Person
Every book Derek Sivers recommended on podcasts
Across 3 podcasts. Every show Derek Sivers appears on, in one place — not just one.
Derek Sivers’s most recommended books
- The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss
- City of Gold by Jim Krane
- Arabian Sands by Wilfred Thesiger
- Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield
- How Buildings Learn by Stewart Brand
- How to Get Rich by Felix Dennis
- Live More Happy (updated Sharing Edition) by Darren Morton
- Never Enough by Andrew Wilkinson
- Sum by David Eagleman
- The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi, Fumitake Koga
Derek Sivers is a philosopher and entrepreneur. During podcast appearances, Derek Sivers discussed and recommended several books that shaped his perspectives on culture, architecture, and history. Prior to visiting Dubai, he read Jim Krane's City of Gold and recommended it to understand the founding and creation of Dubai. He also discussed reading Wilfred Thesiger's Arabian Sands to gain insight into Arab Bedouin culture. In the context of architecture and infrastructure, Derek Sivers strongly recommended Stewart Brand's book How Buildings Learn, stating that it is a brilliant work that everyone should read. Additionally, he discussed Steven Pressfield's books, describing their writing format as fantastic. Derek Sivers mentioned A.J. Jacobs's book The Year of Living Constitutionally, noting that it revealed interesting facts related to the US Constitution. Furthermore, he praised Andrew Wilkinson's book Never Enough during the closing of an episode and recommended John L. Esposito's What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam to illustrate consistency in societal laws.
Books recommended by Derek Sivers
-
The 4-Hour Workweek
The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss is a highly influential lifestyle design manual that challenges conventional career paths and encourages readers to automate, delegate, and escape the traditional nine-to-five grind.
Discussed“the first time I encountered that was years and years ago when I saw somebody holding for 4 Hour Work week and I said oh wow great book”
Where to get it
-
City of Gold
Jim Krane's engaging historical book explores the rapid founding and extraordinary development of Dubai.
Recommended“so I read a book called City of Gold which was about the founding of Dubai and and the creation of Dubai and dude it was so good it is such a great book”
Where to get it
-
Arabian Sands
Arabian Sands by Wilfred Thesiger is a classic travel memoir chronicling the author's extensive travels between 1945 and 1950 through the Empty Quarter of Arabia, capturing a traditional way of life that was rapidly disappearing.
Recommended“then somebody said oh you need to read Arabian Sands by this man named feser and that gets into like the Arab bedu cultur is written in the 1940s or 50s”
Where to get it
-
Gates of Fire
Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield is a historical novel detailing the heroic Spartan stand at the Battle of Thermopylae.
Recommended“I think that Steven Pressfield's books, both of them, are fantastic; that format's great. Oliver Burkman's most recent one is very similar to yours, and I think that was zeroing in on a new, very concentrated type of, so like, purified version of writing. And I'm here for it.”
Where to get it
-
How Buildings Learn
How Buildings Learn by Stewart Brand is an architectural and structural exploration examining how buildings adapt, evolve, and change over time rather than remaining static monuments.
Recommended“I got this tip from steuart Brand wrote a brilliant book that everyone should read anyone who's smart that is called how buildings learn”
Where to get it
-
How to Get Rich
How to Get Rich by Felix Dennis is a frank and practical exploration of wealth accumulation written by a successful magazine publishing mogul.
Recommended“I was super, super influenced by Felix Dennis’s book called How to Get Rich.”
Where to get it
-
Live More Happy (updated Sharing Edition)
Live More Happy (Updated Sharing Edition) by Darren Morton is a resource focused on enhancing well-being through practical psychological and behavioral strategies.
Recommended“Darren brown in the book called happy did you read that”
Where to get it
-
Never Enough
Never Enough by Andrew Wilkinson is a memoir detailing the author's experiences in building and managing businesses while navigating personal challenges.
Recommended“and I love your Never Enough book and that even that you took that angle which I love how it even developed after we met in Wellington”
Where to get it
-
Sum
Sum by David Eagleman is a short, thought-provoking work of speculative fiction comprising forty imaginative tales from various afterlives.
Recommended“and if you have read the book by David Eagleman called some s um it's it's an homage to that book sum is probably my single favorite book”
Where to get it
-
The Courage to Be Disliked
The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga is a popular philosophical self-help book that introduces Adlerian psychology to help readers overcome the paralyzing fear of other people's judgment and live more authentically.
Recommended“I really like this I heard this idea in a book called um the courage to be disliked which was also really probably one of the best things I've ever read”
Where to get it
-
The Year of Living Constitutionally
The Year of Living Constitutionally by A.J.
Recommended“That actually came from A.J. Jacobs; his newest book is called, I think, 'Living Constitutionally,' or something like that. He's the one that revealed that fact for me, so thanks A.J. Jacobs. Um, rules–yeah.”
Where to get it
-
What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam
What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam by John L.
Recommended“I recently read a book I can recommend for anybody called What Everyone [Needs to] Know About Islam.”
