When I Stop Talking, You'll Know I'm Dead
Jerry Weintraub
Summary
From one of the biggest dealmakers in Hollywood history, Jerry was often involved in every great movie since the 60s. This book is his memoir and what he learned navigating the entertainment industry.
Rating: 4/5
Notes
Savour life, don’t press too hard, don’t worry too much
Relationships are the only things that matter in the business of life
People will pay you to make their lives easier
Personal service is the name of the game
Every 10 years the world comes down and a big hand sweeps the dishes off the table
When the game changes, you have to change with it
Remember the value of limited edition
Persist, push, bang on, keep going, never give up
Let the other guy save face with his people but keep the score
If you want to have a long life and career, you need to remember ‘screw ‘em’
Be in charge of your own destiny
Know what you’re buying
His biggest talent: when he believed in something, it was going to get done
Always work with the best people
Love, loyalty, concern temperature with a large dose of comedy
Hollywood producers: put everything together and solve problems
You have to be willing to walk away from the most comfortable perch, precisely because it is the most comfortable
As long as you’re here, you might as well smile
The best politicians are the same as movie stars: charming, communicate and command
If you find something you love, keep doing it
Never be afraid to fail and never be afraid to look silly
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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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