I know I misled many of you with Ray Dalio’s Principles – started off strong and then total bust – apologies again.

This time, however, I am already halfway through Tribe of Mentors (almost 300 pages in 3 days) and it is EXCELLENT.

•  I can 100% recommend this book – no matter your age, your position in life, your interests.
• Everyone will get something out of it. I would especially encourage college students to give it a try – some very insightful responses about what advice they (the experts) would give college students about entering the “real world” – including what advice they should ignore.

Here’s the premise for those of you not familiar:

Tim Ferris (podcaster, author) asked several hundred people from diverse fields (some well known, some not) to answer 11 questions. The questions were ones we would all want to pose to mentors and experts in real life.

• 137 people responded and the book includes all of them along with a selection of their responses.
• Btw, I am going to answer all 11 questions in a blog post soon and hopefully some of you will do likewise.
• In the meantime, I find myself itching to get home to immerse myself in the Tribe.  I know I will be immensely sad when I turn the last page.

Read on below for more on what I’m getting out of this book (and why I love it so much) and why you too might find it inspiring and entertaining.

 

IT’S DOCUMENTARY-STYLE – and you all know that’s my thing

•  So far, I am only familiar with a quarter of those interviewed – so I’m being introduced to dozens of extraordinary people – writers, founders, thought leaders.
• The author provides a very brief background for each and, importantly, lists all their social media handles. I’m already following several on twitter. The most outstanding is Naval Ravikant, the founder and CEO of AngelList. In flipping through the book as I write this, I noticed I have underlined and asterisked almost his entire 4 page interview!

 

BREVITY and FAST-PACED WRITING

• Ferriss includes, at most, 4 pages per person, sometimes less.
• It’s all “meat” no filler.
• It’s a breeze to read and you won’t want to put it down.

 

IT  MAKES YOU REALIZE HOW INTERCONNECTED FAILURE IS TO SUCCESS

One of the best questions: “How has failure set you up for later success?”

Inspiring to hear each of these people share their stories.

EVERYONE has gone through this. And many specifically note they would not have achieved their success -or their bliss – if they had not failed, sometimes horrendously, on their initial path.

• “Failure is inextricably connected to any major success I’ve ever had.” (Kyle Maynard – google him!!)
• “Suffering is a moment of clarity.” (Naval Ravikant)
• “I wish at least one catastrophic failure on everyone pursuing the arts. It’s where you’ll get your superpowers.” (Patton Oswalt)

 

THE IMPORTANCE OF STAYING INTELLECTUALLY CURIOUS

When asked “What is one of the best or most worthwhile investments you’ve made?”,
the top responses revolved around staying curious and in learning mode

• Most achieved this by taking classes, hiring coaches, putting themselves in challenging and unfamiliar circumstances.

 

BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

“What is the book you’ve given most as a gift or has greatly influenced your life?”

• They all love reading and most of their book recommendations are new to me (although not recently published books).
• Many feel reading gives them superpowers.
• I’ve already added several of their recommendations to my reading list: Sapiens, The Rational Optimist, Making Sense of People

 

MENTORS ARE PASSIONATE DO-ERS, THEY HAVE NO TIME FOR SELF PITY – NOR DO THEY FEEL ENTITLED

 Inspiring to read about people who often come from disadvantaged backgrounds and still make it happen:

•  Ignore the unfairness…there is no fair. Play the hand you’re dealt.
• Taking 100% personal responsibility, stop blaming or complaining and achieve a sense of flow.
• I do not believe in work-life balance. I believe that if you view your work as a calling, it is a labor of love rather than laborious.