Where to get it
-
A Guide to the Good Life
A Guide to the Good Life by William B.
Discussed“And, and then finally in 2010, I read A Guide to the Good Life... William Irvine, I think.”
Where to get it
-
Convict conditioning
Discussed“and I found this book that he recommended called convict conditioning the do you know it no oh okay but it's written by God spent like 18 years”
Where to get it
-
Emergency
Emergency: This Book Will Save Your Life by Neil Strauss is a non-fiction narrative exploring the underground worlds of survivalism, tax expatriation, citizenship acquisition, and personal self-reliance.
Discussed“another example is in Neil St 's book called emergency I'll never forget this point”
Where to get it
-
How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie is a practical self-help guide offering actionable strategies to overcome chronic worry and anxiety.
Discussed“I suspect — I found out years later that the Dale Carnegie book called How to Stop Worrying and Start Living... Tim Ferriss: Just as a side note, I’ve read that book multiple times.”
Where to get it
-
MONEY Master the Game
MONEY Master the Game by Tony Robbins is a comprehensive personal finance guide that outlines strategies for building wealth and navigating investments, most notably through index and Vanguard funds.
Discussed“a few years ago Tony Robbins had a money Master the game book I was like oh wow Tony hasn't put out a book in like 20 years”
Where to get it
-
The 4-Hour Body
The 4-Hour Body by Timothy Ferriss is an extensive, data-driven guide to optimizing human physical performance, health, fat loss, and longevity through minimal effective doses of exercise and diet.
Discussed“It actually reminded me of something you said in The 4-Hour Body about yoga studios that no, it’s not the best thing for your health, but it’s a more profitable pitch for them to sell you a yoga studio instead of the free weights.”
Where to get it
-
The Paradox of Choice
The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz examines how an abundance of modern options can lead to anxiety, decision fatigue, and diminished personal satisfaction.
Discussed“And so I’m so glad you brought up The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz. I really internalized that book. The ending of that, where he says like, "Okay, I’ve been describing the problem, so what’s a recommendation?" And he says, "Satisficing.”
Where to get it
-
Tools of Titans
Tools of Titans by Timothy Ferriss is a comprehensive compilation of tactics, routines, and habits drawn from extensive interviews with billionaires, icons, and world-class performers.
Discussed“Another one from Tim that came to mind is when brainstorming a book, he said, 'I will hire a journalist to push back.' He said, 'Journalists and lawyers are the two that I've found are the best at pushing back on an idea and challenging an idea I have.' So when I'm thinking of a new book to write, I”
Where to get it
Books Derek Sivers wrote
Appearances
Other mentions (21: passing, ad reads, own books)
“and then Seth Goen asked me to write a book so I wrote a book and then people really liked it so now I've written five and now I'm a I don't know Dad in New Zealand thinking philosophically and living my life”
“and then Seth Goen asked me to write a book so I wrote a book and then people really liked it so now I've written five and now I'm a I don't know Dad in New Zealand thinking philosophically and living my life”
“and then Seth Goen asked me to write a book so I wrote a book and then people really liked it so now I've written five and now I'm a I don't know Dad in New Zealand thinking philosophically and living my life”
“and then Seth Goen asked me to write a book so I wrote a book and then people really liked it so now I've written five and now I'm a I don't know Dad in New Zealand thinking philosophically and living my life”
“okay this is actually in my useful not true book The came out this idea that was actually a little bit sparked by you”
“my previous book called How To Live was 27 conflicting philosophies and one weird answer”
“oh I should say that useful not true is only through my website it's not [ __ ] Amazon it's not on Amazon I put it on my website only”
“so um the my previous book called How To Live was a deliberate exercise in contradicting myself every chapter contradicted every other chapter”
“oh my useful not true book not for the sake of selling a book you know I don't care about that”
“like you know my anything you want book I'm saying things in there like business is not about making money”
“so the first book anything you want for one I never intended to write a book”
“and so my fourth book how to live was a flash of artistic inspiration like I just it was almost like a uh an art piece that took me four years to make like I had this idea for this thing I wanted to exist this book where it had 27 chapters each with a strong opinion of how to”
“so that's why I wanted to put out your music and people and hell yeah or no before that book came out so that my books could be at least somewhat chronological”
“and then this new book useful not true like I said there was just an idea that just kept coming up kind of in between the lines or under the surface”
“let me refine that that book how to live that was just for me meaning I needed this thing to exist”
“but the new book useful not true yeah that one did have a different motivation”
“kind of like that my book how to live which is like every chapter says no here's how to live live entirely for the future and then the next chapter is like here's how to live live entirely for the present moment”
“I was working maniacally on my next book which is called how to live which I'm so seriously doing like 15 hour days of writing”
“and so my book how to live is an homage to some it's using that exact same format to answer the question how to live”
“which is kind of what my next book called hell yeah or no is about”
“my first big book called anything you want was published by well first by Seth Godin but then he sold his little publishing imprint to penguin”