[Khan]

Since we’re surrounded by media coverage of Donald Trump's run for office in 2016, I thought a review of one of his books might be an interesting topic to fellow forum members.

I bought the book recently at a book fare in my home city. As soon as I saw the cover I was immediately drawn to it, and after having a quick glance I decided to buy the book. It was written in 2007, four years after Trump became the executive producer and host of the NBC reality show The Apprentice. It contains 10 chapters, and in each of them Trump talks about a specific concept from business and life, such as passion, luck, persistence etc. Additional commentary by co-author Bill Zanker can be found at the end of each chapter.

In general, Think Big is a book that is very easy to read. Donald Trump has to be given credit for his very powerful and efficient way of communicating thoughts and ideas to people. If you ever saw the man speak in public, then you'll have a general idea of how this is written. His style of writing is very similar to his style of speaking: very blunt and concise, but on the other hand well-structured and encompassing enough to never miss an important detail. He doesn't dwelve into theory, and in this book you won’t find any of the new-age crap that is often prevalent in works of modern authors that deal with self-improvement, motivation and similar topics. Instead, Trump relies on his rich personal experience to deliver the message to the reader in form of stories and anecdotes - while reading I wasn't bored for a single second; every story and anecdote has its purpose and meaning.

I think Think Big will be very interesting to red pill men, and there are two reasons for it. The first one is the author himself – Donald Trump is a natural alpha male, and his upbringing and way of thinking is red pill to the core. He never had to completely change his mindset and do a 180 degree turn like the rest of us, the red pill was always a part of his character. The second reason is the fact that although Trump writes from a businessman's perspective, everything you'll read here can be applied to other areas of life such as game, health, lifestyle etc. It doesn’t matter whether you’re young or old, rich or poor, fit or chubby, player or not - I feel everyone can learn something from Trump’s experience. I'm not a businessman and I have no intention of becoming one, but nevertheless I read this book with enthusiasm and eagerness of a young real estate investor that just began his career. Trump’s way of thinking and his views on life and its struggles are almost completely compatible with principal tenets of manosphere and neomasculinity. In fact, with some quick editing this book could be easily transformed into something else - a guidebook on internal game, or perhaps a gym motivation tool. And it would be just as good as it is now. Another great trait this book has is that it’s written in a modular form. Each chapter can stand for itself, so the reader can always go back and re-read a specific chapter without losing continuity. This is very useful if you want to get back to a specific topic and review what you’ve read.

If I had to pick one thing that would make this book stand out it would be this: although Trump is all about thinking big, playing the field of life and never giving up, don’t be fooled into thinking that he doesn’t stand with both on his feet on the ground. This is most evident in Chapter 4, where he talks about luck. He doesn’t shy away from the fact that he had a lot of luck during life and that without luck things might have turned completely different for him. This realism is very commendable, as men who achieve great success in life often lose sight of the struggles and pain that less fortunate people sometimes have to endure.

The only thing I didn’t like in Think Big were Bill Zanker’s commentaries at the end of each chapter. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with his ideas; quite the contrary. However, after having read each chapter his comments seemed a bit redundant. Even though it’s probably not the case, I always had the feeling he’s just repeating and rehashing what Trump said. In addition to this, some readers might find Trump’s writing style too blunt for their taste, perhaps even invasive to an extent. He most certainly doesn’t beat around the bush – from the moment you start reading, you’re overwhelmed by his stream of thoughts that just keeps coming at you and never stops. Those who like to read slowly and introspect on what they’ve just read could be discouraged by this.

To conclude, I'd rate Think Big with 5 stars. It's a great resource in self-improvement written by one of the most successful men in America. Everyone will find Trump's ideas and experiences interesting to read (especially businessmen and entrepreneurs), and American readers will benefit additionally by getting an insight into the mind of the man who might very well become their next President. Highly recommended.

[Robert Hedrock]

From a person born with silver spoon?

Who inherited all his money from his parents?

Who lives a privileged lifestyle all his life? Who has never known any serious hardship?

Thanks, but no thanks.

I guess i will simply leave you all to it.

[ElFlaco]

I'm halfway through. This book gives you a good insight into how Trump thinks. You can tell that the pundits who failed to foresee Trump's rise have never read it. Otherwise they would have understood his drive and experience better.

The book is mostly a series of business anecdotes that illustrate specific take-away points. It has already helped me to make a decision, to eliminate three of the four business ideas I've had under consideration, in order to focus on the one with the most potential.

I like the contributions of co-author Bill Zanker (Learning Annex, an adult continuing education company). Here are two:

Quote:

When you want advice from an expert, ask your question and sit quietly. Do not do what most people do and start to answer the question or make it multiple choice. You will only distract the expert, who will often just parrot back what he or she thinks you want to hear. If you truly want objective advice, do not be so insecure that you have to tell the expert how smart you are by suggesting answers. The expert is smart, and the expert is being paid. To get the best advice, let the expert work to find an answer based on his or her own experience and perspective.

Quote:

It is okay to overpay for people who deserve it. And if somebody is not pulling their weight, do not hesitate to get rid of them immediately before they spread the disease throughout your company— the disease of mediocrity.

[Kapostatus13]

I read this book a while back and it was a simple resdt but had some great life lessons. I recommend it.