Favourite Finds For 2023
Dear friends,
With the year coming to an end, here are my favourite finds from 2022. There are books, podcasts, content finds, digital tools, and physical products. Hopefully, you can find something useful here for 2023. I wish you a very happy new year and I look forward to writing more in the new year.
Books
- The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down. I was recommended this book by a CBT therapist. In an increasingly fast-paced world, it’s easier to feel stressed and overwhelmed. This book offers teachings from Buddhism and monk philosophy in an easy and practical manner.
- Psychology of Money. This is probably my top recommendation for priming your finances. It gives you a very good overview of building wealth, the harmful impacts of greed, and how money impacts happiness. It does an amazing job of explaining core frameworks and principles, which you can then apply to your specific needs and financial goals.
- Happy Sexy Millionaire. So Steven Bartlett is hugely successful and made many millions whilst still young, but the money did not make him happy (nor feel sexy). I love this book for a realistic insight into how money improves your life in many ways but how other key components such as relationships, family, mental health, philanthropy and more play a bigger role in how fulfilled and happy you feel.
- Life Time. Sleep is likely far more important to your physical and mental health than any other supplement, diet, or exercise regime. Following on from Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, this book provides a different perspective on the science behind the body clock and how important sleep is to our brain health and physical performance. I love learning about and optimising my sleep hygiene.
- That Will Never Work. Fantastic insight into the trials and tribulations of Marc Randolph’s journey into building Netflix into the huge FAANG company that it is today. I love these types of books because it gives me a lot of motivation and encouragement to keep pursuing my goals. Nothing in life is easy, and the best things in life are even harder. You’ll love this if you enjoyed the likes of Shoe Dog and Ride Of A Lifetime.
Podcasts
- Ali Abdaal + Grace Beverley. This was a sick chat between two inspiring individuals who chose to pursue completely unconventional paths after studying at Cambridge and Oxford. Grace is a gold-standard person to learn from about building insane brand communities and keeping up with trends. She shares some great insights on burnout, time management, and self-care.
- Ali Abdaal + Sahil Bloom. How much is enough? Sahil Bloom is a successful investor, creator (200K+ newsletter subs), entrepreneur and ex-pro baseball player. He seems to have it all and discusses the importance of not chasing more and more success for more money/fame. He shares some sick insights on building creator careers, longevity of creator careers, and also shares solid simple life & financial advice.
- Steven Bartlett + Richard Branson. At school, Richard Branson was told he’d either be successful one day or in jail. From humble beginnings, he made something out of nothing, time and time again. I found this chat inspiring because for the first time I got some insight into the behind-the-scenes of this man. He speaks about using failure to self-educate, using competition to build a better brand, what is a life worth living, and why he’s able to always push forwards.
Content
- Time Spent Throughout Life. In this interesting thread, we find out how the time we spend with our parents, friends, partner, children, colleagues, and alone shifts throughout our life. After 18 we spend most of our time with colleagues and decreasing amounts of time with our parents. It made me realise the value of time and reminded me to spend more time with my partner and family.
- How To Stay Poor. In this thread, Alex Hormozi, the man behind $100M Offers, explains simply how and why most people remain poor throughout life. If you did the opposite of everything in this thread, I’m sure there would be a very high chance you’d be pretty successful.
- Xanax. Pretty interesting Netflix documentary on the detrimental long-term impact of Xanax in the treatment of mental health disorders and recreational use. Xanax is a benzodiazepine and there are many drugs from this family of drugs that get routinely prescribed by doctors without much thought.
- The Swimmers. An inspiring and eye-opening film. It is based on the real events of Yusra Mardini and her sister’s escape from war-torn Syria to Europe as a refugee and then entry into the Rio 2016 Olympics as an athlete. It’s very upsetting that war exists and that many across the world suffer a great deal of trauma yet find a reason, purpose, and drive to keep going.
Tools
- Todoist. A fantastic to-do app and my app of choice after trying so many.
- DailyBean. Sick journalling app that I use daily. It has a quick survey to log my emotions, feelings, and accomplishments each day and then I have the option to write some free text and upload 1-3 photos if I feel like it.
- Notion. Obligatory mention. This is the most all-in-one notes app out there and it keeps getting better every single year.
- Grammarly. I’m not going to claim that I get grammar and punctuation correct every time and sometimes you don’t even notice your mistakes. This is where the Grammarly plug-in has saved my ass so many times. Solid app.
- Readwise. Another annual mention of this insane highlights app, which is also now a reader app. This is where I store all my highlights from books, articles, podcasts, and more. The thing I love the most is the daily highlight review which reminds me of wisdom I might have forgotten.
- ChatGPT. This one will be something to keep an eye on in 2023, I’m excited to see the AI landscape improve and become more usable in real-life.
Products
Skin+Me. If you have skincare concerns then would highly recommend Skin+Me for a simple and mindless way to take control of your skin. They (doctors and pharmacists) do the hard work and formulate a specific daily doser after you upload some photos of your skin. For me, it has helped clear my acne scars and hyperpigmented skin areas. It’s like a super affordable private skin treatment.
Heights. Generally, I think the evidence behind vitamin supplements and actual health benefits is rubbish (you should read - Harvard Supplements Scorecard). But, these studies consider big benefits like reducing heart attacks or dementia. In terms of smaller benefits, supplements can be very helpful where it isn’t possible to achieve daily targets from the average modern diet. I recommend Heights as it is organic and bulking-agent free.
Foot Rest. Ergonomics are key in preventing long-term health issues with your back and muscles, especially given most of us spend a significant time glued to a chair and screen. This is a cheap and effective improvement to make.
Parker IM Rollerball Pen. Bought this pen earlier in the year, provides a very enjoyable writing experience, and is now my favourite pen. Nothing more to say.
Belkin Magsafe Pad. Gifted to me by my fiancée. Value add has been sick, this sits on my bedside table and is the default place I put my Airpods and Apple Watch after use. At night, I also put my phone on this pad. It means I never lose my devices and they’re always fully charged when I wake up. The quality and design is too good, no similar product comes close.
Thank You
This week is a little different to my usual newsletters as I wanted to maximise the number of useful resources I can share with you. If you’re anything like me, then I’m sure you’ll enjoy at least a few. Lastly, if you have any recommendations for me, then please reply to me at yathprem@gmail.com. Thanks!
Above all else, thank you for returning each week. I hope to be more consistent in 2023 and turn a new leaf in my creator pursuits. I would really appreciate it if you can help me reach more like-minded friends. Share this newsletter (yath.substack.com) with a friend who might enjoy it.
As always be safe, and be happy.
Warm regards - Yath 🤟🏾