Self-Knowledge

How to succeed at defeat

An examination of the importance of self-knowledge, providing practical exercises to aid self-discovery.

In Ancient Greece, when the philosopher Socrates was asked to sum up what all philosophical commandments could be reduced to, he replied: "Know yourself". Self-knowledge matters so much because it is only on the basis of an accurate sense of who we are that we can make reliable decisions - particularly around love and work.

This book takes us on a journey into our deepest, most elusive selves and arms us with a set of tools to understand our characters properly. We come away with a newly clarified sense of who we are, what we need to watch out for when making decisions, and what our priorities and potential might be.

Download the accompanying reference guide.©2020 The School of Life (P)2020 The School of Life

succinct and insightful

A succinct book and tutorial to gain insight into one's emotional life. I found it very helpful.

Learn to talk and listen to yourself

Very thoughtful book. Some may dislike the accent (English) but I didn’t find it monotone or distracting. I look forward to sitting down with myself and having insightful conversations!

The Most Underrated Skill We Ignore

The topic of self-knowledge is incredibly underrated, and I’m genuinely glad that The School of Life chose to focus on it. I really enjoyed this book overall—it offers thoughtful insights and feels meaningful in a way that sticks with you. That said, I do wish the book had spent more time upfront making a stronger case for why self-knowledge matters. There was some effort to do this in the beginning, but it didn’t feel quite convincing enough before moving into the deeper content. Still, despite that, I found the book valuable and engaging, and I would absolutely recommend it to anyone interested in understanding themselves on a deeper level.

pretty short and inspirational

pretty short and inspirational

just writing because it tells me I need at least 15 words which sucks!

terrible voice

I couldn't even finish this short book because this ladies voice was so mononinus she put me to sleep every time I started listening. I've heard some bad voices in my time on audible but this one was so bad I couldn't even concentrate on what she was saying.