Person
Oliver Burkeman books: every book Oliver Burkeman wrote and recommended
Across 5 podcasts. Every show Oliver Burkeman appears on, in one place — not just one.
Books by Oliver Burkeman
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The Antidote
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Four Thousand Weeks
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Help!
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Meditations for Mortals
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How to Be Happy (Or at Least Less Sad)
Oliver Burkeman’s most recommended books
- Death by Joan Tollifson
- Deep Work by Cal Newport
- Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
- Rest by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang
- The Uncontrollability of the World by Hartmut Rosa
- Die with Zero by Bill Perkins, William O. Perkins
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Oliver Burkeman is a British author and journalist, formerly writing the weekly column This Column Will Change Your Life for the newspaper The Guardian. In 2021, he published Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, a self-help book on the philosophy and psychology of time management and happiness. Across various podcast appearances on programs such as The Ezra Klein Show, Modern Wisdom, and The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett, Burkeman recommended and discussed several works focused on productivity, psychology, and meaning. He recommended Hartmut Rosa's small book The Uncontrollability of the World as an easily finishable read. He also recommended Joan Tollifson's Death: The End of Self-Improvement and Alex Soojung-Kim Pang's Rest, which explores the routines and daily work habits of successful historical figures. Furthermore, Burkeman referenced Cal Newport's Deep Work and Digital Minimalism to discuss the true feeling of writing and how to work through difficulty. He also mentioned Bill Perkins's Die with Zero to illustrate the dangers of deferring gratification, alongside reflections on the reception of his own book, Four Thousand Weeks.
Books recommended by Oliver Burkeman
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Four Thousand Weeks
Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman is an insightful time-management book that confronts the finite nature of human life and challenges modern productivity obsessions.
Discussed“And that was also evident and I got I had sort of contact with a few people after 4,000 weeks really began to take offering to help me put together specific kinds of courses”
Where to get it
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Death
Death: The End of Self-Improvement by Joan Tollifson is a spiritual work that challenges conventional notions of personal growth and psychological striving.
Recommended“and then uh there's a book by a spiritual teacher called Joan toson which has the remarkable title death the end of self-improvement which um that's strong I got to admit that that title does not screw”
Where to get it
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Deep Work
Deep Work by Cal Newport is a guide to cultivating undistracted focus and achieving peak productivity in an increasingly noisy world.
Recommended“cal newport who wrote the book deep work and digital minimalism who's very good on this has this argument that like what people call writer's block that's just the feeling of writing right”
Where to get it
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Digital Minimalism
Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport is a thoughtful manifesto that advocates for a targeted, intentional approach to personal technology use, encouraging individuals to reclaim their time and attention from constant digital stimulation.
Recommended“cal newport who wrote the book deep work and digital minimalism who's very good on this has this argument that like what people call writer's block that's just the feeling of writing right”
Where to get it
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Rest
Rest by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang is a book that examines the essential role of downtime, exploring how deliberate rest enhances productivity and how successful historical figures structured their daily routines.
Recommended“Alex Pang has written brilliantly about this in his book rest”
Where to get it
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The Uncontrollability of the World
The Uncontrollability of the World by sociologist Hartmut Rosa is a philosophical essay that examines modern society's relentless drive to master and control every aspect of existence, and the alienation that results from this impulse.
Recommended“he has um a small book called The uncontrollability of the world that he's also written a very big one but if we're going for easily finishable things let's go with that”
Where to get it
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Die with Zero
Die with Zero by Bill Perkins and William O.
Discussed“You'll be familiar, I'm sure, with the the book — Die with Zero about — Bill Perkins, good friend, lives here in Austin, Texas.”
Where to get it
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Pride and Prejudice
Pride and Prejudice is a classic 1813 romantic novel by Jane Austen that explores themes of love, class, and reputation in British society.
Discussed“this reminds me of a line um in the in the in the bbc version of pride and prejudice uh you know the one with colin firth”
Where to get it
Appearances
Other mentions (5: passing, ad reads, own books)
“Hello, I'm Oliver Berkman. I'm the author of books, including 4,000 Weeks and Meditations for Mortals and the Imperfectionist Newsletter.”
“Hello, I'm Oliver Berkman. I'm the author of books, including 4,000 Weeks and Meditations for Mortals and the Imperfectionist Newsletter.”
“My most recent book is Meditations for Mortals. So, — that's the other thing to — to mention here.”
“with um you know the last book 4,000 weeks did a lot better than I was expecting”
“well the book four thousand weeks that's there then go to 4000 weeks book.com 400 weeksbook.com which is really just a page on my website which is oliverbirkman.com”