1. How To Think More About Sex By Alain de Botton
Panmacmillan.com
De Botton says we need to balance love and desire, adventure and commitment, to find happiness.
2. On the Shortness of Life by Seneca
Penguin.co.uk
Head stoic Seneca provides a lucid, eloquent guide to living life with a stiff upper lip and a logical mind.
3. Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway by Susan Jeffer
Eburypublishing.co.uk
Jeffer says we should stop trying to perfect our mental state, accept limited control and learn to live with it, then happiness follows.
4. Getting Things Done by David Allen
Littlebrown.co.uk
The likeable geek says we need to apply a two-minute rule to decisions and operate a “do it, delegate it, defer it, drop it” principle.
5. How to Win Friends and Influence People in the Digital Age by Dale Carnegie
Simonandschuster.co.uk
The Old English Sheepdog of the self-help cannon - amiable, companionable and dependable.
6. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Hodder.co.uk
This two-million seller is actually not too silly, directing us to live in the moment, thus freeing ourselves from lots of anxiety.
7. Mindfulness for Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Amazon.co.uk
The idea here is to reduce stress and become better all round by using mindful meditation to focus the mind on what is important.
8. Feeling Good by David Burns
Harpercollins.co.uk
This guide to basic cognitive behavioural therapy was shown to be as effective as prescription drugs at improving mood.
9. Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
Penguin.co.uk
“If you are distressed by anything, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it.” Counsel from a Roman Emperor.
10. The Stuff of Thought by Steven Pinker
Penguin.co.uk
Pinker takes the notion of the connectedness of thought and speech, then explores the science and reasoning behind it. - The Independent