OK, I would imagine you likely know I am an Arnold fan.  I remember being an overweight kid at age 13 reading his first book which was all about Bodybuilding.  Of course, I didn’t know he would later be the most prolific action hero and then later Governor of California!  But he was and this book takes you through this journey where he describes these four different “acts” in his life.

Full disclosure, I listened to this one on audible (while I worked out 😊) and Arnie himself does the reading and his blunt and powerful voice and accent really made this book better than I think the content really is.  I am not saying that I didn’t like it.  I actually did, but it was almost like I was saying to myself “Of course, you want me to get off my ass and workout, of course, you think I am limiting myself because I was born in this country with so much opportunity.” 

So, while I enjoyed the book it never sent me over the edge like Elon’s book or “Endure” by Cameron Hayes.  I still give this book 4 stars because you should read this, but if you haven’t gotten around to the other one’s that I just mentioned, those should most definitely come first!  Arnold’s stratospheric success happened as part of a process that he does clearly describe.  These seven tools are clear vision, big thinking, hard work, direct communication, resilient problem-solving, open-minded curiosity, and a commitment to giving back. 

You can expect that “Be Useful” will take you on an inspirational tour through Arnold’s tool kit for a meaningful life. He shows us how to put those tools to work, in service of whatever fulfilling future we can dream up for ourselves. He brings his insights to vivid life with compelling personal stories, life-changing successes and life-threatening failures alike. Some of them you likely already know about, and others were told here for the first time ever.

In summary, good book, but I guess I expected more.  I need to state that the last two books have been two of my favorites and Elon’s is likely in my all time top 10 and that’s saying something since three of those spots are taken up by the Enhanced series written by….. 😊  So, it is possible that I was riding pretty high and this was the first listen that just didn’t hit that 4.5 to 5 star range