5 Extremely Important Books for Your 20s (only if you're serious)

2026 is almost here and before you tell me, Divya, I will start next year, let me stop you right here. Because the truth is that most people do not fail because they do not have intelligence. They fail because they consume random information without any direction. They read a lot, they see a lot, they listen to a lot, but nothing changes from within. So today, I am not giving you a long list. I will only tell you 5 books, just 5. If you read them properly in 2026, and not like the school syllabus, but like a conversation with someone who is wiser than you, you will see that these books will quietly change the way you think about people, money, emotions, and most importantly about yourself.

And yes, I have read everything, I have underlined their pages, I have closed a lot of chapters just to sit and think. Because some lines do not need motivation, they need maturity. So let me start with a book that seems the simplest, but it quietly changes the way I deal with people. It's called The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins. This book explains a simple thing with a very brutal honesty. Let people do what they want to do. Your partner is ignoring you, let him. Friends cancel their plan at the last minute, let them. Family is judging your choices, let them. This book teaches you a very powerful skill, radical acceptance. Meaning, stop acting and trying to control what you can't control.

When I was reading this book, one line literally stopped me. Let them judge you, let them misunderstand you, let them be wrong about you. It's none of your business. Now you will think, all of this sounds great, but how do you stop feeling it? How can you not feel hurt? You know, this book is not teaching you to detach. It's just telling you to stop forcing connections. When you stop putting pressure on them, relationships will show their true shape. Those who are really yours will communicate clearly with you. Or they will try as hard as you do. Those who are not there will fade out. And believe me, in 2026, you should be more afraid of losing people, your peace.

This book honestly transformed the way I looked at life. It taught me to control my life. I stopped taking people's actions personally. And more importantly, I decided what I would do. What kind of friendships I want, what kind of life I want. And as soon as you learn to control yourself, your life automatically becomes the way you want it to be. The second book is the diary of a CEO by Steven Bartlett. I read this book in the Dharam court when I was with my family. And first thing first, this is not a business book. It's a book on reality. In this book, Steven talks about insecurities, self-doubt, fear of irrelevance. Things that normally people don't associate with success.

But whatever is successful has felt this way. The polished image you show on social media, behind it, self-doubt, loneliness and mistakes are found in the details. The thing I like the most about this book is the idea that the biggest decisions in your life often start with the biggest painful truth. When you finally accept that yes, I'm insecure, yes, I'm lazy, yes, I'm dependent on approval. Only then you get a real chance to grow. This book teaches you that we often design our lives to impress others and then end up getting trapped in that very life ourselves. You know, this book will force you to question your daily choices. Are you really living the life you want to live?

Or the life that was taught to you? From next year, if you write down the reason behind your decisions honestly, you will be able to move forward. You know what I liked about this book is that it was written with actionable insights. They talk about how you need to pay attention to the details. You know how I started out? Is the next time I had a podcast guest, I actually made sure that the temperature was right. I ordered their favourite food. I met Sushmita, her daughter, and I ordered some sushi for her. And honestly, that changed the interaction that was there between us. Suddenly, our daughter was happy, she was happy, and our conversation changed.

These are small things. When you think about them and implement them, you can actually get extraordinary results. You know, these are all idealistic things, but what can you learn from this? Next time you go for an interview, can you read who your interviewer is, which college did you go to, what alumni are there, what are their interests? Can you have these conversations so that really, your interview will completely change? Try it for your next sales call and tell me how it went. You know, this third book was gifted by a very dear friend of mine, Papa CJ. It is The Power of Vulnerability by Brené Brown. The core message of this book is very simple, but it's difficult to digest.

The more you try and protect yourself, the more emotionally lonely you will become. Being vulnerable, acknowledging your feelings, fears, and shame is not a weakness. You know, many researchers show that those who suppress their emotions, they have more risk of anxiety, depression, and relationship breakdowns. Meaning, the more you are, the stronger you are, the less you feel, the more you will keep massaging, the more you will crumble from the inside. You know, you can't selectively numb emotions. If you temporarily put pain, guilt, or fear in a bandage, then joy, love, and connection also become dull. It's very important to understand that you can't selectively mute emotions. You know, when you are shut down to avoid anger, you gradually dull the rest of your emotions.

Then life becomes neutral, with neither too much pain nor too much joy. In 2026, at least choose a person who you can share your real story with. Without editing, without performance. Vulnerability doesn't mean crying on social media or any other platform. Now comes the fourth book, which was very life-changing for me. It's called The Courage to be Disliked and it's by Fumitake Koga. There is a basic argument in this book that happiness is a choice that you make every day for yourself. But to make that choice, you need courage to ignore the opinions that other people have about you. In this book, it is said that all the problems in your life at the end of the day are interpersonal relationship problems and you need to learn how to deal with them.

There is a very simple practical checklist to deal with relationships. The first is, is it my job or someone else's task? The second is, is it because of the habit or because I have to achieve a goal or purpose? The third is, am I doing this task to get some praise or am I just doing it without any expectation? The fourth is, am I treating this other person as an equal or as an adult or am I taking unnecessary pressure? For example, if my kids have exams, is it my task or theirs? Am I supporting them? What do I expect back? Once you have clarity about whose task and responsibility it is, you will realize you will be able to accept happiness more easily into your life every day.

Now comes the final recommendation, the art of spending money by Morgan Housel. The one thing that money can buy you is freedom, the ability to make your own choices, the ability to make your own decisions. But to understand this, you will have to learn what is the art of managing and spending it. And this gives you exactly that. It helps you focus on what are the important things in your life, how you can focus on them and how you can spend your money. Focus on creating a life where money is not controlling you, you are controlling money and you are finally controlling your decisions. So these are the 5 books I genuinely feel you all should read in 2026.

Start with number 5, the art of spending money. Money is the most important thing, its understanding, understanding and learning. If you learn, you will learn a lot for 2026. So start with the art of spending money, about how to make the right choices. Please do read The Courage to be Disliked so that you have the courage to make your own decisions. And if nothing else, go through the Let Them Theory because that will give you a lot of confidence in making your own decisions and taking control of your own life. Please let me know if you have read them, how did you like them, what your favourite books are. And I would like to make a part 2 on that.

Keep reading because that's the way to grow. This digital universe is very big, so if you don't like and subscribe, then we might not be able to meet again. So please if you haven't already, like, subscribe and I look forward to interacting with you a lot more in 2026.