Finding meaning and motivation in life is often hard, especially when you are going through rough times in your life. Finding strength and meaning could be easier when you look around at the works of the greatest authors and motivational speakers. If you’re searching for good books that motivate, ones that combine wisdom, resilience, and heart, here are some of the great works by experts that will surely ignite the essence of motivation in you.
Such Is Life?: Framing a Positive “Next” Mindset in the Wake of Life’s Setbacks by Bobby Steffens
One of the very first books on our list is Such is Life? by Booby Steffens. This memoir is the centerpiece of our list of good books for motivation and strength. In Such Is Life?, Steffens shares his journey through both sweetness and struggles. The author carefully represents his whole life journey in artistically whether you look for chapters about his early life in Oregon’s wild or it is about his professional life in military aerospace.
What stands out is how he learns to frame a “next” mindset: to see setbacks not as ends but as soil for growth. For all those people who are going through the most difficult phase in their lives, the books bring a fresh reminder that no matter how tough the phase of life that you are going through, the inner motivation and positive outlook will guide you through.
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear:
One of the most famous books is considered a good book for motivation in 2025. However, the book was published a long time ago, but its nuances about transition still hold relevance in modern times.
The author gives you a simple yet effective method of improving your life 360 degrees with 1% improvements that compound into big transformations. If staying motivated feels overwhelming, this book helps by focusing on small wins. Which, according to the author, transforms your life completely and leads you towards greater success in life. This is one of those books that inspires, motivates, and helps you to transform in the most addictive ways.
Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl:
The most interesting aspect of difficult times is that they always leave you with a lesson. When facing truly dark or hard times, few books match the depth and resilience of Man’s Search for Meaning. Frankl, having survived concentration camps, distills what it means to find purpose even in the worst circumstances.
What makes the book super popular among readers is that they keep turning back to the text for advice, motivation, and guidance in some of the toughest phases of their lives. The book never disappoints and walks you through the path of inner strength, resilience, and determination.
The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle:
The idea of most of the motivational books that are available in the market is that you need to keep standing tall when you are in the abyss of disappoint. However, the book The Power Now brings along a new perspective that teaches you that motivation isn’t about pushing harder, but about becoming more present.
The Power of Now helps with that: it teaches how letting go of past regrets and future anxieties frees you to live fully in the moment. For anyone hoping for good books for motivation and inner growth, this one changes perspective. The author offers a fresh yet relatable perspective, suggesting that despite the challenges the future holds, it is essential to maintain your focus on the present to restart your life from a better place.
Practicing the Power of Now: Essential Teachings, Meditations, and Exercises from The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
This is a companion to The Power of Now, more practice-oriented. If you liked Tolle’s ideas and want to build motivation and strength through action, meditation, awareness, and daily spiritual discipline, this book provides tools and practices. It helps cement inner peace and clarity.
While there are a few books that guide and motivate, others provide solutions and resolutions to help you take on tasks in your life and bring about the change you have been hoping for. this book is regarded as the must read when it comes to compiling the list for good books for motivation in hard times.
How to Get Inspired by Motivation Books
One of the key takeaways from good motivation books for inner growth and resilience. All the tremendous books listed above not only teach us about being present in the moment but also ensure that challenges are built around us to guide and allow us to learn through each hardship. To conclude, If you’re seeking good books for motivation, ones that inspire inner strength, growth, and resilience, these five have something profound to offer. Such Is Life? is a powerful recent addition, perfect for motivation in 2025 and especially helpful for navigating life’s setbacks. The others are timeless companions, guiding us through habit, presence, meaning, and spiritual depth.