Ego is the Enemy: The Fight to Master Our Greatest Opponent
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- Create Date：2021-04-06 14:56:36
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Ryan Holiday
- ISBN：1781257027
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Summary
“While the history books are filled with tales of obsessive， visionary geniuses who remade the world in their image with sheer， almost irrational force， I’ve found that history is also made by individuals who fought their egos at every turn， who eschewed the spotlight， and who put their higher goals above their desire for recognition。” – from the Prologue
Many of us insist the main impediment to a full， successful life is the outside world。 In fact， the most common enemy lies within: our ego。 Early in our careers， it impedes learning and the cultivation of talent。 With success， it can blind us to our faults and sow future problems。 In failure， it magnifies each blow and makes recovery more difficult。 At every stage， ego holds us back。
The Ego is the Enemy draws on a vast array of stories and examples， from literature to philosophy to history。 We meet fascinating figures like Howard Hughes， Katharine Graham， Bill Belichick， and Eleanor Roosevelt， all of whom reached the highest levels of power and success by conquering their own egos。 Their strategies and tactics can be ours as well。
But why should we bother fighting ego in an era that glorifies social media， reality TV， and other forms of shameless self-promotion？ Armed with the lessons in this book， as Holiday writes， “you will be less invested in the story you tell about your own specialness， and as a result， you will be liberated to accomplish the world-changing work you’ve set out to achieve。”
Many of us insist the main impediment to a full， successful life is the outside world。 In fact， the most common enemy lies within: our ego。 Early in our careers， it impedes learning and the cultivation of talent。 With success， it can blind us to our faults and sow future problems。 In failure， it magnifies each blow and makes recovery more difficult。 At every stage， ego holds us back。
The Ego is the Enemy draws on a vast array of stories and examples， from literature to philosophy to history。 We meet fascinating figures like Howard Hughes， Katharine Graham， Bill Belichick， and Eleanor Roosevelt， all of whom reached the highest levels of power and success by conquering their own egos。 Their strategies and tactics can be ours as well。
But why should we bother fighting ego in an era that glorifies social media， reality TV， and other forms of shameless self-promotion？ Armed with the lessons in this book， as Holiday writes， “you will be less invested in the story you tell about your own specialness， and as a result， you will be liberated to accomplish the world-changing work you’ve set out to achieve。”
Reviews
Bach Truong Gia
，
This book just， you know， worked for me。Although someone will find the writing style a bit monotonic， it's felt effective and comfortable for me personally。 And its lessons are surprisingly comprehensive too。Ego is The Enemy impressively surpassed my expectations so， give it a try。 This book just， you know， worked for me。Although someone will find the writing style a bit monotonic， it's felt effective and comfortable for me personally。 And its lessons are surprisingly comprehensive too。Ego is The Enemy impressively surpassed my expectations so， give it a try。 。。。more
Liam
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An enjoyable self help book for the ambitiousMy girlfriend bought this for me because I mark every book I see as a want to read in goodreads， so I had no idea what this was really about or even what genre。 This was a pleasant surprise。 As a general overview， Ego is the enemy features snip bits from all over history， whether military generals， businessman， sports coaches， etc。 and extrapolates stoic values these （mostly men） figures practiced。 The first part is called "Aspire"。 It focuses on how An enjoyable self help book for the ambitiousMy girlfriend bought this for me because I mark every book I see as a want to read in goodreads， so I had no idea what this was really about or even what genre。 This was a pleasant surprise。 As a general overview， Ego is the enemy features snip bits from all over history， whether military generals， businessman， sports coaches， etc。 and extrapolates stoic values these （mostly men） figures practiced。 The first part is called "Aspire"。 It focuses on how to "rise the ranks" and be happy while doing so。 The next section is called "Success" and the last is "Failure"。The 27 chapters are between 4 and 10 pages and each contain common sense values; however， reading these things we know we should do was helpful。 Since the reading can be done in quick bursts， it makes for an ideal book to pick up and put down。 There are moments， for me， where the advice ran counter to my Ego and caused genuine tension and reflection。 Some of the lessons will be obvious and followed already， but even nabbing a few makes it a worthwhile read。 The book does focus primary on 'Masculine' things and reads casually so if that is a turn off this may not be for you。 I was adverse to the use of Ego。 I felt that it was totalizing and sometimes shoe horned into different situations it didn't need—kinda like repeating the same thing differently for an English paper。 By the end， I didn't mind the "Ego" too much and was just enjoying the anecdotes。 7/10。 Good book 。。。more
Krystal
