The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz

This is a personal development book that stresses the importance of attitude and the necessity to eliminate limiting beliefs.

The phrase "limiting beliefs" more or less means that you will only achieve as much as you think you can, as you will only go as far as your greatest goals.

Other advice in the book entails keeping a busy and varied schedule, eliminating negative people from your life, and trying to achieve more than you thought possible.

Despite the good advice nature of the book, I did find myself getting bored with it, and oddly, dwelling on negative thoughts. So while the concepts were nice, I guess it didn't work so much in terms of turning my mentality around, or inspiring me...

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki

Rich Dad Poor Dad is a book that conveys several key lessons which can be summarized as follows:

1. Save First, Spend Later


2. Build Assets (Things which make you money like stocks, businesses, rent, interest etc...)


3. Limit Liabilities (Things which take money out of your pocket like your car, house, pets etc...)


4. Most trained professionals, or intellectuals, are one skill away from creating a lot of wealth, and that skill is sales

Another beautiful point Kiyosaki makes is that people who start businesses really have no interest in working for money. They have interest in creating win win opportunities that generate money for them.

He gives an example of when he and a friend were kids and his friend's Dad, his Rich Dad, offered them jobs. He dared them to accept, and kept on raising the hourly wage to ridiculous levels, something like $700 an hour. The result is that the kids didn't accept, the amount of money was too ridiculous, and it spoke to the part of them that couldn't be bought. At the point that they stopped caring about money, they knew they could find opportunities, and add value to people's lives. It really is a beautiful thought.

Buy from Amazon

The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes

I am not sure what to say about the Ultimate sales machine. I picked up the book to try get a look into the mind of a salesman. Someone who is trained to convince people to make decisions, and in effect, convince them as to what is best for them.

Chet’s main point is that whatever you do, use pigheaded discipline and determination to stick to it. This explains a lot about salesman, they are stubborn and persistent. Annoyingly so, distrustingly so.

Chet goes on to describe ways to sell yourself into mainstream media, create information and portray yourself as an expert. He even goes so far as to suggest making tapes that can almost brainwash you, recording things to yourself like “I love cold calling in the morning” with relaxing music in the background. Scary.

As a scientist, if I am a scientist, I believe in doubt and keeping an open mind, you always want to ask questions, you always want to be open to being wrong, to some other new opportunity. This is good for a soul I believe.

Sales is the opposite. In sales you focus on a goal, you consider all the ways someone can say no, and ways to counter them.

I don’t know whether or not to recommend this book. The parts about getting into the media, planning, and eliciting feedback from customers was useful, the rest was annoying, and honestly, I skimmed quite a bit of this book.

Take it for what it is, and I openly say, I don’t mind if I don’t make this sale.

Buy from Amazon.com