James Altucher
By Jonathan M. Prober on June 3, 2013
I was fortunate enough to read this wonderful new book by the author James Altucher (I first read his work by following him on twitter @jaltucher and reading posts on his website jamesaltucher.com).
It is one of the most enjoyable and informative books I've ever read, and I highly recommend folks take some time to check it out. It's not that long but, wow, is it packed with powerfully-good information.
I could write about it for a while but, rather than doing so, it is probably more efficient to just mention a few of my favorite tidbits from the book in hopes that you'll give it a read.
My personal favorite aspect of the book is its unique ability to be both practical and idealistic.
Some quick examples:
First, his impressive intertwining of the importance of mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional harmony. Here are one of his recommendations from each of these four pieces:
Mental: “Read two hours a day.”
Spiritual: “Do this every day: wake up and think of five people you are grateful for in your life right now.”
Physical: “Am I sleeping enough?”
Emotional: “Am I expressing gratitude to the people who are good to me?”
Lastly, a few short snippets:
I really enjoyed his insight into an alternative way of creating value (which I personally feel is an important key to cultivating capitalism optimally):
“The only way to create value for yourself is to create value for others. Exercise: think of two people in your network who don't know each other but you think can add value to each other's lives. Introduce them. Do this every day. Get better and better at it. The more value you bring to the people in your network, even if it doesn't directly bring value to you (in an immediate way), the greater the value of your network. And then the greater value you will have.”
I also liked his advice on how to learn from others:
“Don't be a hater! Ninety-nine percent of people are haters. Bless that which you want.
If you want to be successful, you need to study success, not hate it or be envious of it. If you are envious, then you will distance yourself from success and make it that much harder to get there. Never be jealous. Never think someone is ‘lucky.' Luck is created by the prepared.”
I highly recommend taking some time to read this wonderful author's intriguing ideas.