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This was SUCH a great read， and so easy to digest！ And then Boyd concluded with words that would guide that young man and many of his peers for the rest of their lives。 "To be or to do？ Which way will you go？" There are so many brilliant words of wisdom backed by the lives lived by many famous people throughout history and through to today。 All of these ideas are so relevant and adaptable to every story。 The notion is simple: The only thing holding you back from being great is your Ego。I love This was SUCH a great read， and so easy to digest！ And then Boyd concluded with words that would guide that young man and many of his peers for the rest of their lives。 "To be or to do？ Which way will you go？" There are so many brilliant words of wisdom backed by the lives lived by many famous people throughout history and through to today。 All of these ideas are so relevant and adaptable to every story。 The notion is simple: The only thing holding you back from being great is your Ego。I love the way this book talks about greatness and purpose - how you don't have to have great ideas， you don't have to be a genius， you don't have to be inspired to change the world。 You just have to find what YOUR purpose is。 If your purpose is being an accountant， go for it - but do it to the best of your ability， and embrace everything that comes with it。 Do things for the right reasons。 At the core of everything， be a good person。It will be hard to swallow for some - particularly super successful people having trouble getting out of their own way。 To be honest， this is another one of those books where the people who don't appreciate what its saying are the people who probably need it most。 This book just sums everything up so intelligently。 I want to talk about what the ego is and why its our enemy to give you an idea， but this book does it so well that my paraphrasing would hardly do it justice。I loved reading this。 I loved challenging my own thoughts and actions。 I loved thinking about the ways I could overpower my own ego and further grow myself。 I loved sharing paragraphs on Instagram （lol）。This was a mind-expanding book。 I loved every second of it。It's relatively short， too， and the chapters are brief， to the point， and use brilliant， interesting anecdotes to highlight some very insightful points。Highly recommend， and likely to be a 2021 fave。 。。。more
Test of Stoicism
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Aristoteles defined 3 types of friendship: pleasure， utility and grace， if we apply this to books to define Ego is the enemy， I think it would be a book that has these 3 characteristics and must be re-read from time to time。
Abdul Raheem
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Ego is NOT the enemy。 If it hadn't been written by Ryan Holiday， I would not have read it; instead， I would have probably just read the summary。Rather than reading a summary and drawing my own conclusions， I wanted to read the entire book and fully comprehend the author's point。 I knew the book would be anti-ego and have stories to back it up， but it was actually better than I expected （my expectations were quite low btw:3）。 With that being said， I will repeat the first words of my review， EGO I Ego is NOT the enemy。 If it hadn't been written by Ryan Holiday， I would not have read it; instead， I would have probably just read the summary。Rather than reading a summary and drawing my own conclusions， I wanted to read the entire book and fully comprehend the author's point。 I knew the book would be anti-ego and have stories to back it up， but it was actually better than I expected （my expectations were quite low btw:3）。 With that being said， I will repeat the first words of my review， EGO IS NOT THE ENEMY。 But why is that？ I mean Ego creates a delusion， ego makes you entitled， makes you indecisive， makes you foolish， long story short ego makes you an asshole， but still， Ego is not the enemy because it's a part of YOU， it's a part of human nature， Ego is a portion of the human personality which is experienced as the “self” or “I” and is in contact with the external world through perception。 We often think of ego as only the dressed up conditionings of how we observe ourselves from the viewpoint of others， but the egoistic mind is larger than that。The part of how we see ourselves has proven to be very important for our survival and our progress。 when we lived in tribal communities If others thought of us as being low in status， we would be in trouble during the hunger season。 We could either die from hunger or even get killed in that "you scratch my back， I scratch yours" way of living in ancient tribes。We learned to identify ourselves as to how we personally believe others see us and also try to change that for the better。 All for our own survival。The Ego is involved in a very crucial aspect of human nature， The ability to outshine others。 Many anthropologists believe one of the central reasons for "Homo sapiens" survival vs other sapiens， was the intensity of the drive to outshine others。The reason why a writer or a poet writes， filmmaker produces a movie， an artist does art， or simply a person is ambitious is because the ego is involved in it too somewhat。But besides that ego is very detrimental because it creates a delusion of success primarily when we want to achieve a great goal it will create a bubble that makes the small goals big。 It damages our ambitions through instant gratification， instant gratification is very fatal when you want to achieve something。The thing I like about the book is that it is trying to say that the ego becomes a barrier， the more you are， the less the improvement can be; the less you are， the more you are available for the improvement。 If you are totally empty the improvement becomes the guest， and it can become the guest only when you are totally empty， not even a fragment of you is left。 all your progress is in the danger of going in vain if you are full of ego。 We shouldn't shun ego rather accept it， embrace it， and more importantly "transcend it "。 。。。more
