How To Live: Rules For People Who Don’t Like Rules

COMING October 2026 / Pre-order Amazon / Kindle / Bookshop.org

You can read the free excerpt here

HOW TO LIVE is a book about the big questions: meaning, time, life, death, love, fear, regret, and what to do when stranded on an island. It provides answers the way a smart friend would: wisely, honestly, and with a joke that opens you up inside.

Kirkus reviews said: “A thoughtful treatise on living mindfully that combines everyman wisdom with a healthy dose of irreverence.”

Berkun, a bestselling author (Confessions of a Public Speaker, Myths of Innovation), was a philosophy major in college. He spent twenty years traveling the world discussing ideas from his books and learning from wise people about how to live a great life. In this short, fun book of hard won wisdom, you will get his 26 memorable rules to help you live well too.

This book is for you if:

You are not dead
You are smart
You want more from self-help books
You want to live a great life

“I am smitten with How To Live. You’ll love Berkun’s hard-won lessons. I read all 26 rules in one sitting.”
– Robert I. Sutton, Professor Emeritus at Stanford / NYTimes bestselling author of eight books including The No Asshole Rule.

“A practical, no-nonsense manual for navigating life on your own terms, proving that deep wisdom doesn’t require dense prose to pack a punch.”
– Christopher Phillips, Author and founder of the Socrate Cafe movement

“The only rulebook worth breaking the rules for. Short, funny, and it ends in a manifesto I wanted to steal.”
– Chris Guillebeau, Author of Time Anxiety and The $100 Startup

Legendary endorsements for How To Live (Consilia per somnium a mortuis) :

“Finally, a book worth re-reading. Five stars. The audiobook is great for hill workouts.”
– Sisyphus

“The only thing is that I know nothing — and this book has doubled my knowledge.”
– Socrates

“To buy or not to buy? Keep your nerve and act with no regrets.”
– Hamlet

“Here is the simplest possible advice: read this book today.”
– Occam

“You cannot read the same book twice, but if you could this one would be worth it.”
–Heraclitus

“I predicted this book would be brilliant but no one believed me.”
– Cassandra

“I opened it. No regrets.”
– Pandora