Essential Book to Read This Week - 33 Strategies of War

Image via Wikipedia

This week's book is the second of Author Robert Greene's trilogy of life lessons: 33 Strategies of War. This book is similar to the 44 Laws of Power, only this time, it breaks down warfare instead of power. Each strategy is thoroughly explained with examples of how to use the strategy and how NOT to use it. You'll want to skim through the book once, then go back and read it a few times in order to truly digest each strategy. It's a great read.

Essential Book to Read This Week - 48 Laws of Power

Image via Wikipedia

Today, I'm going to start writing about books that I'm reading that I think should be in every man's library (or power hungry woman, for that matter). This week's pick is the 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene. This book is the bible for life in the shark tank. Greene breaks down each law one by one; giving you examples of the abuses of each law and when each law is put to effective use. For instance, the first law of power is to never outshine the master. Greene shows you one man who did, which lead to his utter downfall, and another man who made the law work in his favor.  50 Cent was so impressed that he wrote a sequel of sorts, adding two more laws to his book. The book is always interesting, never boring or preachy, and requires a few readings just to let it all sink in. It is a must have book with life lessons for all.

Related articles

• Robert Green's 48 Laws of Power (dansfictions.wordpress.com)
• The 48 Laws of Power (tweetingdonalsblaidddrwg.wordpress.com)

Sorry I've Been Away

Cover of The 33 Strategies of War

     It's been a long week of helping to take care of my friend with the brain tumor, on top of all the work I've been doing. A friend of mine gave me a book called "the 33 Strategies of War" by Robert Greene. It's part of Robert Greene's trilogy of book of strategies & rules; this one about war, one about power, & the last one concerning seduction (political & social, not sexual).

     These books are of the self help variety but are not your typical Tony Robbins psycho mumbo jumbo about inner peace & stuff. These books are more a kick in the ass & more reality based. So far, it's a great book & one where I find myself reading every paragraph 2 or 3 times in order to digest it all. That would explain why it's taking me forever to read it.
     My favorite passage so far (I'm only on strategy 5) is this one: "It can be valuable to analyze what went wrong in the past, but it is far more important to develop the capacity to think in the moment. In that way you will make far fewer mistakes to analyze.
     Think of the mind as a river: the faster it flows, the better it keeps up with the present & responds to change. The faster it flows, also the more it refreshes itself & the greater its energy. Obsessional thoughts, past experiences (whether traumas or successes), & preconcieved notions are like boulders or mud in this river, settling & hardening there & damming it up. The river stops moving; stagnation sets in. You must wage constant war on this tendancy in the mind.
     The first step is simply to be aware of the process & of the need to fight it. The second is to adopt a few tactics that might help you to restore the mind's flow."
     There's something to digest to a little while. Of course, I would've put it another way: JUST DO IT.