Kat Riethmuller
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Takeaways:Ego seems necessary for success， but vesting in self-importance impedes your career。Being great is different from doing great things。Engaging in building a “personal brand” confuses accomplishing something with talking about it。Cultivate restraint to manage your feelings of pride or anger。“Clear the path” for others， and you’ll help determine the path they take。Ego undermines the connection and engagement with others that both allow success to grow。Goal visualization helps at the begin Takeaways:Ego seems necessary for success， but vesting in self-importance impedes your career。Being great is different from doing great things。Engaging in building a “personal brand” confuses accomplishing something with talking about it。Cultivate restraint to manage your feelings of pride or anger。“Clear the path” for others， and you’ll help determine the path they take。Ego undermines the connection and engagement with others that both allow success to grow。Goal visualization helps at the beginning of a project， but it can produce a misleading impression of progress。Maintain “a student mind-set” to keep your ego in check by acknowledging that you always have more to learn。Ego is “the disease of me”; this world is far greater than you。Abandon ego’s attachment to success and commit to a path of constant improvement。Summary:What Is Ego？Anyone with ambition has ego。 People who marshal their skills to meet their goals have ego。 Artists， athletes， scientists and entrepreneurs achieve their objectives by harnessing the focus and desire to create and discover。 But， too often， ego drives these activities。 Ego is necessary for getting ahead。 But “an unhealthy belief” in how important you are has the opposite impact and blocks your progress。“What makes us so promising as thinkers， doers， creatives and entrepreneurs， what drives us to the top of those fields， makes us vulnerable to this darker side of the psyche。”Ego encourages lazy， self-congratulatory fantasizing。 Defined as “self-centered ambition，” ego undermines the connection with others and the engagement that both allow success to grow。 To assess your strengths accurately， embrace a blend of confidence and humility。 Recognize that ego offers the comfort of self-satisfaction， but it’s self-absorbed and can blind you to opportunity。Aspiring to GreatnessGreatness is often a quiet act。 The late US Air Force fighter pilot and strategist John Boyd helped revolutionize modern warfare across the US armed forces， but the general public doesn’t know of him。 To emphasize the difference between working for recognition and working to get something accomplished， he asked the soldiers he commanded if they wanted “to be or to do。” Just being somebody is much easier than actually getting things done。“Ego is the enemy of what you want and of what you have: Of mastering a craft。 Of real creative insight。 Of working well with others。 Of building loyalty and support。 Of longevity。 Of repeating and retaining your success。”Though popular wisdom encourages people “to find their passion，” that can be the wrong advice。 Passion leads to enthusiasm at the expense of thoughtful deliberation。 Passion’s energy and excitement can hide weaknesses that will eventually appear。 Instead of impatient passion， seek purpose with reasons and goals。“We start out knowing what is important to us， but once we’ve achieved it， we lose sight of our priorities。”Practice restraint。 Anger， resentment and pride cloud your thinking。 You’re not special just because you went to a good school， work hard， or came from a rich or influential family。 You may dislike it when your boss is rude or your colleagues are frustrating， but being reactive and claiming that you deserve better will get you nowhere。 Such behaviors stem from ego。 Being restrained lets you focus on the work at hand and value the lessons that emerge along the way。“The Canvas Strategy”The canvas strategy builds on the notion of restraint， of being “a canvas for other people to paint on。” Shift away from the short-term satisfaction of resentment and move toward embracing the long-term enrichment of self-development。 To follow the canvas strategy， keep these ideas in mind when first starting out in the world of work:You will probably need to improve and cultivate a better attitude。You “aren’t as good” as you may believe， nor as important。You don’t know everything， and you need to learn more than your education taught you。“Once you win， everyone is gunning for you。 It’s during your moment at the top that you can afford ego the least – because the stakes are so much higher， the margins for error so much smaller。”Your success often will come alongside the success of others。 Work to make other people’s jobs easier。 While an initial sense of subservience might confound your ego， starting at the bottom gives you an opportunity to learn how something really works。 Overcome your ego by finding ideas to share with your boss。 Introduce people who might collaborate。 Do the small tasks others avoid。 When you “clear the path” for other people， you help determine the course they’ll take。Problems with NarrativesBe someone who does things rather than someone who talks a lot。 Social media encourage talk instead of productivity。 Posting updates on Facebook and Twitter misleads you into focusing on speech over action。 Filling boxes with text promotes the false presentation of confidence， ability and accomplishment。 Don’t believe your own self-promotion。 That’s your ego inflating itself。“The more difficult the task， the more uncertain the outcome， the more costly talk will be and the farther from actual accountability。”Gawker blogger Emily Gould described the challenge she faced in completing her novel。 