Be Useful Seven Tools for Life - Arnold Schwarzenegger

 Author: Arnold Schwarzenegger

ISBN: 9781529146547

Hi Everyone

When I look at Be Useful Seven Tools for Life - Arnold Schwarzenegger on Goodreads I am told it belongs in the following categories:

• Non-fiction
• Self-help
• Biography
• Memoir
• Philosophy
• Business
• Autobiography

Let's start analysing these and see what I come with.

Memoir and autobiography 

Definitely a yes for belonging in this category. Most of the book centers around Arnold Schwarzenegger and where he has come from, what he has achieved, and who he has become.  I spent my most informative years watching Arnold Schwarzengger on the big screen and our TV screen. Movies like 'The Terminator 'were the most captivating and thought-provoking movies of the generation. The lines he spoke were flicked around in conversations all across the school grounds. Arnold Schwarzenger was one of the best.

So when I picked this up, it was his story I was interested in. I had no idea how much Arnold had done in his lifetime. He is living proof that if you put hard work into what you want to accomplish then you can get the results. It is worth the read just to know all that he has achieved.

Quote - " I'll be back" - Terminator 

And Arnold Schwarzengger keeps coming back with something new for us. Time after time.

Biography

Not really. This is Arnold's story told by Arnold.

Business

If you want inspiration then this is a good read. Don't read this if you want a quick fix though. You will be told to work! Work! Work! You have 24 hours in a day, Arnold Schwarzengger tells us. If you want results then pull up your socks and use them. Stop scrolling and wasting time. You know how you are wasting time... sort it. If you want results then put the time in. Make the time. Get up early. You get the picture.

Quote - "Selling your vision means being open about what you're trying to achieve and telling your story in such a way that it is perceived in the most positive light possible by the people you need or want to get a yes from. Your customers, in other words" - Page 119

Philosophy

Be Useful. Arnold was ingrained with this as a child and has taken it into his adulthood. With good results. As you venture through the book you will see that it ends with the same concept put differently. He calls it -  breaking the mirrors. Helping others is what the book ends with. Take your usefulness out to others near and far. That is the foundation of his philosophy but not nearly the end. 

He starts the book with - Have a clear vision and ends the book with - breaking the mirrors. The whole book is a philosophy book. From having a vision and working hard, to taking it to the world. Every chapter has something to take from it.

I had to start the book again just to highlight and tab the pages. I got 118 pages in and decided this needed to be annotated. It didn't matter who else was going to read this book, I was going to get every little piece of inspiration from every single paragraph. 

Quote - "...everything good, all great change, starts with a clear vision" - Page 4

Self-help

If you are willing to read this book not just by turning the pages but by reading every paragraph and then taking a moment to reflect, you will find this deserves more than a self-help category. We can all read self-help books. They line the shelves of every library and bookstore. There is a market out there making millions from our need to be told what to do. 

In my hand, I have a book that will tell me in Arnold's written word to... Get clear with your vision. Never think small. Work your ass off. Sell, sell sell. Shift gears. Shut your mouth, open your mind. And, break the mirrors.  They are chapters!

If you want inspiration and someone to tell you to do the work, then you know what book to pick up. You will get something from this book.  I don't know what that is for you. But you will get something.

Quote - "Use it or lose it. These words apply to so many areas of life, they should be considered a law of the universe" - Page 216

Description: 

If there is one unavoidable truth in this world, it's that there is no substitute for putting in work.

There is no shortcut or growth hack or magic pill that can get you around the hard work of doing your job well, of winning something you care about, or of making your dreams come true.

People have tried to cut corners and skip steps in this process for as long as hard work has been hard.

Eventually, those people either fall behind or get left in our dust, because working your ass off is the only thing that works 100 percent of the time for \ 100 percent of the things worth achieving.

Happy reading

 

Today's Quote

 Hi Everyone

A little quote from my 'Kitty' (yes that is her name)

Autumn has arrived and we have been snuggling in enjoying the beginning of the season. As the weather changes to a colder air, the books come back out and so does Kitty. 

Happy reading

The Race Against Time

Adventures in Late-Life Running

Author: Richard Askwith

ISBN: 978178729525

Hi Everyone

Every time I go away on holiday, I have to purchase a new book. It is a tradition that cannot be denied. Of course, I am amongst other things a 'runner'. I have been since I was 10 years old and I will be for as long as my body allows. 

This book caught my eye because Richard Askwith was asking the question "Why do some runners seem to be untroubled by age?" I don't know about anyone else, but I am finding that the people around me and the internet have a belief that the older we get the more we should sit on the couch and admit defeat. Take a look at mid-life on any platform and you will find a few that say "go for it" while the rest say things like: don't do cardio you will gain weight; cardio will up your cortisol (well so will sitting around eating the cake that I do instead of running); exercise this much or that much or this little.

