Hi guys

As 2021 has come to an end, I have had time to reflect upon and learn from it. I have come to see the fragility and the resilience of life in this year and both at the same time.

Here are my favourite things from 2021.

Books

Will by Will Smith & Mark Manson

This memoir is the product of a profound journey of self-knowledge, a reckoning with all that your will can get you and all that it can leave behind. Will is the story of how one person mastered his own emotions, written in a way that can help everyone else do the same. The combination of genuine wisdom of universal value and a life story that is preposterously entertaining, even astonishing, puts Will the book, like its author, in a category by itself.

Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey

An unconventional memoir filled with raucous stories, outlaw wisdom, and lessons learned the hard way about living with greater satisfaction. It’s a love letter. To life. It’s also a guide to catching more greenlights - and to realising that the yellows and reds eventually turn green too.

The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness by Eric Jorgenson

The man, the myth, the legend - Naval Ravikant. He is an entrepreneur, philosopher, and investor who has captivated the world with his principles for building wealth and creating long-term happiness. The Almanack of Naval Ravikant is a collection of Naval’s wisdom and experience from the last ten years, shared as a curation of his most insightful interviews and poignant reflections. This isn’t a how-to book, or a step-by-step gimmick. Instead, through Naval’s own words, you will learn how to walk your own unique path toward a happier, wealthier life

Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor

No matter what you eat, how much you exercise, how skinny or young or wise you are, none of it matters if you’re not breathing properly. Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head. You will never breathe the same again.

10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works by Dan Harris

After having a nationally televised panic attack on Good Morning America, Dan Harris knew he had to make some changes. A lifelong nonbeliever, he found himself on a bizarre adventure and eventually, Harris realised that the source of his problems was the very thing he always thought was his greatest asset: the incessant, insatiable voice in his head, which had both propelled him through the ranks of a hyper-competitive business and also led him to make the profoundly stupid decisions that provoked his on-air freak-out. 10% happier takes readers on a ride from the outer reaches of neuroscience to the inner sanctum of network news to the bizarre fringes of America’s spiritual scene and leaves them with a takeaway that could actually change their lives.

Thirst: A Story of Redemption, Compassion, and a Mission to Bring Clean Water to the World by Scott Harrison

If you have ever wondered how you can start to make a positive change in the world, one person in a sea of eight billion, look no further. In Thirst, Harrison recounts the twists and turns that built charity: water into one of the most trusted and admired nonprofits in the world. Renowned for its 100% donation model, bold storytelling, imaginative branding, and radical commitment to transparency, charity: water has disrupted how social entrepreneurs work while inspiring millions of people to join its mission of bringing clean water to everyone on the planet within our lifetime.

21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari

This book is a probing and visionary investigation into today’s most urgent issues as we move into the uncharted territory of the future. As technology advances faster than our understanding of it, hacking becomes a tactic of war, and the world feels more polarised than ever, Harari addresses the challenge of navigating life in the face of constant and disorienting change and raises the important questions we need to ask ourselves in order to survive.

Finding Chika: A Little Girl, an Earthquake, and the Making of a Family by Mitch Albom

With no children of their own, the forty-plus children who live, play, and go to school at the orphanage have become family to Mitch and his wife, Janine. Chika’s arrival makes a quick impression. Brave and self-assured, even as a three-year-old, she delights the other kids and teachers. But at age five, Chika is suddenly diagnosed with something a doctor there says, “No one in Haiti can help you with.” Told in hindsight, and through illuminating conversations with Chika herself, this is Albom at his most poignant and vulnerable. Finding Chika is a celebration of a girl, her adoptive guardians, and the incredible bond they formed—a devastatingly beautiful portrait of what it means to be a family, regardless of how it is made.

The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck

I reread this amazing book this year and honestly, I think it is one of those books I will be rereading yearly. Confronting and solving problems is a painful process that most of us attempt to avoid. Avoiding resolution results in greater pain and an inability to grow both mentally and spiritually. Drawing heavily on his own professional experience, Dr M. Scott Peck, a psychiatrist, suggests ways in which facing our difficulties – and suffering through the changes – can enable us to reach a higher level of self-understanding. He discusses the nature of loving relationships: how to distinguish dependency from love; how to become one’s own person and how to be a more sensitive parent. This is a book that can show you how to embrace reality and yet achieve serenity and a richer existence.