She had a “six-figure book deal，” but her writing bogged down because she was always posting on Tumblr or Twitter or scrolling through websites。 These were distractions from the real work she had to do， but she convinced herself that it was work: she was building her personal brand。 In the relentless pursuit of building， curating or refining a personal brand， people lose sight of the difference between actual accomplishments and fictional advertisements of themselves。 All that posting and all that talk use up the energy you need for your real work。 Some people like to mutter the thoughts that are leading them through solving a problem， but some studies suggest that talking aloud slows the process of discovery。 Likewise， goal visualization helps at the beginning of a project， but after a while it produces the misleading impression of progress。 When a project is hard， talk does not help。“It takes a special kind of humility to grasp that you know less， even as you know and grasp more and more。”Stories of success make success seem inevitable。 Looking back at your own story is dangerous because you can reject all the pieces that don’t fit the narrative you want to tell。 Such a narrative can offer false clarity and distract you from remembering the work that enabled you to attain your goals。 Narratives of success mislead by suggesting they are conclusive， that the story ends after success。 But in life， the story continues。 After you succeed， everyone wants to beat you。 More than ever， you must work hard to maintain the success you strived to achieve。Learning FocusPride is dangerous。 It inhibits learning。 Instead， maintain “a student mind-set” to keep your ego in check by acknowledging that you always have more to learn。 Success doesn’t make you a master。 Frank Shamrock， a mixed martial arts world champion， teaches that everyone needs “a plus， a minus and an equal。” Learn from someone who has more skill than you， someone who acts as a teacher。 Gain from teaching someone who knows less than you， because being a professional requires understanding your task well enough to describe it to others。 Working with someone at your level helps you cultivate finesse and dexterity。“Ego needs honors to be validated。 Confidence…is able to wait and focus on the task at hand regardless of external recognition。”Maintaining a student mind-set is easier in the beginning of your career。 Success brings the temptation to overestimate your knowledge。 John Wheeler， a physicist who helped develop the hydrogen bomb， said， “As our island of knowledge grows， so does the shore of our ignorance。” The more you know， the more you realize you need to learn。“The need to be better than， more than， recognized for， far past any reasonable utility – that’s ego。”Jazz great Wynton Marsalis once told an aspiring musician to be humble， explaining that humility is evident in those who don’t believe they already know everything。 As you learn， discover the processes that enable you to learn most effectively。 Repeat those procedures to ensure your continuous education。“A smart man or woman must regularly remind themselves of the limits of their power and reach。”The “theory of disruption” proposes that every industry will eventually encounter a change that no one predicted。 When that happens， established business models – already too comfortable with their familiar approach – won’t respond effectively because they’ve stopped learning and growing。 Newcomers are more agile; since they’re still in a learning mind-set， they see an opportunity to fill a market need and take advantage of it。 They study their competitors to learn which changes would help them grow。“Standard of Performance”Professional football coach Bill Walsh established a Standard of Performance as general manager of the San Francisco 49ers。 Over the course of three years， he took a team that earned ratings as one of the worst in the league and made it a Super Bowl champion。 People told the story of this climb by saying Walsh had a vision of the team’s Super Bowl win and executed it。 He refused to buy into that narrative。 Instead， Walsh described how he focused on what the team members needed to do， when they needed to do it and how they should do it。“Impressing people is utterly different from being truly impressive。”Walsh instilled a sense of excellence by insisting on small behavioral rules: Players must stand while on the practice field; coaches must appear in tucked-in shirts and ties; the locker room must be clean。 Bill Walsh expected the team to perform well on the field and off。 After winning the Super Bowl， the team had two terrible years because the players became overconfident and self-satisfied。 The team had to accept that the Standard of Performance was their route to victory before they started to win again and became recurring champions。Accept FailureMistakes are inevitable。 Being an entrepreneur or creative person requires taking risks， and risks don’t always work out。 The problem isn’t failing。 The problem is identifying with failure。 Ego believes that the only options are success or failure。 That is ego confusion。 Failure isn’t indicative of who you are， only of what you did。 Ego tries to prove that failure is， or will become， success。“Unless we use this moment as an opportunity to understand ourselves and our own mind better， ego will seek out failure like true north。”When Dov Charney was the CEO of American Apparel， his practices cost the company some $300 million and the reputational damage of multiple scandals。 When the board asked Charney to step aside， he refused。 He then wasted a fortune on a useless lawsuit to vindicate himself。 He lost， and faced public humiliation when the media published details that the case revealed about his behavior。