These are just some of the books that made an impact to my thinking, and quite frankly, I owe a piece of my current and near-future success to these brilliant authors, and storytellers. As an introverted, socially awkward designer who constantly seeks intellectual stimulation but often fails to find it in real life, I find comfort in these pages, and chapters that seemed to know exactly what I needed to hear at the right time. It isn't everyday that you have someone who completely understands you and your slight eccentricity, but I am glad to go home to a bookshelf that brings out the spectacular alter ego in me.
On average, I acquire new books every two-three weeks thanks to word-of-mouth, and secondhand thrift shops on Amazon; I often write about them (and podcasts I follow) on my Medium page. Please feel free to take a look and let me know what you think!
![The Courage To Be Disliked by Ichiro Kimishi and Fumitake Koga](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/7ed965b9-eb47-4db4-b35f-1c4583bb2089_rw_600.jpg?h=3aef46ddb06f32aebeda9fc2f0afd6be)
The Courage To Be Disliked by Ichiro Kimishi and Fumitake Koga
![Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/68321122-0d84-403e-bb2d-38b6ba85b53d_rw_600.jpg?h=7d3d34f050079d9c8079af0ab384ef6d)
Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
![Hooked: How To Build Habit-Forming Products by Nir Eyal](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/d0c0ffd8-ee33-42ba-9ec0-fb92285d2daf_rw_1920.jpg?h=c4cd920a5c352ffe054e561eada69cf9)
Hooked: How To Build Habit-Forming Products by Nir Eyal
![The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Probable by Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/f97095f0-dc87-4a13-b377-8894dc389f6b_rw_600.jpg?h=6abd6c00c1ba632b5dfc43884b811c46)
The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Probable by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
![The User Experience Team of One by Leah Buley](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/b6f813e6-a426-4abd-94ae-1d2617aeefbc_rw_1200.jpg?h=8a18169f61104a22a80871327e6c3a1a)
The User Experience Team of One by Leah Buley
![About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design by Alan Cooper and Co](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/e07996ac-b53b-435c-9f45-0cab1bacae39_rw_600.jpg?h=3f8fcda8c116f8ba1873555a571c01a9)
About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design by Alan Cooper and Co
![Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, Mike Carey & Glenn Fabry](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/12681438-e16e-4592-9727-d7bac82033b5_rw_600.jpg?h=89d62312dadc0acfdf58060ce26247f9)
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, Mike Carey & Glenn Fabry
![Building Better Products by Laura Klein](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/61a71619-9b12-43c1-ab4d-65d49e86ebae_rw_600.jpg?h=b1f08885fe1185a32697e84645e717a3)
Building Better Products by Laura Klein
![Damn Good Advice (For People With Talent!) by George Lois](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/facfb665-e4b4-4cdd-95bd-2a0e3fec40b9_rw_600.jpg?h=ad0043a325599402b531a8348bef0d58)
Damn Good Advice (For People With Talent!) by George Lois
![Thinking In Systems: A Primer by Donella H. Meadows](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/d49610ff2126732b391d7133cc9c8304/21855812-6f74-4f05-bdd6-5f6e8f8f9688_rw_600.jpg?h=6eac28ea9565970a0618f71627d58c55)
Thinking In Systems: A Primer by Donella H. Meadows
(book) Photo credits: Google Images, Amazon.com, respective publishers