The masterwork of James Allen, As a Man Thinketh demonstrates the supreme power of thought to change our outlook, attainments and destiny. Embarking on an exploration of the mind's powers, James Allen discusses how thinking influences major facets of action, both internal and in the world around us. Writing plainly but profoundly, the author demonstrates the sheer influence that thinking habits have upon our lives. The author explains his overarching belief that when a person changes how they think, their lives will reflect this difference - the attainment of things such as joy, material or other successes and inner peace represent but a fraction of the possibilities. Philosophical and motivational, this book has long occupied the shelves of millions. While short, the text represents a wellspring of value, useful to refer back to and understand time and again.

Baroque philosopher Balthasar Gracian's The Art of Worldly Wisdom consists of three hundred maxims spanning a wide range of topics relating to all aspects of life and human behavior. Gracian was a Spanish Jesuit Priest whose sermons and writings were disapproved of by his superiors. Admired by Schopenhauer and Nietzsche for the depth and subtlety of his observations, Gracian's collection of pithy insights deserves place alongside similar classic manuals of self-improvement from antiquity like the Enchiridion of Epictetus and Seneca's Letters.