I am about 42% through with Steve Jobs’ biography.

It does seem like the biographer went out of his way to look objective with his book, maybe to the point of making Steve seem more of a jerk than he is…

But dude seems like a total asshole.

Other things I’ve read/heard confirm that.

I know he made the Mac, and I know people love it, and I know he is behind a lot of things that make my life better. I love my iPad and my iPhone.

I have a Mac too. I bought it because every marketer seemed to be talking about how great the Mac was… and so when my (AMAZING) PC got stolen from my car, I took it as a sign to buy the MacBook Pro.

Now I’m used to it, and love programs like Screenflow… but I really don’t understand what the cult following is about. Truthfully I prefer the PC.

In reading Steve’s biography, here are some things that really stood out to me:

1. Steve had a great friend who stuck with him for YEARS… even when he abandoned his daughter. His friend lived with him, helped him with Apple, etc… and then when it was time to give out Apple shares, Steve insisted his friend didn’t deserve the shares because he wasn’t upper level enough.

His friend was shocked. He’d been with Steve and helped him out for a LONG time. He just assumed Steve would take care of him down the line.

Many people thought Steve’s friend was right… that Steve should take care of him. One person who did have stock went up to Steve and told him he’d happily match the amount of stock Steve gave his friend. Steve’s reply? “OK… I’ll give him zero.”

For someone who allegedly wasn’t about the money, that sucks.

2. When he was laying people off at one of his other companies (NeXT I believe, but it might have been Pixar), he wanted to lay hard-working people off with no severance pay and no two week notice. These are people that worked VERY hard for him (lots of hours, and also a lot of aggravation considering how hostile Steve was).

When someone told Steve he should at least give the people he was laying off two weeks’ notice, he said “Okay… we’ll do that. The two weeks is retroactive from two weeks ago.”

I know he had been overfunding the company, but dude.

Again… for someone who is allegedly not about the money, that’s really messed up.

3. He treated people like CRAP!!! Stories of people getting him birthday presents he left in his hotel room, talking down to people, trying to oust people from their positions, cheating Wozniak out of bonus money that wouldn’t have even been made had Wozniak not done the work…

He just seems like he has very little integrity and is NOT someone I would respect.

I know he made a big impact and transformed the world, but so did Hitler.

I’m not saying he’s like Hitler. I’m just saying that solely transforming the world isn’t a reason to idolize someone.

He does have some great products that I love. He’s an amazing marketer. He (allegedly) cares a lot about user experience (though part of me wonders how much that is just his ego loving the control).

Ugh, and that part about how he felt he was enlightened… makes me feel sick.

I’m not saying he was some evil dark force, but I definitely don’t find him enlightened. I find him selfish, an egomaniac, completely devoid of empathy, and mindblowingly self-centered.

Does this say something about me? Am I getting frustrated about some “shadow” part of me?

Possibly. I don’t think so though. I don’t feel an emotional charge around this. I just feel sad that this is the type of person people are idolizing.

If someone wants to aggrandize a person for changing the world, there are many better choices. Why not go with Mother Teresa? Gandhi?

ANYONE who seemed to think beyond themselves.

My lord.

A few days ago someone asked me, “What are your all time Top 10 (or more) favourite books for life and business? I have heard or read you mention the odd one here and there but thought a list would be so great. Probably doesn’t warrant a vlog but would be a really interesting and wonderful blog post?”

I set out to make a list and realized it’s MUCH harder than I thought it would be.

That’s because some books had a HUGE influence on me at one point in my life… but would no longer be that useful. At the time though, I really needed them for my evolution!

So with that said, here’s a list of lifelong list of the most influential books for me… and why:

Business

Secrets Of The Millionaire Mind – This book led me to go to a Millionaire Mind Intensive, which led me to Warrior Camp. Warrior Camp was amongst one of the top 2 or 3 life experiences I’ve ever had. The book also helped start me on my journey to spirituality.

Influence – Everyone cites this book, I know, but it is a marketer’s DREAM. It tells you all the emotional points on how people act the way that they do. It’s amazing.

Predictably Irrational – This book gives more amazing insight into why people act the way they do with absolutely brilliant examples.

4 Hour Workweek – This is the only book that I’ve ever finished reading and then opened right back up to read again (even with my waiting list of books to read). It’s UNBELIEVABLY AMAZING and totally transformed my life.  I’ve gotten to live the 4HWW lifestyle for so long thanks to the principles I got here.

Psycho Cybernetics – Awesome book about the power of visualization. The regular book is beyond boring to read but the audiobook is actually REALLY good.

Anything by Dan Kennedy – He is BRILLIANT. The first book I read of his was “The Ultimate Sales Letter” but I really glean out so much from everything he writes.

