by Dr. Neinstein
I get the question everyday, how do you read so much?
Well to me, reading is not something I choose to do, it is my moral duty as a surgeon, leader, and father. Warren Buffet said the single greatest investment in his life was purchasing Benjamin Graham’s book The Intelligent Investor. The late Charlie Munger spoke about a few dollars in late fees from his public library gave him all the knowledge in the world to help lead Berkshire Hathaway with Warren Buffet. These titans of industry and so many realize the concept of compound interest as it applies to finances but they also saw through and crossed the chiasm and understood that knowledge works the same way. You have to add a little bit every day and over the decades your ability to process and interpret the world will exponentially improve. If you seek to rise above the ordinary you must flush the mind daily with knowledge and ideas.
The best way to understand current events is to understand history. To be an informed citizen is to understand how we got to where we are. You would be a detrimental leader if everything you encountered day to day you did without the veil of history. We must learn from others triumphs and perhaps more importantly their failures to best adapt to our situations.
For instance, all geo political strife will be much cleared for those who read Thucydides’ account of two decades of war between Athens and Sparta is the first and still most famous work in the Western historical tradition. Written four hundred years before the birth of Christ, this detailed contemporary account of the struggle between Athens and Sparta stands an excellent chance of fulfilling the author’s ambitious claim that the work “was done to last forever.”
In greek mythology Zeno seeks out the Oracle of Delphi to learn how to become wise, the response was to have conversations with the dead. If you read Socrates,Nietzsche, and Shakespeare you can actually feel connected with them, the past, and intertwined with your own universe.
How to Read Practical Tips
I start my day by reading. I listen to an audiobook from 4:30 to 5:15 AM every day, and that routine works well for me!
Lets get into the books.
1. David Goggins – Can’t Hurt Me
I loved this book, its one of the rare books I have read three times. That should say a lot. This book is not about a guy who lost a lot of weight and became a Navy Seal that is a superficial way to think about it, this book is about the capacity of any human to be mentally tough regardless of what the world around them is doing to them
2. Will Guidara – Unreasonable Hospitality
This is great for any team that is in the service industry, to create memorable moments that translates transactional customers to loyal community members is the key takeaway.
3. Dr. Nate Zinsser – The Confident Mind
For any surgeon this is a must read and in my office its actually a must read for every person taking care of others. Lets face it we are all human and even in the best and most sophisticated of arenas bad things will happen. In medicine bleeding, infection and complications occur. That being said, the surgeon and team must be able to remain calm, fall back on training, draw from their mental bank account of success and give each and every patient the best care possible at all times. At no time can past issues or even current issues enter the mind of the surgeon operating on a patient. This book gives surgeons practical tips for mental stability and stamina
4. Joshua Medcalf – Chop Wood Carry Water
Distilled wisdom for an inspired life. This book helps you fall in love with the principles of becoming great at something. Ultimately you need to love what you do all day long to continuously improve yourself. It reminds us that the process and the journey is just as important as the destination. The small non-sexy things done in the dark are what builds the foundation for success. Settling for average means not putting in the hard work over decades. One anecdote I love is how a bamboo tree can grow 90 feet in 6 weeks but only if watered for 5 years meaning you would have to water something you can’t see for 5 years to get to the success. Always remember the pain of regret will always outweigh the downside of temporary pain from setbacks and failures.
5. Malcolm Gladwell – The Tipping Point
This is a book about how ideas, products, and behaviors spread like viruses, reaching a critical threshold before they take off. It explores the science of social epidemics and what makes some things go viral while others do not. What me and my team loved was the chapters talking about connectors, mavens, and salesmen. Its so easy to grasp these archetypes of people in your life and in your business and there are real practical tips on how to navigate the world with these types of people.
6. Patrick Bet-David – Your Next Five Moves
If you don’t follow or listen to Patrick’s social media and podcast you are really missing out. We all wish that successful people literally wrote out what they did and how they did it to get where they are, well Patrick did it. He shares the ups and downs and again for surgeons and any other business owner real actual strategies for dealing with everthing from hiring to firing and navigating the world where your competitors first hate you and than fear you. While Patick can dance between the world of being Machiavellian and also loving and caring it’s a delicate dance but one I thoroughly enjoyed partaking with Patrick.