NO! I'm done with all this nonsense.

Running and in fact any form of exercise, is the best way for me to de-stress. I wish I had known this about myself years ago as the world around me got busier. I tried to slow down - people told me I should - they were wrong. 

Get outside and run! If you can't (we aren't all born to run) then walk, skip, hop, dance. The options are endless, just find the things that light you up like they did as a child. And stop with all the 'I need to exercise antics"..... call it "Play" like you did as a child. It is all the same thing but if you call it "play" then it is much more enjoyable.

Anyway, this book is full of examples of people continuing to run way beyond the expected:

• Angela Coson, winning another gold at seventy-five
• Charles Allie, running 400m in under a minute on the eve of his seventy-fifth birthday
• Alan Carter, racing to world championship gold at eighty-one

And how about Ilda Keeling, 104 pictured doing press-ups at 104 years of age.

Come on, don't use the I'm too old to start excuse either. Many of the people in this book started running in mid-life.  I tell you this book is inspirational in many ways. I am impressed by the easy-reading language, the photos, and both Richard Askwith's journey and the people he met along the way as he sought to find the answer to his questions.

Description:

Richard Adkwith, a long-term running enthusiast, was sunk in mid-life despair. Plagued by injuries and demoralized by failing strength and speed, he was on the point of giving up for good. first, though, he wanted to solve the mystery: why do some runners seem to be untroubled by age?

The result is a thrilling life-affirming quest, culminating in a transformative adventure at the World Masters Athletics Championships. Colourful, informative and inspiring, The Race Against Time offers a resounding message of hope for any runner who has felt their joy in their sport fading as they grow older.

It is a story of cold science and heartwarming resilience; of champions and also-rans; of sprinting centenarians and forty-something super-athletes barely touched by age. Its heroes are experts and enthusiasts - scientists, coaches, runners - from many countries, each with a different story to tell. What unites them is a belief that you don't have to take growing old lying down.

This is a book for anyone who has ever felt the healing power of running. A moving account of one man's journey from despair to hope, it is also an exhilarating guide, showing how timely adjustments to lifestyle and training can slow the effects of aging, while sheer human spirit can, if you are lucky, keep you running happily and healthily, all the way through life's later decades. 

About the author:

Richard Askwith has been a journalist for over forty years. He has written six previous books, including his modern classic on fell running, 'Feet in the Clouds', which won the Best New Writer category at the British Sports Book Awards and was shortlisted for the William Hill and Boardman Tasker prizes. He is now one of the UK's most celebrated writers on sport. 'Running Free' was short-listed for the Thwaites-Wainwright Prize, and his evocative biography of Emil Zatopek, Today We Die a Little, was shortlisted in the Cross Sports Book Awards. 

Happy reading

The Girl and the Clockwork conspiracy

 Author: Nikki McCormack

Narrated by Grier Cooper

Hi Everyone

I first started to listen to this on Audible and for some reason, I didn't continue with it. I can't remember my reasoning but I obviously wasn't ready for reading/listening to it. 

Well, I came across it in my archives and decided to give it another go. I couldn't remember a reason for not continuing with it, so it couldn't have been that I hated it. I plugged it back in.

And really enjoyed it!

It was a little predictable but in a refreshing way. 

I got extremely annoyed with Lucian's brother, he drove me nuts. Em, I didn't trust at all but was that valid (you will have to read). As for Macak... now he was my favorite character. Everyone else just played their parts as I expected and I enjoyed following their journey.  

I particularly like that this book could be read by all ages. I would consider it to be a young reader novel but having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I listened while I walked and I listened again while I was domesticated at home. It was narrated just perfectly for listening while I worked/walked. It was the perfect distraction from domesticated chores :)

So yes, I recommend 'The Girl and the Clockwork Conspiracy' for when you don't want a heavy long-winded book. Or when you want to block out the quiet. I think you might just enjoy it like I did.

Description:

Maeko hasn't been long away from the gritty London streets and she's already learning that her new "civilized" life comes with its own challenges. She has to dress proper, eat proper and be a proper lady. She can't even talk to a boy without a chaperone. She's got proper coming out of her ears. If not for her feline companion Macak, she might go mad.

Her one hope for some freedom and excitement comes when the moody detective, Em, asks her to be an apprentice. But that apprenticeship comes with a price. She must agree to spy on Macak's owner, Lucian, the wealthy businessman and inventor whose life she saved.

Everything changes when Lucian's brother dies in an explosion while visiting Lucian's home in the heart of London. The Literati--a powerful group vying for political control of London--say it was murder and Maeko is on their suspect list. With Macak at her side, she must turn once more to her allies, Chaff and Ash. They will have to brave city streets torn by rebellion and conspiracy to find the truth.

Goodreads.com

Happy reading

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