Every year at Sovereign Academy's Blacksmith Liberty & Entrepreneurship Camp we often hear the same questions. Students ask for advice on what to read, what to watch, and what to do to get ahead in life. On this page you'll find the answers.
Albert Einstein said, that “any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking,” but to make the best use of your brain it helps first having an accurate understanding of reality, and of where the world is heading.
So to that end, here are some books to get you started:
Easily the most powerful book that Simon has read on business. Hitler was, by any objective metric, the most successful human being to have lived in at least 2,000 years. How did he do it? Three things. (1) Compelling content... specifically a very clear and simple message. (2) Powerful distribution to communicate the message (i.e. spoken word, lots of fiery speeches) (3) Having the balls to do what other people were not willing to do (Beer Hall Putsch)
Talk about a guy who changed the world... the computer is the single greatest innovation of humanity since the agricultural revolution. This is one of the few guys who made it happen and became phenomenally successful. How? Focus on content. Product. Design. Innovation. Constantly raising the bar and exceeding expectations.
Jim Rogers– one of the speakers at our event down in Chile last year, is the only person I know who has traveled to more places than I have.
And in his world travels putting boots on the ground, Jim developed first-hand insights that took other investors at least 10-years to realize… from China’s rise to Mongolia’s potential to the toxic destruction of the euro.
Jim’s book is a must-read for anyone who is looking to do business and invest worldwide.
On how to use continuous innovation and feedback loops to reach breakthrough success faster with less waste.
Richard Branson has a hard time to read and write (dyslexia), but he never let that stop him. He founded Virgin Group which currently consist of over 400 companies worldwide and he's worth a few billion dollars today. This book has the full story, and it might just inspire you to do something crazy.
This book teaches you the basic principles of reward being in proportion to the value you add to other people’s lives. It also helps you to step out of the victim frame and start to realize that nobody else owes you a goddamn thing and you have to build/contribute something that other people want before you have a claim to anything.
The Godfather of the Austrian School of economics, Hayek explains the vitality and necessity of economic freedom better than anything else I’ve read.
Read/Download for free at the Mises Institute
This book will help you with understanding the true nature of the state.
The state is not the same as society, and the state is certainly not “we.”
As the book description says, Murray shows “how the state wrecks freedom, destroys civilization, and threatens all lives and property and social well being.”
Read/Download for free at the Mises Institute
Great book that discusses the absurdity of the fiat experiment, why it will fail, and what governments around the world are likely going to do next to keep the party going (plus why this is destructive)
And if you want to learn more about what sound money really is, then here’s a bonus tip for you: What Has Government Done To Our Money by Murray Rothbard (free download via Mises Institute)
This is the guy who is almost single-handedly responsible for Singapore's transition to one of the wealthiest countries in the world. It's a veritable blueprint for how governments can foster economic freedom, and hence growth.
Kohr is an obscure 20th century economist who postulated that big countries would crumble and small countries would thrive. Prescient.
Fiction. Amazing story. I don’t want to spoil it, but you won’t want to put it down. These books really helped shape my view of resilience and system dependency.
Some concepts you’ll learn about are decentralization, drones, dark nets, cryptography, augmented reality, self-sufficiency, and other concepts relevant for a resilient future.
Some of our favorite videos out there that we think every young person should watch.
If you're not already reading Simon Black's daily Notes From the Field, you're doing yourself a disservice. Sign up for free here.
Simon is the founder of Sovereign Man and the sponsor of Sovereign Academy's Blacksmith Liberty & Entrepreneurship Camp.