Fortis' Favorite Books of 2019

My Favorite Books of 2019 

While I normally spend most of my reading time delving into books on investment or business, my favorite books fell more into the arenas of personal health and development this year (although I still spent quite a bit of time on the business books as well!) If you are looking for some new reads as you head into the new year, check out my favorites from 2019 below:

Why We Sleep by Dr. Matthew Walker

 I’ve long prided myself as someone who could “burn the candle” at both ends and still function at a high level. After the traumatic sleep deprivation that resulted from having twins with caulic and simultaneously being in constant start-up mode building my company, I’ve noticed a substantial degradation in my memory over the last few years (as did my colleagues). Despite this realization, my behavior did not change. To me, people who need to sleep a lot were weak, or at least less ambitious. 

 Some of the best books are those that change our behavior. Why We Sleep Dr. Walker drastically changed my perception of sleep – and with that, has gradually been changing my own sleeping habits. Sleep might be the single best wonder-drug out there; it helps fix not only our physical ailments, but also strengthens our immune systems, regulates our hormones, etc. Not to mention its benefits for weight loss, avoiding Alzheimer’s, and a number of other diseases. In his book, Dr. Walker expertly and accessibly details the brain science behind why sleep makes this possible. 

 Fun Fact #1: While we often attribute the rise in American obesity to the expansion of McDonald’s fast food culture in the 60’s/70’s, research indicates that it may actually be more highly correlated with the decrease in average sleeping hours in our country that resulted from the American Dream culture’s rise.

 Fun Fact #2: You can go without food for longer than you can go without sleep. It’s been proven. A lack of sleep will physically kill you.

 Thought to Ponder: Since we are most vulnerable when we sleep, sleep should have been evolutionarily eliminated… and yet every living creature sleeps in some capacity (although dolphins apparently sleep with one half of their brain at a time). It must be then, that sleep is so beneficial to our well-being that the benefits of sleep fully outweigh the risks associated with it for all living creatures.

Reboot by Jerry Colonna

 This book may be one of the most transformative books that I’ve ever read. It showed me how my own protection mechanisms, created as a child, have deeply impacted the way that I engage with others and the work that I do present day. It helped me to recognize the outdated “ghosts in the machine,” and update those lines of code in my operating system through the lens of an adult. It is the beginning of a lifelong journey of what Jerry calls “radical introspection”.

 A couple key questions that he likes to ask all of his coaching clients which have been very impactful to me follow:

 1)    How have I been complicit in creating the conditions I say I don’t want?

2)    What am I not saying that needs to be said?

3)    What am I saying that’s not being heard?

4)    What’s being said to me that I’m not hearing?

 I have a few books that I re-read every year or so, and I think this one will go on the list – it was that impactful.

Headstrong by Dave Asprey

 After my wife was diagnosed with a brain tumor last year, we’ve been on a health journey to improve our diet, environment, and ultimately take better care of our bodies. This led me to Headstrong,a book authored by the founder of Bulletproof coffee. His goal is to live to 180-years-old – which sounds crazy, I know. But he has conducted a tremendous amount of research on understanding the ways in which our bodies receive, process, and use energy. According to Asprey, it really all comes down to our mitochondria, which have the highest concentrations in our brain and around our heart. This book dives into the ways that certain foods and environments can massively impact our brain function.

For those of you looking for ways to improve your mental clarity, sharpness, and increase the health of your body, this book is for you. The most impactful takeaway that I got from this book is the beginning of an awareness of when my brain and body are not functioning as they should be. 

Before this book, I often attributed mental fog with general tiredness (see sleep deprivation notes above…); however, when you start making the connection between the food that you put into your body and the clarity of your mental functions, it’s powerful.

Scary Fact: Almost every glass of wine and coffee will have some form of mold in them, due to the manufacturing process. There are a few types out there that have been rigorously tested, but these are hard to find and not typically cheap. But as my wife likes to say: “Pay for it now, or pay for it later.” 

Kiss the Ground by Josh Tickell

 Although initially skeptical of the first few chapters, by the end of Kiss the Ground, I was telling all my friends and family about the power of regenerative agriculture to save our food system. 

Think about this: when we think of the Syria that we see on the news today, we often think of a desert wasteland. However, in Biblical times this was the “promised land,” the land flowing with milk and honey, the Fertile Crescent. This was the first area of agriculture by our species; however, it has become a desert. This process of desertification has rapidly accelerated with modern agricultural techniques, and the same thing that happened in Syria is happening today in Central California. It’s an issue that has the potential to legitimately and significantly damage our country’s food-system within the next 50 years… And while we take our good fortune for granted, countries without adequate food are countries in upheaval and revolution. The good news is that it can be reversed – and it starts with us as consumers demanding regenerative farming techniques. 

 The premise of the book is the argument that using proper carbon sequestration through our soil with no-till, polycultural farming will solve the current global warming/climate change crisis. And if that isn’t enough, if you’re anything like me, you may find the more selfish natured argument that our food supply is in danger to be just as – if not more – motivating. 

 For a crash course, watch The Biggest Little Farmon Hulu to see the story of how a couple from LA purchased some of this desert land in the Central Valley and transformed it into a polycultural farm teeming with life.

Another Interesting Takeaway: The patents for one of the primary compounds used in most pesticides (which is sprayed over the vast majority of our food today) was acquired from a German chemical company after WWII. During the war, the compound was used by the German company as chemical weapons against Jews… and now we all ingest it on a daily basis, albeit in small doses. Go organic, please.Combine this book with Headstrong above, and you’ll start to notice the way that eating food sprayed with pesticides impacts your brain/body function.

The Score Takes Care of Itself by Bill Walsh

This book was recommended to me by a friend who is a college football head coach. Written by the infamous 49ers coach who took the team to three Superbowls, The Score Takes Care of Itselfis all about how to create strong processes when leading your own team. Business, investing, sports are all games that involve some degree of control and a large degree of risk/chance/luck. Rather than obsess over outcomes that don’t match what we wanted, instead focus on the inputs to the process. Relentlessly focus on the process, and the outcomes that you want will eventually show up. This is a must read for business/team leaders, and a book I’d highly recommend. 

I’d love to hear your recommendations for best books I should read in the coming year!