Book Log

Ordered Most Recent to Least

Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds by David Goggins. So, so good. I first learned of Goggins (Navy SEAL, ultra marathoner) from the Andrew Huberman podcast. That was interesting enough to get me to read the book and I'm glad because it was way better than the podcast.

What I love most, is that he lays out everything into why he is the way he is excruciating detail. Reminded me of this blog on hiring, I'll quote here "one marker that I’m seeing someone clearly is when I understand how their strengths are also their weaknesses, how their genius lives right next to their dysfunction". For brevity, I'm excluding the stories on his difficult childhood, the harrowing journey to becoming a SEAL, and the endurance he developed as an ultra runner - you should definitely read them if you dislike vague generalities as I'm about to list some here. I had over 60+ highlights, a few of my favorites:

- "Physical training is the perfect crucible to learn how to manage your thought process because when you're working out, your focus is more likely to be single pointed, and your response to stress and pain is immediate and measurable. Do you hammer hard and snag that personal best like you said you would, or do you crumble? The decision rarely comes down to physical ability, it's almost always a test of how well you are managing your own mind."

- "Life will always be the most grueling endurance sport, and when you train hard, get uncomfortable, and callous your mind, you will become a more versatile competitor, trained to find a way forward no matter what. Because there will be times when the shit life throws at you isn't minor at all. Sometimes life hits you dead in the fucking heart."

- "Nobody likes to hear the hard truth. Individually and as a culture, we avoid what we need to hear most. Tell the truth about the real reasons for your limitations and you will turn that negativity, which is real, into jet fuel. Those odds against you become the damn runway... That's why it's okay to be cruel to yourself as long as you realize you're doing it to become better. We all need thicker skin to improve... Being soft in the mirror isn't going to inspire the changes we need."

- "This pain and suffering. This was my trophy ceremony. This was confirmation I'd mastered my own mind and that what I'd just accomplished was something special. As I lay there, curled up in the tub, shivering in the fetal position, relishing the pain, I thought of something else too. If I could run 101 miles with zero training, imagine what I could do with a little preparation."

- "No matter where you are, life will present you similar opportunities where you can prove to be uncommon. There are people in all walks of life who relish those moments, and when I see them I recognize immediately because they are usually that motherfucker who's all by himself."

- "I made sure to cover my life in its entirety so if anyone had any excuse, my story would void all that out. My main drive was to deliver hope that with or without the military anybody could change their life, so long as they kept an open mind, abandoned the path of least resistance, and sought out the difficult and most challenging tasks they could find."

The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.


Breaking History: A White House Memoir by Jared Kushner.

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears.

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell.

Outlive: The Science & Art of Longevity by Peter Attia.

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen by Christoper McDougall. 9/10. McDougall is a New York Times journalist who sought solutions to running injuries. As a new runner (just logged my 175th mile this year), I was selfishly in this for advice on avoiding injuries. His quest began in an isolated Mexican desert searching for the elusive Tarahumara tribe. The group is famous for being the best ultra-marathoners in the world. A day in their life consists of running 50 miles up and down mountains. If this wasn't impressive enough, they do it all in sandals. McDougall theorizes that modern, cushioned running shoes very easily numb pain caused by poor running form. If there is no cushion, runners can quickly identify when something feels off which helps prevent injuries. I swapped out my hoka's for some thinner soled shoes while working on my core/form and noticed a big improvement here. This book also started the barefoot running and toe glove shoe craze in the 2010's so that's... certainly something.

The Hard Thing about Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers by Ben Horowitz. I appreciated Ben's nuance and vulnerability on what it takes to build a business. And how practical and applicable his advice was to those in the trenches.

Don't Trust Your Gut by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz. 5/10. Written by a data scientist from Google, the author seeks out commonly held beliefs and offers contrarian viewpoints backed by data. One example is about child raising that suggested having positive mentors in early life is more related to future success than a private school education or an affluent zip code. There are a few more of similar themes on finding a good partner, enjoying your day and work (being outside, working out), etc. Some were quite obvious, others not memorable, sort of a mix for me.

Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker. 7/10. UC Berkeley sleep researcher explains how a healthy sleep cycle is critical for emotional regulation (which was particularly interesting to me) and long-term memory. Would recommend to anyone interested in learning about the science of sleep!

