You are the product of your past. You are the sum of your influences. So, who are you?
When reading about influential figures — scholars, thinkers, leaders — on Wikipedia, there’s often a section detailing who influenced them and who they, in turn, influenced. It’s a reminder that no one exists in a vacuum. We are all shaped by the ideas, experiences, and people that come before us.
Today, I want to talk about some thinkers — past and present — who have deeply influenced me.
Marcus Aurelius
I was searching — not just for knowledge but for meaning. Some people are fortunate to have a strong sense of belief and certainty about life. I wasn’t one of them. I had more questions than answers, and my curiosity led me down many different paths. One of those paths led to Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.
Reading his reflections on life, discipline, and resilience felt like discovering a guidebook for existence. I loved it so much that I read it twice, and I know I’ll return to it again in the future. Someone once said that you don’t need to read a hundred books; you can read one book a hundred times. Meditations is one of those books for me.
Robert Greene
I’ve read most of Robert Greene’s books, and his writing on power and history is unparalleled. My introduction to him was by chance — through a friend of a friend. I was on my way to a meditation retreat, waiting for a train from Liverpool Street to the countryside of Ipswich. We sat together, eating, when I noticed he had a thick red book. I asked him about it, and he told me it was The 48 Laws of Power. He was into business and sales and said this book would help him become powerful by making him rich.
At that time, I wasn’t interested in power. I was searching for meaning, not influence. But years later, I picked up The 48 Laws of Power myself. Initially, I thought, Is this book going to make me evil? But as I read and re-read it, I realised it wasn’t about corruption — it was about understanding how society functions. At first, my moral framework made it difficult to digest, but over time, I came to appreciate his insights. His work doesn’t just teach you how to play the game; it teaches you to recognise when others are playing it against you. That awareness is power.
Al-Ghazali
I realised that science alone could not fulfil what the heart seeks. It was no longer just about material achievement or intellectual mastery. I was drawn to Khalil Gibran’s poetry, the wisdom of Ibn Arabi, and, most of all, the journey of Al-Ghazali.
When I discovered The Alchemy of Happiness, I instantly knew it was true. Here was a man who had everything society deemed valuable — prestige, status, and a brilliant career in religious scholarship — yet he came to understand that mere knowledge was not enough. When learning becomes performative rather than transformative, it loses its purpose.
Ghazali grasped something most struggle to accept: it’s not just about what you know; it’s about how that knowledge shapes you. If it doesn’t change you, it’s meaningless. He abandoned his prestigious career to seek truth in silence and solitude. That journey led to The Alchemy of Happiness, where he concludes that happiness is not about external validation but about finding contentment in what life — or, in his view, God — has given you.
Cal Newport
Cal Newport will teach you how to be so good they can’t ignore you. I first came across him through a TED Talk where he argued that people should delete social media and go offline. I thought he was crazy. But even though I didn’t fully grasp his ideas at the time, something about them made sense.
Over time, I started applying some of his principles, particularly from Digital Minimalism. His work on focus and deep work resonated with me deeply. The more I distanced myself from social media, the more I understood what he was talking about. The clarity, the stillness, the ability to truly be present in life — it was something I didn’t even realise I was missing. Today, I can’t imagine going back to a life of mindless scrolling. Life is simply too beautiful to waste on endless distractions.
Robert Kiyosaki
Robert Kiyosaki is someone I’ll never forget. When I read Rich Dad Poor Dad, it gave me a level of confidence I had never felt before. It made me believe I could achieve anything.
I still remember when a school friend handed me the book. I started reading it that night and couldn’t put it down. I read half of it in one sitting — until 4 AM — despite having college in the morning. His writing is so engaging that you don’t just read his books; you absorb them.
Whether his story about having a “rich dad” and a “poor dad” is real or fictional doesn’t matter. The lessons he teaches about money, financial literacy, and economic structures are invaluable. If you want to understand how money works, his books are a must-read. If you want to build something of your own, his mindset will shift the way you see the world.
Gary Vaynerchuk
I discovered Gary Vaynerchuk and instantly connected with him. The first video I watched was about direct messaging people on Instagram to build connections. He predicted that most people watching would immediately go out and start spamming. He was right — I spammed.
But as I followed his work, I realised he wasn’t just talking about marketing — he was talking about authenticity. He taught me the importance of documenting rather than creating, of showing all aspects of life, not just the highlights. He emphasised using social media with purpose and intention rather than letting it control you.
Somewhere along the way, his ideas merged with Cal Newport’s in my mind. I came to the conclusion that if you’re not creating something meaningful, you have no business being on social media. That shift in mindset changed the way I approach technology entirely.
Final Thoughts
Marcus Aurelius taught me how to navigate life’s uncertainties. Robert Greene showed me that the greatest thing you can do is empower yourself. Al-Ghazali reminded me that knowledge without transformation is meaningless. Cal Newport demonstrated what it means to live a deeper, distraction-free life. Robert Kiyosaki made me believe that with strategic thinking and planning, I could build something great. Gary Vaynerchuk taught me how to be authentic in a world where everyone wears masks.
We are all the product of our influences. The ideas we absorb shape who we become. The question is — who are you letting influence you?
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