“At every step and every juncture in life， there is the opportunity to learn – and even if the lesson is purely remedial， we must not let ego block us from hearing it again。”Steve Jobs was fired from Apple， the company he founded， because of his huge ego。 Jobs was angry and fought the company’s decision， but he didn’t let it ruin him。 He sold all but one share of Apple and decided to try again。 Learning from his management failures， he funded the animation company Pixar and slowly rebuilt his reputation。 He eventually returned to Apple， and made it an even better company than he could have built before learning such hard life lessons。“You can’t learn if you think you already know。”As with Jobs， failure is an opportunity to learn。 When success begins to wane， don’t attach yourself even more tightly to your job， project or goal。 Recognize that something went wrong; try to identify how your behavior contributed to that error and begin to change。Check YourselfWhen people first succeed， they may indulge in wild behavior。 Success can transform that confusion and erratic conduct into self-assurance and bravery。 If your success came from a surprising guess， recognize that you didn’t know what would lead to success。 When others applaud your greatness， stay sober。Consider Germany’s Angela Merkel， one of the most powerful women in the world。 When Russian president Vladimir Putin tried to intimidate her by allowing his hunting dog to interrupt a meeting， she didn’t take it personally or react badly even though her dislike of dogs is common knowledge。 In the midst of adversity， she remained “firm， clear and patient。” As Merkel once said， “You can’t solve…tasks with charisma。”Success has the adverse effect of making people feel larger than life。 Stress reinforces their sense of importance。 Similarly， rebukes or failures hurt people’s inflated egos。 Tame your ego by observing the vastness of the universe; “meditate on immensity。” Observe nature。 Find something that allows you to connect。 Let go of ego’s desire for retaliation or its efforts to reinforce its value。 See how grand the world is。 Ego is “the disease of me，” but the world offers much more than you。Do things for the purpose of doing them。 Let the effort be enough。 When a project becomes focused on success alone， your ego is in control。 Your work might incur ridicule or sabotage。 Recognition may never arrive in the forms you seek: public praise， financial success or approval from the one person whose respect you want。 Focus on your expectations， not someone else’s。 Ego drives the desire to succeed。 Let the effort you put into your work be success enough。 If it’s not， then maybe this isn’t the work you should be doing。Learn What Matters to YouEgo makes everything about the self。 Genuine self-awareness diminishes ego by allowing the self to grow and change。 Ask， “What’s important to you？” so that you focus on self-evaluation and not on external measures。 Learn what matters to you so you can be true to yourself。 Recognize that the world has much to continue teaching you。 Abandon ego’s attachment to success。 Commit， instead， to a path of constant improvement。 。。。more
Choltanutkun
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Not bad。 Good for “airport reading”。
Mihai Cosareanu
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This book was a struggle for me。 A "never-ending" collection of stories where ego was bad - fine， pretty intuitive。 So what did I learn while going through them？ Well， I feel that nothing at all。 It might be that I was already pretty aware about what ego is and how it affects you， but I feel that I won't remember anything from this book。 This book was a struggle for me。 A "never-ending" collection of stories where ego was bad - fine， pretty intuitive。 So what did I learn while going through them？ Well， I feel that nothing at all。 It might be that I was already pretty aware about what ego is and how it affects you， but I feel that I won't remember anything from this book。 。。。more
Unuruu B
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The book with a pretty title that attracts a lot of attention like a moth to a flame。 However， it felt like I was reading someone's diary or a poorly written last-minute essay。 Rushed to write everything with some good intentions and somehow not so genuine at the same time。 Consequently， always here and there， left so many things， and not thoroughly analyzed， just blindly blamed the "ego" for everything。 I stopped reading many times， but went back to reading， hoping it might get better （it did n The book with a pretty title that attracts a lot of attention like a moth to a flame。 However， it felt like I was reading someone's diary or a poorly written last-minute essay。 Rushed to write everything with some good intentions and somehow not so genuine at the same time。 Consequently， always here and there， left so many things， and not thoroughly analyzed， just blindly blamed the "ego" for everything。 I stopped reading many times， but went back to reading， hoping it might get better （it did not）。 。。。more
Mike
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Some decent concepts in here and I overall agree with what the writer is advocating for。 But， there were multiple chapters where I had very little idea to what point he was trying to make until the end， or until I reread it。 Just a bit easy for me to lose focus on this book or writing style for some reason 🤷♂️
Sebastián Valencia Navarro
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El título aunque en mi opinión parece presuntuoso， el contenido da todo el mérito a que este libro lleve este nombre。 Sin lugar a dudas un libro de auto-crecimiento， con reflexiones del pasado que podemos aplicar a nuestro presente。
Nicolaas Dekker
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I didn't think a book could vibe check me I didn't think a book could vibe check me 。。。more