Rhinoceros Success – Philip Cordova sent this book to me a while ago. He said it’s his #1 business book and really helps motivate him. For a while I had index cards with the “Rhinoceros” sayings around my bed. It was very motivational and brilliant in its simplicity.

Crush It – This book is SO MOTIVATIONAL and really gives an awesome step-by-step plan outline on how to prosper with your passions online.

Inspiration/Personal Development/Spirituality

Three Cups Of Tea – The story in this is not only amazing to hear, but it inspired me to be a better person. It’s the reason I am so passionate about building a school and why I’m working with someone now to deliver backpacks to underprivileged children in Brazil.

Mother Teresa Autobiography – I lent my book out and haven’t gotten it back, and Ican’t remember the title. All I know is reading the biography I read (there are a few) was so impactful and life-changing for me. It was so amazing to see how Mother Teresa got so much done with just sheer willpower and faith. She inspired me beyond words.

Attractor Factor – This is a book that seems so elementary spiritual-wise, but it really helped me. I don’t know what it is about the book, but good things seem to happen whenever I read it. In my opinion Joe Vitale doesn’t always come across the best online… but his books are REALLY good. Hypnotic Writing is also a phenomenal book of his.

The Big Leap – This is a GREAT book on getting out of your self imposed limitations and really shining your greatest gifts to the world.

Trust Your Vibes (or any book by Sonia Choquette) – When I first got into the whole world of spirituality I read Sonia’s books nonstop. They helped me out a lot.

Celestine Prophecy – This is a book I don’t know if I’d vibe with now, but at the time it was really huge for me. I found it randomly, in an all-Portuguese bookstore when I was living in Brazil, and it seemed to pop out at me.

Conversations With God – My mentor at the time recommended this book to me and it was so nourishing for me. I often think about things I read in there.

The Shack – This is actually a more religious book (I am NOT religious), but at the time, I really needed the message. I haven’t read it in years but still think about it fondly.

Like The Flowing River – After reading Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, I was in love with him. This book just makes me love him more and more. He writes so beautifully, he is so eloquent, and the stories that he shares are like food for my soul. I absolutely LOVE this book and refer to it often.

The Psychology Of Self Esteem – This is a GREAT book that has been really helping me boost up my self esteem.

Relationships

Do Gentlemen Really Prefer Blondes? – I LOVED this book. It read almost like a “Cosmo”, and I think it’s underrated because of that, but I learned so much about male psychology from it.

Using The Power Of Pleasure To Have Your Way With The World – Jena LaFlamme sent this book to me and I absolutely love it. It’s so great in coming to terms with my greatest desires, and being such a better woman because of it.

Keys To The Kingdom – I learned SO MUCH about men and how to relate to men because of this book. It seriously changed my relationships in a very profound way.

How To Make Anyone Fall In Love With You – I got brilliant psychological insights from this book.

Wisdom Of Your Face – People underestimate face reading, but it’s really quite remarkable how much you can tell from what someone looks like. Just by looking at someone, you can change how you convey your message to make sure it gets delivered. The author of this book started using face reading to be able to better communicate with her clients but the uses for this run rampant. I’m going to a face reading workshop of Jean’s later this month and cannot wait!

Health

Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think – This had really fascinating insights into why we eat the way we do and how we can stop acting out of subconscious autopilot so often. The stories and case studies in here were REALLY thought provoking.

12 Steps To Raw Foods – This book is REALLY simple, but it helped me a lot. It helped me understand why raw food is so important and exactly how much wisdom there is in our bodies.

Prakriti – I’m learning a ton about ayurveda through this book. The messages in here are super-interesting and I love that it does NOT offer a “one size fits all” approach to health.

The Hidden Messages In Water – I learned so much about how water is affected by different things here. The book shows how water molecules actually change when exposed to negative words, different types of music, etc… it’s SO fascinating and totally scientifically backed.

——-

Wow… making this list was really interesting. There are SO MANY more books I could add!!! I have a feeling I might be forgetting some of my favorites, too, and will have to come back and edit when I think of them.

It’s also really interesting that two of the authors here (Neale Donald Walsch and Victoria Boutenko) live in Ashland, where I live. I should go see them before we move.

I’m glad I thought the comments to this post over before responding.

Honestly, my initial reaction was to immediately defend the whole “it’s not a job if I like it” thing.That being said… you guys are right.

Just to clarify, I didn’t necessarily mean I’d take 5 letters every month – there’s months I like to just take off.But no matter how you look at it, it wasn’t the most intelligent of choices, especially considering my usual outlook on pricing and the fact that I’m no longer charging under $97 for anything unless it’s for a trial or to test out a market.

