I listened to this on Audible. It is written and narrated by Arnold Schwarzenegger. I imagine this would be one of those books where you can hear the author’s voice as you read. However, as I listened to the audiobook I was pleased to hear his voice narrate his words. He is a man with a distinct accent; one that he jokes about after he admits that he paid for an accent-removal coach and suggests he should get his money back.
This motivational and inspiring book delves into his actions, philosophies and work. It explored a side I was not aware of previously. It is also honest. In the introduction, he mentions the scandals that have occurred over the past decade which he doesn’t go into detail. In his words, his family have gone through enough.
I felt inspired to take action. Schwarzenegger is a man who had a big, bold dream; to make it to America, the land of opportunity. I think about his story and it amazes me how unbelievable it is. Looking at it, there shouldn’t have been a way for a boy raised in a small town in Austria from a modest family to become the success he is today. But, he did, and the world is a better place because he had big dreams and he followed through with them. He is a flawed human (like we all are) but he doesn’t hide behind that or make excuses.
The main key points I learnt from this book are to have a (big) dream, and a vision, work hard, follow your instinct, not make excuses, be honest and help others by being useful.
Whilst it is a biography, it also sits under the self-help/personal development umbrella and it has helped inspire me to dream bigger, follow my vision and put the extra reps in – whether that is at the gym or work. But it is ok if you’re dreams or goals aren’t as lofty as his.
There is so much to unpack in this book, from his time as a bodybuilder, Hollywood actor, governor of California and survivor of a heart operation, I definitely need to listen to it again. Overall, Be Useful is pretty useful.
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