In my life, there have been foundational beliefs, ideas and principles that have helped me achieve success in many respects. I’ve benefited from different schools of thought and learned from mentors of all different backgrounds and ideologies. The way I live my life and the content I share on @thinkgrowprosper are a reflection of these different points of view.
Interestingly, although I spend much of my time writing and curating content about various personal growth philosophies, I realized the other day that I couldn’t point to a well-defined, cohesive set of ideas, principles or beliefs that represented my personal life philosophy in a nutshell...
I feel as though we've danced
this dance many times before—
that I was once a wave and you,
a pebble on the shore.
I softly splashed against you,
then wrapped you up in me.
You asked for an adventure
so I carried you to sea.
When we awoke, we'd slipped
into a different time and place.
This time you gave me water
each time you kissed my face.
And after many seasons
of flourishing with you,
My petals withered in the sun
and I was born anew.
I couldn't bear to be without
my other half, my home.
So soon enough we joined again
among the woods to roam.
I've known you by some other names,
in other places too.
Our souls they are not strangers,
their memories, not few.
I've found you every time
and adored your every state.
You've somehow always found me too,
and so it is with fate.
Each and every time we've met
I've loved you more and more.
Perhaps that's why it seems as though
we've danced this dance before.
—Ruben Chavez
One of the goals I wrote down for 2017 was to set aside more time for reading.
I've found reading to be one of the best ways to organize my thoughts and inspire growth in my life. You can see what books I'm currently reading on Instagram Stories, using the #TGPbookclub hashtag, and I will start posting more book reviews here on the blog.
I'm often asked for a list of books or a reading list for people getting started on their self-development journey. It was hard to come up with a short list and even harder to not write a book report on each one!
I narrowed it down by only including books I have found myself revisiting again and again.
This is my core list of books.