Patricio
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Directo， simple， mordaz en todas los casos y situaciones donde esa "careta" de uno llamada EGO destruye al yo de verdad。Me gustó Directo， simple， mordaz en todas los casos y situaciones donde esa "careta" de uno llamada EGO destruye al yo de verdad。Me gustó 。。。more
Raj Kishore
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The book talks about stoicism， the way author Ryan holiday has linked it with the book "flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi （Hungarian-American psychologist） is remarkable。 It also talks about how we perceive things in our subconscious mind。 Note: read this book slowly by taking your time。 It will make you think about a lot of things。 The book talks about stoicism， the way author Ryan holiday has linked it with the book "flow" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi （Hungarian-American psychologist） is remarkable。 It also talks about how we perceive things in our subconscious mind。 Note: read this book slowly by taking your time。 It will make you think about a lot of things。 。。。more
Andrew
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It's alright。 I doubt it'll be immediately life-changing for many readers but does serve as a good primer on how ego or pride can manifest throughout one's life whether it's just at the beginning of a career， after having achieved success or while experiencing failure， and what one can do to mitigate its effectsOne thing I personally felt was that about 60% the book was Greek Stoicism， The American Civil War and American Football repackaged。 As someone who has not read extensively in any of thes It's alright。 I doubt it'll be immediately life-changing for many readers but does serve as a good primer on how ego or pride can manifest throughout one's life whether it's just at the beginning of a career， after having achieved success or while experiencing failure， and what one can do to mitigate its effectsOne thing I personally felt was that about 60% the book was Greek Stoicism， The American Civil War and American Football repackaged。 As someone who has not read extensively in any of these topics， I wasn't bothered at all and learnt a little something about all of them， I think。If you want a taste of Ryan Holiday's writing style without committing to a book I suggest reading any one of his articles here。 I think they're quite representative of how he writes here。 My two cents on this is that Ryan Holiday is very direct in his tone and easy to follow though at times can border on pretentiousness when taken out of context。The one thing that stuck with me in the immediate few days after reading this was the concept of "alive time and dead time" referred from Robert Greene。 One of the examples used was how Malcolm X used his time in prison to devour book after book and gained the equivalent （and probably more） of a college degree， which was a pivotal period in his life to becoming a prominent figure in the Civil Rights Movement we all know today after a life of crime。Obviously this isn't a summary of the actual ideas and case studies covered in this book。 There are several videos on YouTube and other reviews for that。 Here， all you'll find is me。 。。。more
Nital Jethalal
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A short but solid read。 Would have liked to see a more global focus （eg discussions of cultures older than Western civilization）。 Nonetheless， some great wisdom in here。
Víctor Blanco Marcano
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Un libro que necesita leer toda persona。
Robbie Down
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Overall， a very enjoyable read。 Holliday’s presentation of Ego and how to kill it is engaging and easy to dig your teeth into。 It’s clear that there has been much work put into this book as well as pieces of his own heart。 As a Christian I found this book to be inspiring and also paralleling many Christ-like virtues。 Though structured well with the outlines of Aspiration， Success， and Failure， Holliday could have included more diversity to interact with the reader and present pride as a more inn Overall， a very enjoyable read。 Holliday’s presentation of Ego and how to kill it is engaging and easy to dig your teeth into。 It’s clear that there has been much work put into this book as well as pieces of his own heart。 As a Christian I found this book to be inspiring and also paralleling many Christ-like virtues。 Though structured well with the outlines of Aspiration， Success， and Failure， Holliday could have included more diversity to interact with the reader and present pride as a more inner-object rather than a stop and drop protocol。 The only time we see more progress-oriented methods are in the end of the book。 。。。more
Gonzalo Cordova
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Ryan Holiday presents in this book a working definition of ego and how to manage it。 The author claims that we are at any moment in one of these stages: aspiring， succeeding or failing。 Holiday then expands on the practices to manage our egos during each of these stages。 This book is filled with examples of best and poor practices， and some of these examples are related to the author's personal experiences dealing with his own ego。Beyond the main topic， this book elaborated arguments for the val Ryan Holiday presents in this book a working definition of ego and how to manage it。 The author claims that we are at any moment in one of these stages: aspiring， succeeding or failing。 Holiday then expands on the practices to manage our egos during each of these stages。 This book is filled with examples of best and poor practices， and some of these examples are related to the author's personal experiences dealing with his own ego。Beyond the main topic， this book elaborated arguments for the value of living one's own process compared to a life focused on outcomes。 I particularly liked the concept of euthymia and its pursuit of excellence。Finally， this book is not as practical as other books by the same author。 However， this is also a function of the main topic。 Dealing with ego is not about knowing but about doing the work to manage it。 。。。more