I have also written a summary of this book. Check it out here.

TV / Documentaries

​Breaking Boundaries (Netflix)​

David Attenborough and scientist Johan Rockström examine Earth’s biodiversity collapse and how this crisis can still be averted.

​14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible (Netflix)​

Fearless Nepali mountaineer Nimsdai Purja embarks on a seemingly impossible quest to summit all 14 of the world’s 8,000-meter peaks in seven months.

​Fantastic Fungi (Netflix)​

Delve into the magical world of fungi, from mushrooms that clear oil spills to underground fungal networks that help trees communicate.

​Dark (Netflix)​

In the aftermath of a child’s disappearance, Dark follows characters from the fictional German town of Winden as they pursue the truth. They follow connections between four estranged families to unravel a sinister time travel conspiracy that spans several generations. The series explores the existential implications of time and its effect on human nature.

​Seaspiracy (Netflix)​

Passionate about ocean life, a filmmaker sets out to document the harm that humans do to marine species -and uncovers alarming global corruption.

​Welcome to Earth (Nat Geo / Disney +)​

Actor Will Smith sets out to offer an insight into some of the world’s most remote and uncharted locations to uncover hidden secrets of the world and come face to face with his greatest fears.

​Genius: Einstien (Nat Geo / Disney +)​

Einstein was a rebel and nonconformist from boyhood days, and these character traits drove both his life and his science. In this narrative, based on Walter Isaacson’s book, see how his mind worked and the mysteries of the universe that he discovered.

Podcast Episodes

Here is a list of some of the best podcast episodes I listened to over the year and learned heaps from.

​The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish​

• 123 William Irvine: How To Live a Stoic Life
• 112 Adam Grant: Rethinking Your Position
• 106 Josh Kaufman: Maximizing Our Locus of Control
• 105 Seth Godin: Failing On Our Way To Mastery
• 103 Loch Kelly: Effortless Mindfulness
• 102 Sendhil Mullainathan: TheChaos Inside Us

​The Tim Ferriss Show​

• 536: Diana Chapman — How to Get Unstuck, Do “The Work,” Take Radical Responsibility, and Reduce Drama in Your Life
• 531: Henry Shukman — Zen, Tools for Awakening, Ayahuasca vs. Meditation, Intro to Koans, and Using Wounds as the Doorway
• 530: Sir James Dyson — Founder of Dyson and Master Inventor on How to Turn the Mundane into Magic
• 528: Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia, on Homeschooling, Atheism, Understanding Financial Markets, Ayn Rand, Favorite Books, and More
• 510: Greg McKeown - The Art of Effortless Results, How to Take the Lighter Path, the Joys of Simplicity, and More
• 501: Steven Pressfield - How to Overcome Self-Sabotage and Resistance, Routines for Little Successes, and The Hero’s Journey vs. The Artist’s Journey
• 481: Dan Harris on Becoming 10% Happier, Hugging Inner Dragons, Self-Help for Skeptics, Training the Mind, and Much More

​The Art of Manliness​

• Stop Living on Autopilot and Take Responsibility for Your Life The Art of Manliness
• Why Are We Restless?

​Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard​

• Russell Brand

​The Ziglar Show​

• 949: Mitch AlbomWhat It Takes To Transform Ourselves

​On Purpose with Jay Shetty​

• Malcolm Gladwell ON: How To Communicate Effectively During Overwhelming Situations & Mistakes You Make Reading People
• Lewis Howes ON: How To Embrace Your Vulnerability, Create Strong Relationships & Live A Full Authentic Life
• Daniel Pink ON: How to Master Time Management & Turn Procrastination into Productivity

Quote of the week

PS: I will be sending a weekly email, like this one, with some of my favourite things I have found over the week. I will also include links to my new videos and articles published that week.

Let’s put all the learning of 2021 to use and have an awesome 2022.
Hopefully, COVID-19 (19!!!!) is behind us now.

Happy new year 😊

Naimat

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