Lessons on Living: Finding Your Way Through Life’s Ups and Downs by Nigel Latta

Bestselling author and psychologist Nigel Latta opens his new book with a gut-punch: what do you do when you’re told you have months to live?

His first answer: eat a lot of ice cream, sets the tone for Lessons in Living: Finding Your Way Through Life’s Ups and Downs. His second is to lean on a personal toolkit built on three simple principles. When the prognosis came, he had to put his toolkit to the ultimate test.

“We all get tested in life, that’s unavoidable, so what do you do when you are?” he asks.

“Lessons on Living is a deeply personal book about resilience and determination in the face of the worst. These are the principles I used for over three decades working as a clinical psychologist, and more lately in my career as a broadcaster.”

Nigel distills psychology into three principles designed for life as it is: messy and unpredictable. He applies them to leadership, parenting, relationships and more. Instead of telling you to ‘think positive’, he shows how to respond well to whatever happens and any situation. Each chapter translates a principle into everyday practice including guidance and memorable stories.

Nigel’s writing has always been witty and demystifying and Lessons on Living is his most personal yet. He turns clinical insight onto his own crisis, which frames the book, and uses his trademark humour to keep it light, without losing depth.

When he talks about ‘driving your own bus’ it isn’t a cliche, but a real push for agency that still makes room for grief, fear and uncertainty to ride along. The result is a practical toolkit that doesn’t promise to eliminate pain, but helps you handle more of it with flexibility and focus on what matters. The book’s true audience is anyone navigating a rough patch.

By the end, the ice cream anecdote feels less like a quip and more like a thesis: make room for joy, especially now. Nigel Latta’s three principles won’t make life simple, but they will certainly make it more workable!

“My hope is that people might take some of the things I’ve learned on my journey and apply that in their own way in their own lives. There are three key principles I have used in my life, and a bunch of nuggets scattered around each one.”

Nigel Latta ONZM is a clinical psychologist, author and broadcaster. He has written eight books that have been translated into 15 languages. In September 2024, Nigel revealed that he had been diagnosed with incurable cancer and is having treatment. Lessons on Living is an intimate and candid journey through some of the toughest days of his life. Sadly, Nigel passed away on 30 September 2025.

Reviewer: Andrea Molloy

HarperCollins