unless you make that not so.' I also like: 'What is most obvious but most ignored is that perfecting the personal regularly leads to success as a professional, but rarely the other way around.' He often puts deep concepts into a pithy phrase, such as 'what is rare is not raw talent, skill or even confidence, but humility, diligence and self-awareness.'Īnother gem is: 'Most trouble is temporary. One of Holiday's strengths is his aphorisms. But if we live with purpose, and I would add honesty and integrity, the people who degrade us are actually doing that to themselves.īeing a lifelong student and talking and thinking less while doing more also are key tenets in Ego is the Enemy (2016). True leaders likely will be treated poorly at some point and may be degraded. Too many people are not even aware of how they spend their time and money, and we must be deliberate in what we do. Several key concepts pop up in Ego is the Enemy, and one is how we must live with purpose. In a way, Holiday's books are like Patrick Lencioni's books because they feel easy but a lot of leadership truth is in them. He is a young, accessible philosopher of sorts and is part of the Daily Stoic. I respond to Holiday's books because they're quick and have a lot of truths in them. So Ryan Holiday's Ego is the Enemy is an easy-to-read manifesto on how our egos get in the way of genuine leadership, collaboration and moving organizations forward. At a certain point, leadership becomes the natural progression in the workplace and in life, yet misconceptions abound on what true leadership is. When I was getting involved in leadership, I did some soul-searching and asked myself why.

Ego is the enemy goodreads