The Upside of Stress by Kelly McGonigal. 8/10. Stanford stress researcher and psychologist Kelly McGonigal reexamines the long-held belief that stress is bad for you. In the book, she explains through her research studies that what is most harmful is actually your feelings about your relationship with stress. Many students, athletes, and business people excel when viewing it as an opportunity rather than a hindrance. A few benefits: it increases focus, improves personal relationships and communication, and allows people to hone in on what their values are. Stress comes from having something you care about at stake -- and that's a good thing! McGonigal says shifting your mindset can help you leverage it in the future and when you face challenges, you'll have the prior experiences to pull you through it. I *really* enjoyed this book. It's one I think about when I feel overwhelmed and helps to give perspective back to my values and goals.

The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday. 3/10. This was recommended to me by a coworker who ran into the author.  Simple, short chapters that illustrate a stoic theme through a notable historical figure. It was fine, but not particularly memorable.

Algorithms to Live By by Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths. This was very dense.

JJ Smith's Twitter Account. This is not a book, but someone I've been following on twitter. JJ lives in San Francisco and interviews people living in the Tenderloin to share their stories and increase visibility on the fentanyl crisis. He's openly critical of Harm Reduction (HR) policies, which he believes is hurting people more than helping. One of the core tenants of HR is giving people their autonomy and doesn't seek to steer folks to rehabilitation or treatment for that reason. Instead, their focus is on providing clean supplies and narcan. JJ often is at odds with HA, he views the work as drug enablement. His own method involves getting people into treatment immediately, and when they refuse he keeps in touch and reiterates his message as many times necessary. In one instance, he interviewed a 23 year old woman who had just arrived in the TL two weeks prior. The next day, he shared she agreed to meet him at a treatment center and together they walked in to get her help. JJ says he forms real friendships with the people he interviews, and he is in contact with their family members.

Becoming Trader Joe: How I Did Business My Way and Still Beat the Big Guys by Joe Coulombe and Patty Civalleri. 2/10. Not my favorite read of the year but this book was interesting to learn how Trader Joe's started. TLDR: arbitrage god.

The Champion's Mind: How Great Athletes Think, Train, and Thrive by Jim Afremow.

The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson. 6/10. I liked this sales book. It was written in 2011 and sought to explain how the *best* sales people, even in worst economic environments, continue to win deals. The authors defined a few sales profiles: the lone wolf who does things their own way, the relationship builder who gets close to the customer, the hard worker who puts in the hours, and the reactive problem solver who is highly detailed and on top of any issue the customer faces. But none of these archetypes are as effective as the challenger. The challenger is the type of salesperson who debates and pushes the customer the think differently. The rest of the book is a practical guide in how to transform your sales org to adopt the challenger sale philosophy.

Spare by Prince Harry.

Play Bigger: How Pirates, Dreamers, and Innovators Create and Dominate Markets. 4/10. Most companies take the path-more-traveled and end up building in crowded markets. They think if they had the best product, the best tech, the best price, the best whatever, they will beat their competition. This is a book on category design and how the best brands have created and grown their own markets. Canonical example would be Airbnb. They never intended to compete with hotels, their intent was to be different.  Warning - weirdly written!! I can't explain why but something in the tone on this one was a bit off. Perhaps was a bit immature?

Atomic Habits by James Clear. 8/10. Loved this one, sad I had not read it sooner.


Snowcrash by Neal Stephenson.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter--And How to Make the Most of Them Now by Meg Jay.

Exhalations: Stories by Ted Chiang.

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.

Letters from a Stoic by Seneca.

Empire Express: Building the First Transcontinental Railroad by David Haward Bain.

The Art of Living by Epictetus.

Zero to One by Peter Thiel and Blake Masters.

Amp It Up: Leading for Hypergrowth by Raising Expectations, Increasing Urgency, and Elevating Intensity by Frank Slootman.

Billion Dollar Brand Club by Lawrence Ingrassia.


Rebecca
by Daphne du Maurier.

Animal Farm by George Orwell.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson.

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells.

The Early Writings of Alan Watts by John Snelling.

The Art of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli.

About Me

I'm Chelsea. I'm a cofounder of AirGarage - a commercial real estate management company. I'm also a designer, engineer, and forbes 30 under 30* recipient (*not incarcerated). I also do startup investing on the side. A few notable ones include Interval (acquired) and Cuffed. You can reach me at im@chelseaborder.com.

When I'm not reading or working, I love to run, cook, kayak, and spend time with friends and family.

I don't considered myself a writer, but the intent with this site is to get better at it by reviewing my latest reads. It's my book log, or... blog, if you will :)

My favorite genres are self-development/growth mindset and history/biographies (always open to recommendations).

I hope you enjoy my little corner of the internet!

Coming soon