Ego is the Enemy: The Fight to Master Our Greatest Opponent

The instant Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and international bestseller

"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.

Ego Is the Enemy draws on a vast array of stories and examples, from literature to philosophy to his­tory. We meet fascinating figures such as George Marshall, Jackie Robinson, Katharine Graham, Bill Belichick, and Eleanor Roosevelt, who all reached the highest levels of power and success by con­quering their own egos. Their strategies and tactics can be ours as well.

In an era that glorifies social media, reality TV, and other forms of shameless self-promotion, the battle against ego must be fought on many fronts. 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."

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226 pages

Average rating: 7.76

25 RATINGS

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2 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

MrsReadsAlot
Dec 19, 2024
6/10 stars
I stumbled upon Ryan Holiday on YouTube and come back to watch his videos regularly. Stoicism has already been a big help to me. My brain thrives on being anxious about things I can't control. I also caught myself dealing with some ego issues this morning. Seemed like a great opportunity to give a listen to Ego is the Enemy.

After getting to know how Holiday puts his books together through his Daily Stoic videos, it's pretty much exactly what I expected. Lots of lessons from and quotes by famous folks. Nothing wrong with that and I did get some good info out of the book.

I think others can get a lot out of Holiday's knowledge and experience. This is mostly filled with stories of historically significant events and biographies that give the reader some great examples of how ego can seriously get in the way. There's other good stuff in there, too.

If that's what you're looking for, give it a listen or read it with your eyeballs. I'm used to the author's voice and mannerisms from all of the videos so I went with the audio and am happy with that choice.
Kattymimz
Jun 30, 2021
One of the best books my mind has ever had to articulate. Very very defined truths about our life's choices and decisions.

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