The Third Door
Alex Banayan
Summary
Stumbled upon this book through an Instagram story and so happy I did. Alex tells the story of how he did everything he could to interview some of the greatest minds in America and his journey along the way.
His thesis comes down to this: Imagine life is like a night club. There's always 3 doors in. There's one door, which is the line 95% of people wait in. There's a second door where rich people and those with connections get in. Then there's the third door, the backdoor, which most people don't know exists, but still gets you into the club. Look for the third door in life.
Rating: 4/5
Notes
Find an inside man and ask for his/her help to bring you in
Get credibility by volunteering for credible organizations and write or be featured in known publications
When writing a cold email, think about a specific question and answer you’re looking for. Be direct
Don’t say ‘thanks in advance’ but ‘I know you’re super busy and appreciate it’
‘Luck is like a bus. If you miss one, there’s always the next one. But if you’re not prepared, you won’t be able to jump on’
‘You may have a desire, a dream but you’ve got to work it to the point of where it hurts - most people never get there. They never tap into the hidden reservoir we all have’
Don’t let anyone ever tell you your dream isn’t possible. You’ve just got to hang in there, you’ve got to stay in the fight
Elliot Bisnow’s 5 rules for success:
- Never be on your phone in a meeting. Use a pen
- Act like you belong. Never ask for a picture of peers
- Mystery makes history: don’t let people know too much about you
- Never ever break trust. Your word and reputation is your best asset
- Adventures only happen to the adventurous
Everyone has experiences in their lives but only some make them into stories
The best cure for nervousness is immediate action
What your story is isn’t as important as how you tell it
The only person whose permission you need to live an exponential life if your own
Success is a result of prioritizing your desires
If you don’t ask, you’ll never get it
Read the footnotes, pay attention to the details
If you have a problem, reframe the questions that is amenable to a different kind of solution
Desperation clogs intuition
People like human beings, not random names in their inbox
Do great work and let your work change the world
Choose long term positivity over short term profits
Figure out your opponents fears and use them to your advantage
Think bigger and have a pipeline of opportunities
Always stay an intern in life. Never stop learning
‘Every storm runs out of rain’ - Maya Angelou
Easy reading is damn hard writing
‘Try to get out of the box, learn from all the leaders around you’
Cherish your mistakes
Steve jobs - think different on youtube
It’s our desires for more than our ability
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Buy the book here
Free E-book download here
Make Something Wonderful
Steve Jobs
Summary
The life of Steve Jobs in his own words
Rating: 5/5
Notes
Make something wonderful and put it out there
‘You appear, have a chance to blaze in the sky, then you disappear’
When you’re a stranger in a place, you notice thing you don’t otherwise (Jobs after India trip)
Whenever you start with nothing, always shoot for the moon. You have nothing to lose.
You never achieve what you want without falling on your face a few times
Never be afraid to fail. You never achieve what you want without falling flat on your face a few times
We are never taught to listen to our intuitions, to develop and nurture them. But if you do pay attention to these subtle insights, you can make them come true
Creativity equals connecting previously unrelated experiences and insights others don’t see
Believe that some of what you follow with your heart will come back and make your life richer. And it will. And you will gain even firmer trust on your instincts and intuitions
Make your avocation your vocation. Make what you love your work.
The journey is the reward. The reward isn’t in the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, it’s in crossing the rainbow
To find A+ talent, if experienced, look at their track record and results
The world we know is a human creation and we can push it forward
The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do (read whole ad ‘here’s to the crazy ones)
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but a habit - Aristotle
Hire people better than you are
You can’t plan to meet the people who will change your life
It’s impossible to connect the dots looking forward, but they make sense looking backwards so you have to trust the dots will somehow connect in your future
Everything around you that you call life was made up by people no smarter than you
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Buy the book here
Free E-book download here