Neil Johnson
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Should be read once a year！
Peter Håkansson
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A book that I think everyone should read to remind themselves of the role ego plays in your life， the book shows clearly how detrimental having a huge ego can be with historical examples。
Jason Pawloski
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Really enjoyed reading this。 Ryan Holiday does a great job at illustrating inspirational and historical examples of stoicism。 I especially enjoyed reading this just before self-publishing my own first book。
Omar
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My main problem with this book is the very limited and flawed definition for ego。 He describes the ego in colloquial terms: ““An unhealthy belief in our own importance。 Arrogance。 Self-centered ambition。 It’s that petulant child inside every person， the one that chooses getting his or her way over anything or anyone else。 The need to be better than， more than， recognized for， far past any reasonable utility—that’s ego。 It’s the sense of superiority and certainty that exceeds the bounds of confid My main problem with this book is the very limited and flawed definition for ego。 He describes the ego in colloquial terms: ““An unhealthy belief in our own importance。 Arrogance。 Self-centered ambition。 It’s that petulant child inside every person， the one that chooses getting his or her way over anything or anyone else。 The need to be better than， more than， recognized for， far past any reasonable utility—that’s ego。 It’s the sense of superiority and certainty that exceeds the bounds of confidence and talent。”The problem with this is that it’s only one side of the coin。 The ego is the “I” in our life， it’s our self-image， it’s our grand narrative， etc—and it has both positive and negative aspects。 There are positive and altruistic qualities associated to the ego as well。 I think what’s happened is that the ‘ego’ has been hijacked by the self-help industries， pop culture， and talk shows as representing all the bad qualities which isn't a helpful way to examine the issues。 i。e。 If a person is selfish and arrogant with delusions of grandeur---stop calling it an ego problem， and examine the entire person， his experiences， etc to figure out why he's that way。 Ego is an inseparable part of being human and an integral part to becoming successful。 It is your fuel source and can mobilize you。 Ryan Holiday used every ounce of his ego to get to where he’s at today and to write this book He’s just a maturer and less neurotic version of himself—and he’s confused that with having less ego。 With that said， taming the arrogant self-centred qualities; maturing; cultivating humility; and becoming a healthier person are great aspirations， and of course， will lead to more success so there is some value to this book， but the framework to which he presents all of this information is flawed。 This is what happens when you write a pop culture non-fiction book on psychology without being credentialed in the field which is why I really need to stop reading these sort of books。 Lastly， he’s deceiving himself if he thinks humans can fully suppress the negative qualities within us all—that’s a recipe for disaster as it will manifest later。 I’ve never been a big fan of stoicism for that reason—it’s just white knuckling through life in exchange for productivity and results， but that’s a separate conversation。Bottom line:Ego is not the enemy。 Ego is how you integrate into the world。 Cultivate the good and tame the bad， but understand that qualities he’s trying to get rid of will never disappear。 As long as the default mode network of your brain is active-- your mind will wander and the "I"/ego will be prevalent in your life and if your honest with yourself we all have some negative and arrogant thoughts on a daily basis。 We're saints and sinners--and the sooner you accept that the sooner you will have a healthier relationship and a realistic understanding of your ego。 2/5 。。。more
Chris Weatherburn
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Quite a nice book; here is my summary: It is important to have a teacher， this imposes a ceiling limit to your ego， you will know that you are not better than the “master” you apprentice， note if you become better than your teacher find a new one to train under。 Mixed martial arts pioneer and multi-title champion Frank Shamrock has a system he trains fighters in that he calls plus， minus， and equal。 Each fighter， to become great， he said， needs to have someone better that they can learn from， so Quite a nice book; here is my summary: It is important to have a teacher， this imposes a ceiling limit to your ego， you will know that you are not better than the “master” you apprentice， note if you become better than your teacher find a new one to train under。 Mixed martial arts pioneer and multi-title champion Frank Shamrock has a system he trains fighters in that he calls plus， minus， and equal。 Each fighter， to become great， he said， needs to have someone better that they can learn from， someone lesser who they can teach， and someone equal that they can challenge themselves against。 Obtain real and continuous feedback about what you know and what you don’t know from every angle。 