Episode · Modern Wisdom · 2022-12-17
Books mentioned on Insights From History's Greatest Thinkers - David Senra - #566
David Senra is a podcaster and a writer. Many of the most important insights you need to learn to improve your life have already been discovered in the past.
David Senra recommended Zero to One by Peter Thiel and others, Hackers & Painters by Paul Graham, Hackers and Painters by Paul Graham, The Almanack of Naval Ravikant by Eric Jorgenson, Endurance by Alfred Lansing, The Outsiders by William N. Thorndike Jr., Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and others, A Man for All Markets by Edward O. Thorp, Driven by Larry H. Miller and others, Tycoon's War by Stephen Dando-Collins, Accidental Empires by Robert X. Cringely, Against the Odds by James Dyson, Almanac and Weather Forecaster by Eric Sloane, Frames of Reference by Eric Jorgensen, The River of Doubt by Candice Millard, Estee by Estee Lauder, and Becoming Steve Jobs by Brent Schlender and others, and discussed Michael Jordan by Roland Lazenby, Driven from within by Michael Jordan and others, Endurance; Shackleton's incredible voyage by Alfred Lansing, Outsiders, The by William N. Thorndike Jr. and others, Beat the Dealer by Edward O. Thorp, The Everything Store by Brad Stone, The Snowball by Alice Schroeder, The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant, The Lessons of History by Will Durant and others, and Hard Drive by James Wallace and others.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Zero to One
Why people recommend it: Peter Thiel and Blake Masters's Zero to One offers a provocative guide to startup creation, arguing that true economic progress comes from building entirely new things rather than copying existing models.
Recommended“Jeff bezos's uh shareholder letters which are absolutely fantastic I've read you know multiple times and then Peter thiel's book zero to one and so I read I spent the last three weeks I read I did three separate episodes on programs essays and I was like you know what I'm gonna re-read zero to one”
Where to get it
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Hackers & Painters
Hackers & Painters by Paul Graham is a collection of influential essays examining technology, startup culture, programming, and the creative mindset required to build groundbreaking software and companies.
Recommended“In fact the collection of his essays is you can buy the book it's called hackers and Painters and he's like at the very top levels it's you there's no like painting by numbers”
Where to get it
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Hackers and Painters
Hackers and Painters by Paul Graham is a collection of essays that explores the intersections of computer programming, startup culture, and creative intellectual work.
Recommended“in fact the collection of his essays is you can buy the book it's called hackers and Painters and he's like at the very top levels it's you there's no like painting by numbers”
Where to get it
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Michael Jordan
Why people recommend it: This comprehensive 700-page biography by Roland Lazenby explores the extraordinary life, relentless competitive drive, and career of basketball legend Michael Jordan.
Discussed“and I read uh not only did I read Michael's Auto autobiography driven from within but I read this like 700 Page biography which changed my [ __ ] life and it's called uh Michael Jordan uh the life I think by Roland Lazenby”
Where to get it
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Driven from within
Discussed“and I read uh not only did I read Michael's Auto autobiography driven from within but I read this like 700 Page biography which changed my [ __ ] life”
Where to get it
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The Almanack of Naval Ravikant
The Almanack of Naval Ravikant by Eric Jorgenson is a curated collection of wisdom, aphorisms, and insights compiled from the entrepreneur and philosopher Naval Ravikant.
Recommended“uh in fact our mutual friend the way the way we connect is Eric jardinson and I at Eric's book The Almanac and of all it's like I give that away”
Where to get it
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Endurance
Endurance by Alfred Lansing is a gripping historical non-fiction account detailing Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated 1914 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition and the harrowing survival story of his stranded crew.
Recommended“That is a cover of Ernest Shackleton this is fantastic book written by Alfred Lansing called endurance right”
Where to get it
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Endurance; Shackleton's incredible voyage
Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing is a gripping historical account of Sir Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated 1914 Antarctic expedition and the crew's remarkable survival against impossible odds.
Discussed“this is fantastic book written by Alfred Lansing called endurance right”
Where to get it
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The Outsiders
The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success by William N.
Recommended“so then you go and you read there's not a lot of material on second thing but I read everything I could find and I didn't uh a podcast on this book called The Outsiders which is one of the very few books that profiles what what made Singleton”
Where to get it
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Outsiders, The
The Outsiders by William N.
Discussed“so it uh so interesting and I absolutely flip my [ __ ] because all the ideas that I thought were buffets a lot of them came from Singleton and to me that's inspiring because it's like I don't I can I can Thrive and be wildly successful and I don't need one single original idea of my own I”
Where to get it
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Extreme Ownership
Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin is a practical leadership guide rooted in military combat experiences that emphasizes personal accountability and execution.
