May 15, 2026

A Book About the principles of success by Eric Barker

Started: April 8, 2026

Finished: May 15, 2026

Reflections and Random Thoughts

This book was engaging and easy to read but I had trouble remembering what it was about. For me it seemed to be all over the place.

I took a lot of notes (97) because there were a lot of interesting tidbits and stories but I’m not sure if I learned anything new. So far only 6 of those 97 notes have made it to my Zettlekasten.

Insights

Key Take-Aways

Self-compassion beats self-esteem.

“Research suggests that self-compassion is strongly related to psychological wellbeing, including increased happiness, optimism, personal initiative, and connectedness, as well as decreased anxiety, depression, neurotic perfectionism, and rumination.”” (Eric Barker, Barking Up the Wrong Tree)

Something Actionable

Practice self-compassion. So for the next 7 days I’m going to write down 1 thing daily that I can forgive myself for.

My Rating

What Everyone Else Thinks

I think this was the fairest review I’ve read, this was from Mojo in March of 2018 he gave it 3 stars. This was an Amazon review.

This was a nice and easy read. The writing was pretty relaxed and casual which helps keep the subject matter fresh. There are a few simple concepts and ideas, supported by studies, that aim to help you feel balanced, successful and happy. Not a lot new here but the book is an enjoyable read and the presentation of the ideas is nice and easy to grab hold of and put into action.

Edit

Books, Non-fiction