Table of Contents
The 50th Law by Robert Greene and Curtis Jackson (50 Cent) is about overcoming fear. The ten chapters of the book each focus on a common fear between people – this may be a fear of change, or death, or of leading from the front, or of being patient. The virtues that lead to success are difficult to acquire, because they go against our basic tendencies.
It is easy to hold on to our beliefs or fantasies than to challenge them. It is much easier to resign ourselves to low expectations, than to be ambitious. It is easier to distract ourselves with trivialities than to devote our time to meaningful but difficult work. It is easier to be an employee than to take ownership of our work
We will often do anything to avoid difficulty, and we fear difficulty because we fear failure.
The book contains stories of people like Curtis Jackson (50 Cent), who managed at some point in their lives, to flip the script – to change the way they look at life. Often, this comes from a near death experience. At other times,it comes from being in a difficult circumstance and wanting desperately to get out.
When these people were in situations with their backs against the wall, they acted with urgency and took nothing for granted. They were patient, clever, and courageous – because they had to be.
The message is that even though you may not find yourself in a similar situation – you may be comfortable in your existence, and see no need for urgency – you must work desperately to rebel. The risk is that by not doing so, you are only postponing the inevitable, and when the time does come that forces you to act urgently, you will be unprepared and unarmed. It is better to face your fears early, than to be forced to face them when you are less capable (or willing) to do so.
Chapter 1: See Things for What They Are – Intense Realism
Curtis Jackson (50 Cent) learned from his experience on the streets, that the only way to get what you want in life, was to be realistic. Many people choose to live in a fantasy world that makes them feel comfortable, while ignoring the details and the reality around them.
Chapter 2: Make Everything Your Own – Self-Reliance
Employers will steal your work, exploit you, for as long as they can – until they can find someone younger and more talented who will work for less money. If you are dependent on others, then you will always be in a fragile situation.
Chapter 3: Turn Shit Into Sugar – Opportunism
50 Cent was shot 9 times, including a bullet in his jaw, while sitting in the back seat of a car right after his career was taking off. The record label that signed him canceled their deal with him.
Chapter 4: Keep Moving – Calculated Momentum
50 Cent joined the drug trade at a turbulent time. There was little law and order, many competing drug dealers, and constantly changing tastes.
Chapter 5: Learn When to be Bad – Aggression
There are times when it is necessary to be bad, that is, to be aggressive or cunning.
Chapter 6: Lead from the Front – Authority
Wayne got out of prison and wanted to get rid of Curtis Jackson, who was doing well for himself. On the streets, popularity is not always a good thing.
Chapter 7: Know Your Environment From the Inside Out – Connection
Curtis Jackson started dealing drugs when he was 12 years old. One day, after he was given drugs on consignment (he would be given drugs for free and would pay the supplier back a certain amount and pocket the rest), he had a hard time selling them to fiends.
Chapter 8: Respect the Process – Mastery
Before music, the only way Curtis Jackson thought he could make money was to sell drugs, since all the people he knew that had money made it that way.
Chapter 9: Push Beyond Your Limits – Self-Belief
As a child you conform to what other expect of you. You adjust your behavior to make adults happy, because you are afraid of getting punished by them in some way.
Chapter 10: Confront Your Mortality – the Sublime
Thoughts about death can either paralyze you or push you to finally live.
If you are interested in reading books about unmasking human nature, consider reading The Dichotomy of the Self, a book that explores the great psychoanalytic and philosophical ideas of our time, and what they can reveal to us about the nature of the self.