(Part 2) Top products from r/selfimprovement

"How to have a Beautiful Mind" by Edward Debono

http://www.amazon.co.uk/How-To-Have-Beautiful-Mind/dp/0091894603

"How to Win Friends an Influence People" by Dale Carnegie
Download FREE here (see the red text, you don't need to sub to the list there)
http://hotblogtips.com/how-to-win-friends-and-influence-people

I've read this book multiple times. I was EXTREMELY shy and introverted as a kid, this book really helped me with practical suggestions and ideas that anyone can apply.

Do what you love, and you will find people who enjoy what you enjoy.

Don't change yourself to suit other people.

Be true to yourself, and remember that you are perfect just as you are right now, you are a complete and whole human being who is here on purpose.

What you are describing isn't so much a mental state as it is a philosophical position. There are quite a few people, myself included, who believe people are better off not being born and that, consequently, bringing new sentient life into existence is a moral wrong. This position is called antinatalism and it is very rigorously argued for in Better Never to Have Been by philosopher David Benatar. (Here's an audio interview with him.) There's even a subreddit for antinatalism.

In antinatalism, it's very important to make the distinction between life that hasn't yet been started and life that has. While I can say it would have been better for me to never have existed, now that I do exist, I very much wish to continue existing. I didn't choose life, I was forced into it, but I try to make the most of the cards I've been dealt.

Edit. Also, the flip side of this is that I don't owe life, God, my parents or the cosmos anything, least of all my gratitude for being alive. I don't have any obligation to feel happy. Any feelings of gratitude or happiness are for my own benefit, and if I choose to leave early, I'm not being a poor guest.

DISCLAIMER: I'm about to mention a very controversial topic/subreddit. You don't have to agree with it, just please consider it for a moment.

If you find yourself lonely, and possibly shy with women, I would recommend reading The Game and visiting /r/seduction.
Remember to take EVERYTHING you see with a grain of salt, no ...a shovel of salt. I don't endorse using any of the vocabulary or manipulative practices.

Under all the shit there, you will find some good information. I used to live in a sea of self doubt, fear, and loneliness; not anymore. Studying attraction gave me a sense of confidence that I previously lacked. I can now talk to any woman I want with confidence. Talking to women now no longer scares me. I am able to be myself and confidently know that women will find me attractive. I no longer apply self limitations to my conscious /r/howtonotgiveafuck helps with that.

I am now a happy, confident, balanced person. I am embarrassed to say, but Neil's book The Game has been the best self help book I've read to date.

EDIT: You may already know this, but happiness doesn't come from relationships with women but with friendships with everyone. Studying attraction might not give you happiness but it might be blocking your path too happiness. I couldn't see that before I read The Game, now after learning that I am back on the correct path to happiness.

Hello, fellow long-time depression sufferer.

Sorry to pry, but why is your access to mental health care limited? For me, getting a prescription for an SSRI was the magic bullet I needed to build the momentum to get everything else into place.

Anyway, you asked for information on habits. IMHO, this book is a very good one for building sustainable habits. But depending on how debilitating your depression is, that might be a little high-level. (I know it certainly would have been at my low points.)

This reddit post is an excellent foundation for mindset.

As for depression, while I really, truly hope we can find you some professional mental-health care, here are the three pillars I used to pull myself up. Once you build these habits, you should have the energy you need to build others.

• Water: Because dehydration fucks with your mood and energy levels. Before you go to bed, fill a glass of water and put it on your nightstand. First thing in the morning, literally before you get out of bed, drink it dry. (Then refill it, keep it around you throughout the day, and never let it sit empty.)
  
  
• Sleep: Lack of sleep also obviously fucks with your energy levels. Aim for 7-9 hours. Schedule it. There are also a ton of tips out there for how to prepare your environment, body, and mind for a good night's sleep. LMK if you would like me to expand on this.
  
  
• Exercise: Exercise is often as good, if not better, at treating depression than medication. Find a form of exercise you like, and do at least one rep of it. (Why just one rep? The key here is to build the habit, not get in shape overnight. As an example, I got into the habit of flossing my teeth by promising myself I'd floss just one tooth.) If possible (e.g., if it's something you can do without leaving home), do it as the last thing you do before you take a shower.
  
  I can go off on any of these topics for as long as you're willing to read, so LMK if you want more details, theory, whatever behind any of this, habit formation in general, or if you just want to talk about your depression. It sucks, I know, but I love how you're looking at the problem. I wish I had the perspective you do, back when I was in the dark.

The Wisdom of Insecurity by Alan Watts (really, anything by Alan Watts) and The Unteathered Soul by Michael Singer. They're more commonly found under zen or Buddhism than Self Help though. For me they were the most helpful in gaining control of one's emotions and thoughts, as well as self acceptance and happiness in one's life as-is, rather than any unreachable goals or futures.

Being a night person is not the worst thing ever. All throughout college I was a night person (up till 5-6am and waking up at 1-2pm). Now I have made the transition to waking up at 4am almost everyday including weekends. If you are really dedicated to making the switch to mornings. My best advice would be to set multiple alarms (no joke like 5-6 different ones) to go off every couple of minutes, start picking up good habits in the morning(meditation/exercise/reading), and finding something to get you excited to wake up).

Another useful tool I have found is Wake-Up feature from the Hue lighting system. Waking up with the lights on already seems to be the key. But they are pricey.

Well, it sounds like patience might be the first virtue to cultivate. Epictetus is a good starting point :)

Hey the comments in this thread are really good, if I could make a suggestion a really good book you may want to read is When I Say No I Feel Guilty it gives a lot of tools to assert yourself. Another great book is Boundaries by Cloud Townsend, it uses a lot of Bible references, which may or may not be helpful to you, but nevertheless the content is really good.

As mentioned about Carnegie is a must. Otherwise I'd recommend King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, Staying Healthy with the Seasons (some of the nutrition info is out dated but the core of the book is still great), The Book of Five Rings.

GTD without a doubt.

On Anger, one of Seneca's essays, is the classic on this.

everything you need

you can also find a lot of Harry Lorayne books on the pirate bay if that's your thing

but here are some specific techniques: building and using a peg system, the mnemonic major system (remembering numbers), memory palace/method of loci

they take 10-20 minutes each to learn and they get faster to implement each time you do it. I memorize three things a day (almost always using a peg and the mnemonic major system.) I also need to memorize a standup act occasionally and for that I will use the memory palace.