Recommended“his book extreme ownership is to me the best single best book on leadership that I've ever read”
Where to get it
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A Man for All Markets
A Man for All Markets by Edward O.
Recommended“it's called a man for all markets um the saint celeb wrote the forward and you can actually read the forward for free on nasim's website which is fantastic”
Where to get it
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Driven
Driven by Larry H.
Recommended“Let me go back to Edward and I want to tell you about this guy Larry Miller who wrote a book that I think everybody should read it's called driven an autobiography by Larry Miller right”
Where to get it
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Beat the Dealer
Beat the Dealer by Edward O.
Discussed“writes a book in the 1960s called beat the dealer sells millions of copies”
Where to get it
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The Everything Store
The Everything Store by Brad Stone is a non-fiction book that chronicles the first twenty years of Amazon and the leadership of Jeff Bezos.
Discussed“the code name for what turns into Amazon inside the hedge fund was called the everything store like that is why the biography by Brad Stone is called the everything store”
Where to get it
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The Snowball
The Snowball by Alice Schroeder is an extensive biography of legendary investor Warren Buffett that chronicles his business acumen, lifelong learning habits, and the personal trade-offs of extreme career dedication.
Discussed“reading uh this book called The Snowball which is like a most well-known biography of Warren Buffett”
Where to get it
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Tycoon's War
Why people recommend it: Tycoon's War by Stephen Dando-Collins is a historical non-fiction book that details the intense rivalry between Cornelius Vanderbilt and the American filibuster William Walker during the mid-nineteenth century.
Recommended“He literally did there's this great book called tycoon's War and it's about this guy I think his name's William Walker”
Where to get it
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The Story of Philosophy
"The Story of Philosophy" by Will Durant is a sweeping historical overview that chronicles the lives and ideas of the world's greatest thinkers, making complex philosophical concepts accessible to general readers.
Discussed“this is great line from will Durant and will and Ariel Durant who've spent their entire life studying human history and in this book called lessons of History they say a great line where it's like in every age governments have been corrupt and men have been dishonest”
Where to get it
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The Lessons of History
The Lessons of History by Will and Ariel Durant is a concise 104-page summary distilling five thousand years of historical patterns, human behavior, and the rise and fall of civilizations.
Discussed“and in this book called lessons of History they say a great line where it's like in every age governments have been corrupt and men have been dishonest”
Where to get it
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Accidental Empires
Accidental Empires by Robert X.
Recommended“so one of the craziest books I ever read um was this book called hard drive uh Bill Gates in the building of the Microsoft Empire right”
Where to get it
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Hard Drive
Hard Drive by James Wallace and Jim Erickson is a biography detailing the early years of Microsoft and the relentless rise of Bill Gates.
Discussed“um was this book called hard drive uh Bill Gates in the building of the Microsoft Empire”
Where to get it
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Against the Odds
Against the Odds by James Dyson is the first autobiography of the British inventor and industrial designer, chronicling his relentless struggles, financial pressures, and eventual triumph in creating the dual-cyclone bagless vacuum cleaner.
Recommended“so the number one book recommendation I have is James Dyson has two autobiographies right”
Where to get it
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Almanac and Weather Forecaster
Almanac and Weather Forecaster by Eric Sloane is a reference work focused on meteorology and nature observation.
Recommended“I give uh Eric jorgensen's the almanac and of all a lot away a lot”
Where to get it
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Frames of Reference
Frames of Reference by Eric Jorgensen is a compilation exploring mental models, decision-making, and foundational perspectives for life and business.
Recommended“I give uh Eric jorgensen's the almanac and of all a lot away a lot”
Where to get it
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The River of Doubt
The River of Doubt by Candice Millard is a riveting historical narrative detailing former U.S.
Recommended“um there's a fantastic book called The River of Doubt which is a biography on Teddy Roosevelt but it it focuses on him his life after he lost the last presidential election”
Where to get it
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Estee
Estee by Estee Lauder is the autobiography of the cosmetics pioneer, detailing her journey from humble beginnings to building a global beauty empire through relentless hard work and direct consumer engagement.
Recommended“Estee Lauder wrote one of the best autobiographies that you can ever find a complete obsessive her I'm using her Playbook a lot in the way I'm building Founders and like she's just obsessed over customers did things that did not scale she writes the book she dies the PO the company is still a private family company and now”
Where to get it
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Becoming Steve Jobs
Becoming Steve Jobs by Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli is an insightful biography examining the evolution of Steve Jobs from a reckless upstart into a visionary leader.
Recommended“it's called becoming Steve Jobs the evolution of a reckless upstart to a Visionary leader”
Where to get it
