# The Alchemist, Unbroken, and Fearless: 3 Books That Reset My Perspective

> Source: [https://icharles.com/articles/the-alchemist-unbroken-and-fearless-3-books-that-reset-my-perspective](https://icharles.com/articles/the-alchemist-unbroken-and-fearless-3-books-that-reset-my-perspective) (canonical)
> Author: Chuck — iCharles, https://icharles.com
> Published: 2017-02-06 · Updated: 2026-07-07

I avoided The Alchemist for years. I don't know why — maybe because everyone told me it would change my life, and that kind of hype usually makes me roll my eyes. I finally picked it up, read it in bed, and when I finished I just put the book down and stared at the ceiling. Felt like I'd been hit by a truck going 100 miles an hour. That's not an exaggeration, that's exactly what happened.

This is part two of my book roundup, and unlike part one, a couple of these aren't the ones you'd expect from a guy who talks about real estate and triathlon training. That's kind of the point. Read outside your comfort zone or you're just reinforcing what you already believe.

## The Alchemist Hit Me Like a Truck

Paulo Coelho wrote this decades ago and somehow I'd never touched it. I found out after the fact that the guy has a couple million followers on Instagram and YouTube — I had no idea he was that big a name. Doesn't matter. What matters is the book goes so deep into what it means to actually live your life on purpose that I closed it and just sat there processing.

I'm not going to summarize the plot for you. What I took from it is simple: the books you keep putting off, the ones that feel like they might ask too much of you, are usually the ones you need most. I'd been avoiding this one for that exact reason. Now it's the first thing I recommend when someone asks me where to start.

## Unbroken Will Wreck Your Excuses

Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand, is about Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner pulled out of the Games to fight in World War II. His plane goes down, he survives weeks adrift, and then he ends up in a Japanese POW camp getting beaten every single day for years. Starved. Treated like an animal. And he made it out alive.

I got emotional just talking about this one on camera. It's a thick book and it's heavy, but it recalibrates you fast. I caught myself mid-review complaining that my internet wasn't working — and I heard myself say it right after describing what this man survived. That's the whole lesson right there. Next time I catch myself spiraling over a bad week at work, I think about a guy who got tortured daily and still made it home. Puts a slow Wi-Fi day in its place real quick.

## Fearless Puts Complaining in Its Place

Fearless tells the story of a Navy SEAL Team Six operator who overcame a rough personal history, rebuilt himself, became an absolute force in the military, and ultimately gave his life in the line of duty. I'd read it once before doing this video and it still got me — I was blanking on my words on camera because it hit me again just talking about it.

Same category as Unbroken for me: perspective. When I hear people — including myself — bitching about something minor, I think about what this guy overcame and what he ultimately sacrificed. It's become a mental checkpoint. Before I let a small frustration take up real estate in my head, I ask if it's actually worth the space.

## Who Should Read These

Start with The Alchemist if you've been putting off a book because you're scared of what it might make you feel — that fear is the signal, not a reason to skip it. Read Unbroken and Fearless back to back if you're a founder, an athlete, or anyone who needs a hard reset on what a real problem looks like. I read fiction and memoir for the same reason I train: to get uncomfortable on purpose, so the actual hard days don't knock me over.