Feedback “purges out the ego” that puffs us up， the fear that makes us doubt ourselves， and any laziness that might make us want to coast。 A student is self-critical and self-motivated， always trying to improve his understanding so that he can move on to the next topic， the next challenge。 A real student is also his own teacher and his own critic with no room for ego。 Interestingly suggests your passion may be the very thing holding you back from power or influence or accomplishment。 The passion he is referring to is different from simply caring about something。 Means the type of passion which is unbridled enthusiasm， being willing to pounce on what’s in front of us with the full measure of our zeal， the “bundle of energy” that our teachers and gurus have assured us is our most important asset。 It is that burning， unquenchable desire to start or to achieve some vague， ambitious， and distant goal。 Although， you will have heard of some people who were passionate like this and made significant achievement you won’t have heard of many， many more people who had this passion but didn’t succeed。 Instead have purpose have direction。 High achievers are often not driven solely by passion， but by reason。 Purpose is about pursuing something outside yourself as opposed to pleasuring yourself。 With purpose we also need realism。 Where do we start？ What do we do first？ What do we do right now？ How are we sure that what we’re doing is moving us forward？ What are we benchmarking ourselves against？ The answer - be lesser and do more。 Imagine if for every person you met， you thought of some way to help them， something you could do for them？ And you looked at it in a way that entirely benefited them and not you。 The cumulative effect this would have over time would be profound: You’d learn a great deal by solving diverse problems。 You’d develop a reputation for being indispensable。 You’d have countless new relationships。 You’d have an enormous bank of favours to call upon down the road。 Refers to this as ‘the canvas strategy’ which is helping yourself by helping others。 Making a concerted effort to trade your short-term gratification for a longer-term payoff。 Whereas everyone else wants to get credit and be “respected” you can forget credit。 You can forget it so hard that you’re glad when others get it instead of you， you don’t want it。 Let the others take their credit on credit， while you defer and earn interest on the principal。 VLOG summary: https://youtu。be/W76CWbX79YAIf you found this helpful please check out my website for morewww。chrisweatherburn。com 。。。more
Mohammed mnm
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النُصح غير مُجدي في كثير من الأَحيان أو بالأحرى في كثير من الأفعال。أي من غير المجدي أن أقول لشخص ما。 كُن صبوراً، أو كُن متواضعاً。لأن أفعال أو صفات كهذه لاتأتي فقط بالتنبيه عليها。 بل تحتاج معايشة وتجربة وبُعد زمنيهذا الكتاب يوفر لك التجارب لتحاول معايشتها بوجود البُعد الزمني الذي يمكن أن يكون ساعات معدودة。أو لأشهر كحالتي。 ليوصلك لشيء مفاده أنt（عِشْ لتفعل لا لتكن）
#TUVIDAESINCREIBLE
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LET’S BE HUMBLE！
Woody
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While 'Ego is the Enemy' may be relatively brief in length， I found it to be quite a fascinating read on a subject that isn't talked about enough in our contemporary society。 Many will blame certain external factors when they don't quite get the desired result in a certain endeavor。 Holiday contends that it's not external factors， rather ego is often the culprit behind the reason why we don't succeed on our goals。The book is broken down into 3 separate parts Aspire， Success， and Failure。 Holiday While 'Ego is the Enemy' may be relatively brief in length， I found it to be quite a fascinating read on a subject that isn't talked about enough in our contemporary society。 Many will blame certain external factors when they don't quite get the desired result in a certain endeavor。 Holiday contends that it's not external factors， rather ego is often the culprit behind the reason why we don't succeed on our goals。The book is broken down into 3 separate parts Aspire， Success， and Failure。 Holiday uses anecdotes of people who have demonstrated his ideas on how one should tame their ego， preventing it from corrupting their minds。Overall Ego is the Enemy is a solid read and gave me a lot to think about as I try to accomplish the goals that I've set out for myself。 。。。more
Annette Broy
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Listened to this book while walking and running。 Good book and a reminder to put ourselves aside。
Serge Larose
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I have come to enjoy Ryan's book formats。 I've seen similarities in 'Obstacle is the Way' and 'Stillness is the key'。 The chapters are rather small and to the point with insightful examples。 I enjoyed learning more about Malcom X as well as many others who didn't exactly search for fame and glory。 I remember thinking that I wanted fame without the fame。 More precisely， I wanted to do something significant yet didn't really look for the attention。 Perhaps that was my introduction to keeping the e I have come to enjoy Ryan's book formats。 I've seen similarities in 'Obstacle is the Way' and 'Stillness is the key'。 The chapters are rather small and to the point with insightful examples。 I enjoyed learning more about Malcom X as well as many others who didn't exactly search for fame and glory。 I remember thinking that I wanted fame without the fame。 More precisely， I wanted to do something significant yet didn't really look for the attention。 Perhaps that was my introduction to keeping the ego at bay。 I finished this book in just about one week and recommend it for anyone interested in a great read。 cheers！ 。。。more
Ali
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