rethink your life again and again to get the best out of it
• you want to learn how you can unlearn unwanted habits

5. Dominik Spenst – The 6-Minute-Success Journal

It is high time to rethink what success means. We think success does not mean: earning a pile of money, getting a lot of recognition and working 60 hours a week. We think success means: knowing and living your own values. Focusing on something and powerfully bringing it to completion. Finding joy and balance in what you do, even at work.

With these ideas about a new working world in mind, we developed the 6-Minute-Success Journall: a simple and effective tool to structure your private and professional life more productively and mindfully – and above all to finally get started.

This book is for you if:

• you want to achieve more without being exhausted 
• you want to achieve maximum impact with minimal effort 
• you want to bring more clarity, focus and inner peace into your life

6. Stephen R. Covey – The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

The literal translation of the English original is “7 Habits of Highly Effective People”. However, it is not just a guide to desirable habits, but generally a handbook for a good life. Covey looks at effectiveness and success from a completely new perspective and helps you rethink your own actions. The first edition was published over 30 years ago and has lost none of its relevance. Since then, the book has sold over 40 million times and has been translated into 38 languages.

This book is for you if:

• you are looking for a book on personal development that summarises the essentials so concisely that you can read it again and again 
• you have already heard of the well-known “Seven Paths” (or “Seven Habits”) and now want to properly get to know them and integrate them into your life
• you want to improve your professional performance 

7. Dale Carnegie – How to Win Friends

We do not exist independently of other people, but always only in connection with them. In Carnegie’s work, published back in 1937 but still highly relevant, we learn to see others as mirrors of ourselves and to make interpersonal interactions smoother. In doing so, the motivational trainer also answers how we can better understand what drives other people and how we can help them fulfil their needs. It is the ultimate book on communication, in which you will also learn a lot about yourself. 

This book is for you if:

• you often experience difficult conversation situations and want to learn how to make them proactive and positive
• you want to become better both as a conversation partner and as a listener
• you want to understand how manipulable we are and want to protect yourself from it

8. Tim Ferriss – Tools of Titans 

No matter what your personal definition of success is, you will find inspiration here! Because for the contents of this book, Tim Ferriss has conducted more than 200 podcast interviews with top performers from around the world. Among them are authors like Paulo Coelho, Hollywood stars like Jamie Foxx, athletes like Lebron James, but also greats from medicine, art, and the business world. The Tim Ferriss Show has been downloaded more than half a billion times. Also because of its enormous reach, many interviewees agreed to a multi-hour interview for the first time ever. No wonder Tim Ferriss is called the “Oprah of the audio world”. 

In his book, he concisely summarises a total of around 200 interviews in four to six pages each and divides them into the categories of health, wealth, and wisdom. So you can safely read only what currently suits you – and save the rest for later. 

This book is for you if:

• you want to learn from the experiences of successful role models
• you want to learn practical (and often also very exotic) application tips rather than dry theories 
• you want to have a book that you can always look into when you have time: over coffee, on the subway, or in bed in the evening

9. Shawn Achor – The Happiness Principle 

Are you looking for practical advice based on the most important discoveries in modern psychology? Are you not afraid to say goodbye to common success myths? Then you've come to the right place! Harvard lecturer Shawn Achor takes you by the hand and shows you the seven core principles of positive psychology that are proven to help you advance your career. No unnecessary, bombastic "rah-rah" attitude, but sound studies on human potential and how we can best access it. So that you can really get off to the start you want.

This book is for you if:

• you want to do your work more passionately, productively, and resiliently, without overtaxing yourself
• you want to learn techniques like the "Zorro Circle," which help you create a kind of leverage effect for your productivity and gradually pursue increasingly ambitious goals
• you want to learn how to reprogram your brain for success in a fun way

10. Susan Cain – Quiet: The Power of Introverts 

The loudest person gets the most. That's the stereotype. The fact that our society is just as dependent on quiet people is mentioned far too rarely. After all, introverted people have their own unique strengths that can lead to success just as much as those of extroverts. Since the book was published in 2012, it has not only sparked a rethink among quiet people worldwide. When used the right way, introversion is not a disadvantage at all. Quite the contrary: it can be the key to many unique opportunities, if you only dare.

This book is for you if:

• you sometimes feel like no one is as shy as you. Because you are in the best company of many famous people
• you want to learn to recognise and accept your own introversion 
• you want to skillfully use your introversion in many social areas, from professional life to partnership

The next time you feel the urge to stretch out your imaginary extra arms to complete four tasks at once, stop for a moment. Perhaps one of the books on our list will help you find a better path toward a mindful (work) life. You've been living it for a long time and would like to share your knowledge? Then please let us know in the comments below which books have helped you!

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This post is by Frauke Harlis. She loves writing just as much as psychology and has studied both. When she's not typing or entertaining her two children, she lies on the deck of her houseboat and looks for cloud shapes.

Sources:

[1] 3 seconds of distraction doubles the error rate: Altmann, E. / Henion, A. / McGlashen, A. (2013): Brief Interruptions Spawn Errors, in: Michigan State University Today

[2] Multitasking leads to stress: Mark, Gloria (2014): Stress and multitasking in everyday college life: An empirical study of online activity