The Butterfly Effect by Andy Andrews is a really quick read (just over 100 pages) that really makes you think about the decisions you make in life. I read an electronic version of this book, but would really like to purchase a copy for my coffee table.

The idea comes from a hypothesis by Edward Lorenz presented in 1963 that “a butterfly could flap its wings and set molecules of air in motion, which would move other molecules of air, in turn moving more molecules of air— eventually capable of starting a hurricane on the other side of the planet.”

He then applies the same theory and says that your actions, no matter how small, can have a much bigger effect on the world. Andrews gives two examples — one of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, a school teacher fighting in the Civil War, and one of Norman Borlaug, the man responsible for hybridizing high yielding, disease resistant corn and wheat that became the ABC News person of the week in 2004. But Andrews takes it a step further and shows how Borlaug would have never become the person of the week if it weren’t for a farmer named Moses Carver.

I highly recommend reading this book! If you feel like what you do in life, whether it be at your job, with your family, or in your community don’t have a bigger effect, this book will open your eyes. Even if you don’t realize it, your actions matter to someone somewhere.

“Everything you do matters to all of us forever.” – Andy Andrews