Overview – This book I read while in college and then again out of school. It is something of a follow up to the 48 Laws of Power. Robert Greene wrote this book with 50 Cent and this book is centralized around fear, and how fear controls people and zaps us of our potential to be bold, daring, and adventurous. 50 Cent’s near-death shooting where he was shot nine times and lived to talk about it serves as a backdrop for the book. Overcoming the fear is a catalyst for success in industry, entertainment, and commerce. After seeing the worst of humanity, it comes second nature to say what you feel and remove fear from the equation when dealing with people. This book has ten chapters that all center all around overcoming fear they are: See Things for What They Are – Intense Realism, Make Everything Your Own – Self-Reliance, Turn Shit into Sugar – Opportunism, Keep Moving – Calculated Momentum (this chapter I wrote an entire essay on), Know When to Be Bad – Aggression, Lead from the Front – Authority, Know Your Environment from the Inside Out – Connection, Respect the Process – Mastery, Push Beyond Your Limits – Self-Belief, Confront Your Mortality – the Sublime to which is the most powerful law in this book. Utilize the reality of death can propel even the meekest of men break conformity and move into fearless action.
Theme – Be Fearless
Biggest takeaway - Confront Your Mortality – the Sublime. This chapter is all about using the fear of death to overcome fears in life. The fear of death usually tops the list of people’s biggest fears and to be honest it is no secret why. Nobody knows exactly what happens when our lives end; through faith we conceptualize eternal life of bliss in heaven or an endless torture in hell either way similar to the existence of God no one is quite sure the truth. Because this paint a rather bleak end to a life that can be rich and fulfilling most do not think about it and choose to live not thinking about it at all. This chapter instructs a person instead of seeing death as something to fear a person can see it instead as a part of life. Just like eating and sleeping. Death is something we are born with it’s something that lives inside us and one day it will come awake and take over but this is not be feared. In this way of mediating on life ending it is easy to come to the conclusion that people will not be so fearful in their daily actions: they will say what they think, do what they want, and spend time with people they most care about. On people’s death bed the number one thing people often regret is working too much using the sublime helps people overcome the fears of everyday life to step firmly and boldly into a life they are gratifying and blissful.
Overall Satisfaction – 9.8/10 – This is such a powerful book much shorter than the 48 Laws but really spoke to me in the way it was written Love this title!
Comments on the Author – Robert Greene wrote this with 50 Cent after meeting with him and through the discussions found that from 50 Cent’s near-death event of getting shot nine times and him growing up without a mother and a father, he was able to navigate life without fear. Robert Greene wanted to write about this and how it can work for people in their everyday lives. Using 50’s life as a backdrop Greene weaved in universal laws for success, prosperity and overcoming fear.
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