If you are looking to pursue a path of personal growth here are some great books that are a must read to start you on your journey.

1. As a Man Thinketh – James Allen (1864-1912) wrote this masterpiece in 1902 and has since become a timeless classic in the self help genre. This is such a widely quoted and mentioned book that you would have no doubt have heard of this book at one time or another. So if you haven’t read this book as yet, this would be a great one to start with. The main thesis of James Allens work is that there is power in your thoughts, that which you focus your thoughts on will manifest in your life.

2. The Richest Man In Babylon – Written by George S. Clason. This book is full of timeless wisdom concerning how to deal with, manage and grow your finances. Written in a easy to read format you will glean priceless advice and habits through following the parables depicted in the book. This book is ideal if you are currently in debt or are not managing your finances as well as you should. For everyone else, this book will be inspirational in refining and building your habits of finances.

3. Think and Grow Rich - By Napoleon Hill. This is a must for anyone in pursuit of success and personal growth. This should be a classic that is in everyones success library. The book details how integral your thoughts are to your very success in life. Through applying the fundamental principles outlined in the book you will harness the power of your thoughts and think your way to greater growth and success. Countless people since the publication of this book has used it as there road map to success and fulfillment.

4. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People – By Steven R Covey. This book has been a bestseller for quite some time. Steven Covey has a gift of effectively communicating what it is that we each need to do to become more effective in every area of our lives. He teaches you how to apply the principles in the book through his lifetime study of personal paradigms and has found the keys to distilling what makes some more successful than others.

5. Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert T. Kiyosaki. Another one of my all time favourites. This book has been credited with invigorating a generation and has been responsible for putting many people onto the entrepreneurial path. The book is a journey of Robert with his interactions and learnings from his Rich Dad and his real dad described as Poor Dad in the book. He contrasts the differences and throughout the book details what he learns from each dad that has helped him to get to where he is today. While the story itself is fictional the timeless lessons about money, business and personal growth are inspirational and eye opening.

6. The Success Principles – By Jack Canfield. One of the authors of the widely popular Chicken Soup For The Soul series he goes into detailing the success principles that he has gleaned to make him a success in life. The book is one of those easy to read and apply books. With the abundance of self help books on the market all teaching you a myriad of methods and philosophies, Jack’s book is a refreshing change. He takes you through the principles one by one which enables you to follow in a systematic way, helping you design you life plan with vision, goals and mission statements. After all how can you achieve success without a plan and he then goes onto discussing various principles that are integral to leading a successful life and those that are stopping us from getting what we want. A great book that would not go amiss amongst more timeless classics.

7. The Five People You Meet in Heaven - by Mitch Albom. This is short story which is powerful in its meaning. It’s a soul searching and challenges your belief about your purpose of life and the meaning of your existence on earth. The story follows “Eddie” a maintenance man through the last hours of his journey and then his life after death as he meets the five people in heaven waiting for him to teach him a lesson about his life on earth. It’s though provoking and you won’t see your life the same way after reading this great read.