6 min read ⌚ 

Be Happy, Make Millions, Live the Dream

In life, you are faced with thousands of choices.

So, what do you choose: the best university out there or the joy of being homeschooled? A steady job and a career, or an enticing, but risky business move that may not pay off? A faithful spouse and three children or a passionate love affair that may go down in flames?

James Altucher says: “Choose Yourself.”

Who Should Read “Choose Yourself”? And Why?

If there ever was a time in the history of humanity when you could choose yourself without serious repercussions – that time is certainly today.

And – James Altucher adds – this is a chance you mustn’t blow!

Choose yourself over conventionality and become one of the newest breed of humans: entrepreneurs, the lone wolves capable of disrupting the economy and changing the world.

And this book may help you become as great an entrepreneur as you can be since it will help you understand the current state of the economy and teach you how you can transform this knowledge into wealth.

And it’s easier to make choices once you have the money.

About James Altucher

James Altucher is an instantly recognizable entrepreneur, venture capitalist, hedge fund manager, angel investor, bestselling author, podcaster and a chess master.

He has founded or co-founded more than 20 companies, 17 of which have failed. The rest, however, have been pretty successful, such as, among others, Reset Inc. and StockPickr, the latter called one of the 50 best websites in the world in 2007 by “Time” magazine.

Altucher has also written about 20 books, two of which – “Choose Yourself” and “The Power of No” – have been WSJ bestsellers. His bibliography includes few other influential books such as “Choose Yourself Guide to Wealth,” “The Rich Employee,” “Reinvent Yourself,” and “I Was Blind But Now I See.”

Find out more at JamesAltucher.com. You can also reach him on Twitter (@Jaltucher), on Instagram (@altucher) and even on his personal cell phone ((203) 512-2161).

“Choose Yourself PDF Summary”

The American Dream is dead.

It may have been ever since the 1970s for a group of disillusioned intellectuals and rebels, but after the economic crisis of 2008, it seems that it is an ex-dream for the majority of Americans.

A good education doesn’t mean a good job anymore and, what’s worse, it’s far from synonymous with phrases such as “steady job” and “long-term security.”

in the globalized tech-driven market, American companies have either replaced people with technology or opted to outsource many jobs to developing countries.

Either way, many Americans are today living in a state of existential dread.

They shouldn’t be – says James Altucher.

Because the death of the American Dream means the birth of something much better: the “Choose Yourself” era.

As opposed to any previous era, today you don’t need to wait to be “chosen” by somebody; you can “choose” yourself from the very start.

All you need is a laptop and a smartphone – in addition to an idea, some self-confidence, and the readiness to fail forward:

Everyone is an entrepreneur. The only skills you need to be an entrepreneur are the ability to fail, to have ideas, to sell those ideas, to execute on them, and to be persistent so even as you fail you learn and move onto the next adventure.

You have written a book, and you want to publish it?

You don’t need to wait to be chosen by a publishing executive to do that! Just publish it yourself via any of the digital publishing platforms! You need almost zero money to do that!

Hell, nowadays you can even make an award-winning movie for as little as two months’ pay!

But how do you actually get to that state of mind?

James Altucher’s advice:

What you need to do is build the house you will live in. You build that house by laying a solid foundation: by building physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health.

In other words, you are a composite of four bodies. And you need to take care of each of them to stay healthy and acquire a “choose yourself” mental attitude.

In the case of your physical body, staying healthy means literally that: try to get enough sleep, get regular exercise and fresh air, eat two meals a day, etc. Well, you know the drill – you just need to put it into practice.

Taking care of your mental body means mastering the art of thinking positively. You need to stop worrying about unimportant things and start reading about the important ones. Read few of our summaries (on different topics) and jot down few ideas they inspire in you on a daily basis.

In order to build a “choose yourself” emotional body, you need to distance yourself from the people who drain your energy and surround yourself with those who actually love you and want to help you. Life is too short to live it in any other way.

Finally, your spiritual body will profit a lot if you start living in the present and stop time traveling to the fields of regret located in the past or the cities of uncertainty everyone’s future is built from.

Just do what you can and want now – and, step by step, you’ll get to a tomorrow of your dreams.

Key Lessons from “Choose Yourself”

1.      Welcome to the “Choose Yourself” Era
2.      Your Happiness Depends Upon the Health of Your Four Bodies
3.      Stop Searching for Purpose, or You’ll End Up Committing a Pseudocide

Welcome to the “Choose Yourself” Era

Up to about a decade ago, most Americans sincerely believed in the American Dream.

Nowadays, the majority of them are either jobless or depressed.

Why?

Because after the 2008 financial crisis – which inspired many companies to start outsourcing – the American Dream is all but dead for the citizens of the United States.

But, that’s a good thing!

Since it inaugurated a new era, one which James Altucher calls the “Choose Yourself” era.

Unlike any previous era, this one offers you the full freedom to choose who you want to be.

In a nutshell, you don’t have to go to a university anymore; you have many other alternatives to educate yourself. You don’t have to look for a job anymore as well; you can create one yourself.

The best part: it can actually be the one of your dreams.

Your Happiness Depends Upon the Health of Your Four Bodies

In order to develop a “choose yourself” mental attitude, you need to take care of your four bodies: the physical, the mental, the emotional, and the spiritual.

In other words, this means eating healthy and staying fit (physical), thinking positively (mental), distancing yourself from bad influences and surrounding yourself with people you love and who love you back (emotional) and living in the present as much as you can (spiritual).

Stop Searching for Purpose, or You’ll End Up Committing a Pseudocide

In the dictionary of James Altucher, “pseudocide” doesn’t mean literally faking your own death – it means killing your past and starting anew due to the fear of living wrongly.

But that’s an anxiety your future plants in your present.

Stop doing that!

Most of us don’t know what our purpose is, and the majority will never find out.

Who cares?

The point is to not sweat over it and enjoy your present.

Do that – and a purpose (or many purposes) may just shape itself along the way.

Like this summary? We’d like to invite you to download our free 12 min app, for more amazing summaries and audiobooks.

“Choose Yourself Quotes”

Only think about the people you enjoy. Only read the books you enjoy, that make you happy to be human. Only go to the events that actually make you laugh or fall in love. Click To Tweet

The only truly safe thing you can do is to try over and over again. To go for it, to get rejected, to repeat, to strive, to wish. Without rejection there is no frontier, there is no passion, and there is no magic. Click To Tweet

Forget purpose. It’s okay to be happy without one. The quest for a single purpose has ruined many lives. Click To Tweet

We’re taught at an early age that we’re not good enough. That someone else has to choose us in order for us to be…what? Blessed? Rich? Certified? Legitimized? Educated? Partnership material? Click To Tweet

No matter who you are, no matter what you do, no matter who your audience is: 30% will love it, 30% will hate it, and 30% won’t care. Stick with the people who love you and don’t spend a single second on the rest. Life will be better that… Click To Tweet

Our Critical Review

James Altucher is an old inspiration of ours. Some time ago, we even had the privilege of spending an evening with him in London and, by the end of it, we were at least ten lessons richer.

So, it’s no wonder that we included “Choose Yourself” in our selection of top motivational books in history.

But we could have easily added the book to our list of top business books as well: according to “USA Today,” it more than deserves it.

And there aren’t many books which are considered best in more than one category.

“Choose Yourself” is the exception.

Because James Altucher is an exception as well.

Read this book and learn to become one as well.

Emir Zecovic

Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.