A&B #31

Hey friends,

Can you believe it's already April? That means summer is just around the corner. If you're planning your vacation, consider making a stop at one of these

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So something cool happened this week, I was interviewed by the British newspaper The Telegraph for an article about reading! The article is behind a paywall, but you can

And if you're looking for a great book to read this weekend, check out 

Alright, let's dive into this week's newsletter.

📚 Book Lessons:

This week I've been reading Jordan Peterson's new book Beyond Order.Here are 3 lessons from it: 1) It's Not About Winning or Losing, It's About How You Play The GameYou may have heard the expression: "It's not whether you win or lose. It's how you play the game." But have you ever asked yourself why playing fair is far more important than winning?Here's Jordan Peterson's answer: Life is a series of games, not just one. And the people who win at life are the ones that people enjoy playing with (whether it be a game of soccer, friendship, or business). If you cheat to win, you'll win the game, but you'll be looked down upon by your peers and won't get invited to play in the next game. If you play fair, however, you'll get invited to play more games and you'll have more opportunities to win.2) More Friends = More LifeHaving friends is important for your physical and mental health. Children with fewer friends are more likely to be unemployed and unmarried as adults, and are more likely to suffer from later psychological problems, says Peterson.Friendship is so important that having a high-quality social network appears to reduce all causes of mortality. A strong social bond reduces your chances of hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, and heart attacks. Related to lesson #1, this is why you want to play fair with others (so get invited back to play which keeps your friendships strong).3) If Something Small Happens Daily, It's Not SMALL

If your significant other constantly leaves their dishes in the sink, you might think it's too small of an issue to pick a fight over. But here's the thing, that minor annoyance adds up. If it happens every day, that means it happens 365 times a year–which means it's not a small problem at all, it's a big problem.And as these small problems compound over time, they build up, and before you know it, you feel anger or resentment towards your partner. However unpleasant a fight may be over a small issue, it's much better to have the fight now and deal with it, than to let it grow and get to the point where it's nearly impossible to solve. "Life is what repeats, and it is worth getting what repeats right," advises Peterson.

✅ Actionable Advice:

1) Remember that it's about playing fair rather than winning. 

• Teach your kids that life, not just sports, is about playing the game to your best ability and not about winning at any cost.

2) Connect with your friends.

• Text one or two of your friends and ask them how they're doing.

• Better yet, come up with a fun activity to do and invite them to join.

3) Identify small daily problems in your life and solve them.

• Grab a piece of paper and write down 5-10 small irritations in your life that happen daily.

• Come up with a solution or plan to solve each issue.

• If you need to have a talk with your roommate or partner to solve it, remember that it's much better to have a small fight now than a huge fight later.

🎧  Podcast Update:

If you missed my podcast with James Altucher, you can watch it here.Speaking of podcasts...Podcast Notes is offering Alex & Books readers an exclusive discount on their premium membership. Become a member to get access to 1,000+ podcast summaries, ad-free viewing, and member-only notes (such as A Guide to Reading More & Become A Better Reader).Use code "BOOKS" to save 10% on your membership here.

📖  Reading Lesson:Here are 6 threads on books better than an English degree.

⭐️  Weekly Quote:Stop buying things you don’t need to impress people you don’t know.Similarly...Stop reading books you don’t enjoy to impress people you don’t know.(source)

Thank you for reading this week's newsletter, I'll see you next Sunday!Read on,Alex W.PS: If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with a friend. They can subscribe here.