7. Simon Sinek – Start with Why
When you think about your business you probably spend a lot of time on telling people what you do and how great you are at doing it. That’s great, but we don’t do things because you tell us how great you are we do things because of the reason you do something and the reason we want something. So you must ask the right questions to understand emotions. When you start with why you can make a difference in the world and inspire others. On Dec 17 1903 the Wright brothers launched the world into flight. They inspired those around them. They started with Why. Langley was well funded but could never get the plane off the ground. You need clarity of why. In our practice we don’t do tummy tucks or mommy makeovers, we make meaningful impacts to improve the lives of others. That is what inspires us every day. Without the why there is now how.
8. Tim Grover – Relentless
This book hits you like a ton of bricks flying off of a locomotive. I would highly suggest to read it in the morning and not before bed. This book probably offends some people, its merciless and does not tip toe around issues of success. Tim Grover rose from obscurity to become Michael Jordan’s personal trainer and in reality as their relationship blossomed and matured his confidante. I see the relationship between Tim Grover and Michael Jordan as almost macabre in nature, both individuals growing together and that history comes to life in the principles and practices set forth by Tim Grover in this book. For those convinced the results or output in their lives are worthy of any difficulty this is the book for you.
9. Dale Carnegie – How To Win Friends and Influence People
Well this is the book that started it all, the first cohesive manuscript with a playbook for success in life. Dale Carnegie’s masterpiece came out in 1936 and if you had to read one book only for the rest of your life this is probably it. Carnegie reminds us when dealing with people, we’re dealing not with creatures of logic, but with creatures of emotion, who are motivated by pride and ego and that The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated. From 1936 to 2024 the ways humans are motivated and the ins and outs of day to day interactions have not changed and this book is a treasure trove to better understand the human dynamics we all engage with on a daily basis.
10. Michael Gerber – The Emyth Revisited
Having a skill is not a business it’s a job. This book has also lasted the test of time. Originally published in 1985 Michael Gerber helps us understand why so many businesses fail. He explains how different running a business is compared to performing a task. You may be wondering why this was a book of the month for a surgical practice. Well, I brought the book into the club because I wanted everyone in the practice to know how important they were in the outcome for our business which is the patient experience. I wanted to crystallize in my teams minds that it did not matter if you were front desk, in cleaning, or shipping, you were an integral part of the patient result and ultimately the patient experience.
11. Ryan Holiday – The Obstacle is The Way
If I had to pick one modern author that has guided my knowledge base and growth it would be Ryan Holiday. This was the first book of his I read and I think I read it twice in 3 days. It opened my eyes while simultaneously blowing my mind. Ryan has found a way of bringing dense and verbose concepts from antiquity into digestible and exciting lessons in modernity. Since the dawn of man we have faced obstacles, we can become victims and become bathed in apathy and loss or we can accept the fact that “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way”. He further goes on ““There are a few things to keep in mind when faced with a seemingly insurmountable obstacle. We must try: To be objective. To control emotions and keep an even keel. To choose to see the good in a situation. To steady our nerves. To ignore what disturbs or limits others. To place things in perspective. To revert to the present moment. To focus on what can be controlled”.
12. Ryan Holiday – Discipline is Destiny
Discipline for most of my life seemed like a bad word. It was something imposed by authority to change or curb behavior that was not considered becoming. What I did not realize until I grew older and with the help of Ryan Holiday understood it better was that discipline is that path to what we actually want in life. Holiday argues that your ability to practice discipline—one of the four cardinal virtues of Stoicism—determines how successful you are
Well, that is my 2023 year in review. I added in my spare time some extra readings. Of note I really enjoyed Johnny Carson’s book written by his lawyer was really a fun look at New York City in the 70s and 80s and also a nice inside look into the burden of fame.
I cant wait for 2024, another year of exciting books to read and concepts to understand.
What I have really realized the more I read is that a smart person reads the books where as a wise person takes the lessons and actually changes their lives and helps others , so I wish you and your family a happy holiday season and a knowledgeable 2024
Please feel free to email any questions, insights, comments, book suggestions to drneinstein@neinsteinplasticsurgery.com
Dr Ryan Neinstein
Dec 26 2023