Stories with Books

The Monk who sold his Ferrari is a self-help book narrated in the form of an interesting story. A man – a lawyer by profession – has an upturning accident and decides to do something abvout his life. He embarks upon a journey of self-discovery, and ends up reaching the “nirvana of savanna”. However, that is not where the author choses to end the story. The ex-lawyer returns and meets the narrator and shares his learnings and the journey of transformation.

        I listened to The Monk who sold his Ferrari as an audiobook. Thankfully, it was narrated wonderfully and I was kept engaged all the time. Later, I read the book myself and made extensive notes.

        The central idea of the book is subtly stored in a story with seven basic ideas which are as follows:

1.    Have control over your mind

2.    Have a purpose

3.    Aim for constant progress

4.    Have self-control/discipline

5.    Respect your time

6.    Show kindness

7.    Enjoy the journey

The thing about the world of self-help is that a myriad ideas dance around, and at times, seem pretty random. And so the amazing thing about the book was that it organized, for me, all those ideas in a clean fashion and even after years of reading the book, you can fit new learnings into the aforementioned seven cabins.

Five Favorite Quotes

1.    “You can’t afford any trash in your garden but you have a dump in your mind.”

2.    “When all is said and done, there is only one thing that we have absolute dominion over – mind.”

3.    “With one eye fixed on the destination, there is only one eye left to guide you along the journey.”

4.    “The purpose of life is a life of purpose.”

5.    “Finally, always remember that what lies behind you and what lies in front of you is nothing when compared to what lies within you.”