Paul Millerd
Writer and former management consultant; author of The Pathless Path and Good Work, about leaving conventional career tracks.
A Field Guide to Getting Lost by Rebecca Solnit
A series of autobiographical essays exploring wandering, uncertainty, memory, desire, and place—embracing the unknown as a gateway to self-transcendence.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Anything You Want: 40 lessons for a new kind of entrepreneur by Derek Sivers
I love Derek's writing. He knows who he is, what he wants, and shares the true journey of what it means to embrace those things.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Conscious Accomplishment: How to Use Personal Achievement for Spiritual Growth by Scott Britton
A guide for ambitious people who feel called to inner work, showing how to use goals, career, and achievement as fuel for consciousness growth instead of a source of endless striving.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Crossing the Unknown Sea: Work as a Pilgrimage of Identity by David Whyte
My favorite Whyte prose book. Captures his leap to becoming a poet well.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Dirtbag Rich: High Freedom, Low Income, Deep Purpose by Blake Boles
This book is a short but inspiring take on living life on your terms while being pragmatic about money and how to make it happen. Reminds me of a less travel-centric Vagabonding.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Good Work: Reclaiming Your Inner Ambition by Paul Millerd
A personal exploration of how to reclaim that fire inside of you and steer it toward your 'good work' while still being true to yourself.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
In Praise of Idleness by Bertrand Russell
A collection of timeless essays from philosopher Bertrand Russell, including his famous 'In Praise of Idleness' which challenges our obsession with work and argues that leisure time, properly used, is essential for a fulfilling life and a better society.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Leisure: The Basis of Culture by Josef Pieper
A short but powerful reflection from post-WWII Germany on 'true leisure' not mere relaxation or entertainment—is fundamental to human flourishing and the foundation of a meaningful life and culture.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Mastery by Robert Greene
A deep exploration of what mastery looks like in practice, often involving many more challenges than we imagine. No one goes deeper than Greene.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Reclaiming Control: Looking Inward to Recalibrate Your Life by Amy McMillen
A short but 'pathless' journey through stepping off the conventional path a year after graduating, daring to ask the questions that linger below the surface. A big inspiration for deciding to write my book!
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Rest by Alex Pang
A refreshing counterargument to our culture's obsession with busyness, showing how deliberate rest is an essential component of the good life.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Art of Gig, Volume 1: Foundations by Venkatesh Rao
An unconventional guide to the craft of indie consulting and life in the gig economy, mixing philosophy, pattern language, and very practical guidance for building a client-based solo career.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Great Work of Your Life: A Guide for the Journey to Your True Calling by Stephen Cope
A nice personal + historical deep dive into finding your dharma by embracing both your gifts and limitations in service of something greater than yourself.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Heart Aroused: Poetry and the Preservation of the Soul in Corporate America by David Whyte
A unique lens on work in the late 90s that still resonated when I read it in 2018. It's a soulful exploration of how to maintain your humanity, creativity and inner fire in environments that often prioritize conformity and efficiency.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Inner Compass: Cultivating the Courage to Trust Yourself by Lawrence Yeo
A perfect sized companion (~100 pages) to understanding and trusting your intuition—breaking free from external validation and building courage through three core principles.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Pathless Path: Imagining a New Story For Work and Life by Paul Millerd
My personal exploration of breaking free from conventional career paths to discover a more intentional and meaningful way of working and living.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Sovereign Artist: Meditations on Lifestyle Design by Vizi Andrei
A collection of short essays and aphorisms on crafting a life of autonomy, creativity, and intentional leisure—challenging hustle culture with elegance and philosophical depth.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
The Way Home: Discovering the Hero's Journey to Wholeness at Midlife by Ben Katt
Ben's personal reflections on reinventing himself at "midlife" (though relatable at any age). I love how he leaned into a new version of himself without dramatically blowing up his life.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World by Anne-Laure Le Cunff
A more how-to pragmatic version of carving your own path. Includes some personal story of reinvention but more on experimentation that challenges our default scripts of success and ambition.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Unhinged Habits: A Counterintuitive Guide for Humans to Have More by Doing Less by Jonathan Goodman
Part memoir, part raw, honest reflection, part useful ideas for a pathless life. I loved how this book didn't follow a non-fiction formula. His 'on-season'/'off-season' approach was useful for me.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel by Rolf Potts
If you desire to live a life with more travel and adventure, this is a must read. It challenges our default beliefs about time and money through the lens of travel.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Vow of Aliveness: Saying YES to the mess and magic of a true life by Ravi
A powerful personal story from a friend Ravi, who reinvented his life through the lens of activism, entrepreneurship, and life exploration.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Wild Problems: A Guide to the Decisions That Define Us by Russ Roberts
Roberts reflects on the wild problems we face in our lives and how to navigate them—like career changes, marriage, or children—that can't be solved on a spreadsheet.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Young Money: A Field Guide to Wealth and Purpose in Your Twenties by Jack Raines
Fantastic memoir of figuring it out in your twenties and alternatives to blindly pursuing the default path.
on pathlesspath.com · 21 Mar 2025
Everything Paul Millerd recommends — not just books — on rcmnd →