I might’ve spoke out of fear, too… closing all IM letters is going to take away most of my customers, I’ll be traveling a ton and will need more money, etc… but again, that wasn’t that intelligent – I don’t need to do copy (even though I really do love it and want to continue)… I just need to manage my money better. I went out to dinner with a friend who makes $35K a year yesterday (he’s going to college) and he’s in a better financial situation than I am, even though I made 4x that last year! (I hired him as my wealth manager.)

I think I might do that special thing Harris suggested once in a while just to learn about some new niches, fund random adventures, etc… but it’ll be just that – a special.

A few comments on some of your comments…

Harris: First of all, I love you! Thanks for making my day – that was very, very sweet. You brought up a lot of great points, especially the fact that people I write for at $997 or $1997 are different types of people than the $5k people. I didn’t think about that.I also kind of dig the “raising my price for IM industries” thing. People that are willing to pay more are actually MAKING more and so I won’t be peddling crap.

And happy birthday to Hudson (freaking awesome name btw)!

Rob: Just to clarify, I didn’t mean billables – just 5 letters to maybe 5 different people – I do agree with you that people wouldn’t really have a need on a monthly basis.

The protege idea is something I’ve been playing with, too. I’m working with an incredibly talented copywriter now… although like I said, I do write because I enjoy it… but just a) to help this awesome writer and b) as an extra stream of revenue… not a bad idea.

Jason: Grrrr, you’re right. Your comment was the one I was going to defend myself the most from, haha, so I’m really glad I slept on it.

And by the way – I had a dream about you and Kami a few nights ago… I sold you guys your “dream house” in Portland (it was a house I used to own) and I was terrified you wouldn’t like it as much as the one you’re going for now (you just trusted me and bought it blindly), but you were both supernice and loved it.

Micheal: First of all… AWESOME ON OCTOBER 31ST!! I love to hear that. Seriously, good for you!

Thanks for the comment, too… the “you are worth every penny” hits home more than you know. I don’t have hard times charging for products that I have with pen names, or with partners (and they’re always quality)… but I do need to do a better job of asserting my value when I work alone.

Dan: As usual, you’re right. I really really love the special idea. And you’re right – nothing annoys me more than someone who doesn’t appreciate good copy.

Angela: Thank you for your comment! I really appreciate your taking the time to write that out. As far as my personal cause – you bring up some good points. I actually do, once in a while, surprise someone with a sales letter or do a critique just because I know someone will value it.

I guess I don’t do FREE as much any more because…Well, I’ll copy and paste something that I posted to the Warrior Forum when someone said something about how if people really wanted to help, they’d give things away for free:

“I can tell you with stone-cold confidence that free doesn’t work… ESPECIALLY if you want to help people. I was going to give yayFOOD away for free for a long time… and everyone kept warning me against it. They all said that when people pay, even if it’s a small amount, they value it 10x more. I took it at their word, but REALLY discovered that with Internet Marketing. You wouldn’t believe how many stories I get… emails, PMs, etc… from people who say they really want my product but just can’t afford it. Some of the stories absolutely break my heart. I always used to give out free copies of products to people like that… I was estimating the other day that I’ve given out at LEAST $20,000 worth of product to at least 50 people.All I ask when I give stuff away is that people let me know how it worked out for them (not for a testimonial, I just want to make sure I was able to help).

To date, I haven’t received one story back. And I KNOW the stuff I put out is quality.Hell, one time I offered FULL SALES LETTERS – for free – to 2 people that I saw got screwed over in a Warrior thread. They paid $197 or something, and I offered them a $4000 letter… for free, just because I felt bad for them. The one that complained the most in the thread, talking about how much money he lost and how he really needs it… never even got back to me with my questionnaire. I actually decided yesterday that any time anyone asks me for anything again, I’m going to ask them to fill out an application, do certain things (get at least 3 backlinks to yayFOOD, etc.), etc… and then I’ll look into it. It might sound rude, but I believe it’s helping people more than anything else.

You bring up some fantastic points, though. Like I mentioned, I too love the special idea and I definitely think there’s something I can do to help more in that regard, I just need to figure out what it is.Thank you very much for the comment. =)

Taj: You’re absolutely right about people associating value with cost – and the people I want in my life aren’t people that are going to have a problem with the higher priced letters. A special, like many people were saying, will demonstrate the value – but an overall price drop was a dumb idea.

Good point on the subconscious value dropping, too. I have a ridiculous responsibility ethic (to a fault at times), but I think anything’s possible… ESPECIALLY if I started writing for people that didn’t appreciate it.You know, I have a good friend who writes $997 letters (she’s starting out) and she tells me of all the hoops people make her jump through when she writes for them… there’s no way in hell I’d deal with that.

Andrew: Awesome points. As soon as you posted I thought about my whole high priced thing and how I was contradicting myself… and the plumbing thing is a great point, too. =)You’re all right. Thank you all SO MUCH for your time responding to me.