I took notes of these important recommendations:
1- Forget passion focus on a purpose: don’t be passionate be purpose-driven, be humble and start to show up.
What is Lorem Ipsum?
Contrary to popular belief, Lorem Ipsum is not simply random text. It has roots in a piece of classical Latin literature from 45 BC, making it over 2000 years old. Richard McClintock, a Latin professor at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, looked up one of the more obscure Latin words, consectetur, from a Lorem Ipsum passage, and going through the cites of the word in classical literature, discovered the undoubtable source.
2- Don’t fake it until you make it! Make it so that you don’t need to fake it.
Just imagine if a doctor is faking it until he makes it! You will need to do what you’re supposed to do. I always tell the sales consultants I train, people lie but numbers don’t! You can hide behind your diplomas, family and friends as much as you want, but at the end of the day your numbers of how many sales you have closed will show how good you are.
3. Identify what your path is, to figure out what you’re here to do in this world.
In order to know that path, ask yourself, why do you do what you do? Who do I want to be? What path will I take?
4 - Do you know how you can tell when someone is truly humble?4 -
Holiday believes there is one simple test: because they consistently observe and listen, the humble improve. They don’t assume, ‘I know the way’. – Arrogance and self-absorption inhibit growth. We need humility, diligence, and self-awareness.
5- Stay a student and progress with silence.
“Do you know what is scarce and rare? Silence which is the respite of the confident and the strong!”
“You can’t learn if you think you already know” – Epictetus
“As people progress, they must also understand how they learn and then set up processes to facilitate this continual education. Otherwise, we are dooming ourselves to a sort of self-imposed ignorance. Silence the noise around you so that you can finally hear the quiet voice you needed to listen to. Most successful people are people you’ve never heard of, They want it that way! It keeps them sober. It helps them do their jobs.”
As a conclusion, I want to thank Ryan Holiday for this honest eye opener and interesting journey into ego and its effect on our lives and decision-making process. This is one of those books that give the reader much to reflect on and apply to their own lives in dealing with their own inevitable intrusion of ego.
A finale note, having a purpose beyond your existence will always be more important than your success and failure. It will help you be in control of your ego and emotions, not the opposite.