Ego is the Enemy

Ryan introduces himself and lays down his legitimacy to write the book. Getting inspired from stoic philosophy and his own life to explain EGO is the ENEMY.

INTRO - You are most easy to be fooled and ego drags you in the whirl. Ryan gives an overview and introduces some famous personalities, who using there awareness and giving up ego to grow while some who perished. He advices to be "Humble in your aspirations,  resilient in your failure, gracious in your success."
The book has 3 parts, each part resonating to your life where either you aspire, you are failing or you are successful - Look at EGO and destroy that enemy.

PART I

ASPIRE

Every great journey begins here yet most fail to execute. To whatever you aspire- Ego is the enemy.
What is rare is humility, diligence and self awareness. He throws light on-Importance of silence, to be or not to be, being student for whole life - Ego makes us hostile to feedback.
Don't be passionate - Invasion of Russia to underinvesting, overinvesting, breaking things that require delicacy- passion is the poison in most cases.

Realism and purpose (passion with foundry) are more practical ways. Purpose brings in the binding factor with discipline. Purpose is function while passion is form over function.

The Canvas Strategy - Marshall who did miniscule work in Rome vs Bellatrix who analyzed football clips (hated by many) which later helped her to be a great coach. Doing small things or things which won't pay you more so as to learn and become better overtime. Humble beginnings, you consider yourself the least important person in the room and change that with results. HELPING YOURSELF BY HELPING OTHERS, delayed short term gratification for long term payoff. THE PERSON WHO CLEARS THE PATH CONTROLS ITS DIRECTION, JUST AS CANVAS HOLDS THE COLORS OF PAINTING.

Restrain yourself - Whatever we aspire, the amount of nonsense one has to go through cannot be reduced. When others treat you improperly, it degrades them. Robinson's life lessons - black football player humiliated to establishing a legacy.

Get out of your own head - Characters from fiction and nonfiction overtime proves that getting things in head leads to distorted vision and eventually to the doom. Live with tangible and real, even if it is uncomfortable.

Danger of early pride - When you look down at things and people, you can't look what is above you. Pride is distraction. If you can't swallow your pride you can't lead. Privately thinking you are better than others is still pride. Misfortunes come to the people who keep their heads too high. Don't boast, there is nothing in it for you.

Work, Work and Work - Forever and ever, continued efforts and persistence counts. The chapter gives quotes from artists to businessman and their perspective of work. Darwin's delayed publication, loving the work, love to train like athletes etc. different perspectives are explained. There is no triumph without toil. To judge your progress look at the floor.

For everything that comes next, Ego is the Enemy - Ambitious but patient, innovative without being rash, brave without being dangerous. Be utterly audacious in aims, because what comes next is going to test you in ways you cannot began to understand.

PART II

Ryan follows same - prescriptive descriptive and solution way.

SUCCESS - Man is pushed by drive but is pulled by values. Success is intoxicating yet to sustain it requires sobriety. Entropy is trying to destroy success.

Always stay a student - The story of Genghis Khan and expanding empires. Calling the astrologers, doctors, scholars to manage the country he conquered. The humble improve and does not assume I know the way. Ryan advices not only the want to learn but "how to learn" attitude also.

Don't tell yourself stories - Myth becomes myth not in living but in retelling. Success is rooted in luck, work creativity and perseverance. This covers case study of failing super bowl team, successful corporates like Google.

What's important to you - “Utemia” - Tranquility i.e. sense of our own path without succumbing the other things which drags you away.

Entitlement, Control and Paranoia - Xerses story and the fall of Persia. How overestimating yourself leads to failure. Entitlement assumes this is mine and sees down to other people. Paranoia suggests you cannot trust anyone - I am here for myself.

Managing yourself - Eisenhower’s management vs Dalorin’s mismanagement. Though Dalorin had an innovative product he couldn’t execute due to disorganization and EGO. Responsibility requires readjustment and clarity of purpose.

Beware of the disease of me - General George Marshal and his stoic beliefs. He had ego, self-interest, dignity, pride, ambition but they were all tempered by sense of humility and selflessness.

Meditate on the immensity - Mohammed Ali - "Its hard to be humble if you are as Great as I am." Realize how much came before you and how only whips of it remain. Reconcile with reality.  When you feel bigger do it again.

Maintain your sobriety (state of being sober) - The height of cultivation runs to simplicity - Bruce Lee. Can you really outwork and outwit everyone for decades? No.

Marcus Aurelius -"He must fight to be the person philosophy tries to make you." Do not be deceived by recognition of amount in bank. Sobriety is prevention method to not let that EGO get to head. It counterweighs success.

Whatever comes next, Ego is the enemy - Aristotle and Alexander - Alex couldn't find the golden mean. We can use GOLDEN MEAN TO NAVIGATE THROUGH EGO. Napoleon's rise and fall - Napoleon quickly faded away just like spoke from his artillery.
PROTECTING OVER SOBRIETY, ESCHEWING GREED AND PARANOIA, RETAINING OUR SENSE OF PURPOSE AND CONNECTING TO LARGER WORLD. EVERYTHING REGRESSIVE TOWARDS THE MEAN.

PART III

FAILURE
It starts with introducing Graham family of Washington post. Katherine Graham who after her husband’s suicide could use the wealth left behind but instead decided to take the difficult path and raised to CEO position. Shares dumped, government getting behind, burning of printing press, to becoming the first female CEO of Fortune 500 company. The less attached to we are to outcomes - better are the results.
Some key takeaway thoughts, ideas and anecdotes:

We cannot be humble until we face humiliation.

Anecdotes clubbed with catchphrases from life of Digenious, Belisarius, JK Rolling, Alcibiades (Athens to Sparta to Persia) etc. This part seems more of a motivational speech.

Success is ego intoxicating; failure can be devastating ego blow. Hard things are broken by hard things.

Quote by Ernst Hemingway in A Farewell to Arms - The world breaks everyone, afterwards many are strong at broken places, those that it does not break it KILLS.

It can ruin your life only if it ruins your character. The only real failure is abounding your principles.

Maintain your own scorecard. Humility makes you better organizationally, personally and professionally. Set yourself as benchmark and improve the process.

Always love. “For the neighbor who won’t turn down the music, for the group that rejected you, who cheated on you, love.” Richard Nixon to Friedrich Douglas ( They cannot degrade me) to Barber Jordan ( Love love and love) Ryan lays down the anecdotes from their lives to elaborate love. Love for hate. Love for all.

Ego refusing to believe that what you are seeing is not true. EGO IS THE ENEMY.

Overall a good read, relatable one filled with anecdotes and descriptions, suggestions and prescriptions. An all-weather kind of book which I recommend everyone to read at least once.