Latest / The Scott Townsend Show / #260 Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Be Useful
Transcript
- Scott M Townsend: Welcome to the Scott Townsend Show, brought to you by Diet Soman Productions. Today I want to talk about Arnold Schwarzenegger's book, Be Useful, Seven Tools for Life. Overall, I really liked this book. Some of it was a little basic and I'd heard some of the stories before, but it reminded me of things I needed or need to incorporate into my own life. Sometimes I finish a book thinking, yeah, that was interesting, and move on. This one had me asking, Am I actually doing any of this? Arnold builds the book around seven concepts having a clearer vision, thinking bigger, putting in the work, selling your ideas, adapting when things change, being willing to learn, and looking beyond yourself to help other people. The ideas are familiar, but knowing them and practicing them are different things. One passage I particularly like Comes from the first chapter about having a clear vision. He writes, Go back to when you were three. Figure out what you loved doing. Figure out how to make that your life. And then make the roadmap and follow it. I like that invitation to look backward before deciding where to go next. What did I enjoy before I started worrying about whether I was good at it or whether it could pay the bills? Is there something there that I've gotten away from? I don't take the age of three literally. I I take it as a invitation to remember what naturally interested me. But the roadmap matters too. Remembering what you love gives you somewhere to begin. You still have to figure out how to give it a place in your life. For me, that raises a question about this podcast. How do I keep building something? Around the conversations and curiosity that makes me want to do it. That gives me more direction than simply saying, I want the show to grow. Some of my favorite parts of the book were his examples from his time as governor of California. I enjoyed seeing how he approached leadership when he was dealing with people whose priorities differed from his own. Having a vision is one thing. Getting people to work together takes listening and a willingness to adjust. What I especially appreciated was how he owned his mistakes. Accountability sounds wonderful when we're discussing somebody else's performance. It gets uncomfortable when we have to examine our own decisions. Those sections made me think about leadership at work. If I give somebody unclear instructions and the result disappoints me, I need to consider what I contributed to that outcome. I can't expect my team to take responsibility while I explain away every mistake I make. I appreciated that side of Arnold. The failures gave me something to think about alongside the accomplishments. Another passage that stood out comes from the chapter about shifting gears. He writes I have a rule, no complaining about a situation unless you're prepared to do something about it to make it better. Now that one gets a little personal because I can complain. I can explain exactly what isn't working and why it frustrates me. But explaining the problem doesn't necessarily improve it. Once I've said what's wrong, what am I willing to do? At work, that might mean bringing a possible solution to the conversation. My idea might not be the answer, but it gives us somewhere to start. And I think there still has to be room for someone to say, there's a problem and I need help. You don't always have the knowledge or authority to fix it yourself. But Arnold's point made me examine my own response. Am I trying to improve the situation, or have I gotten comfortable with complaining about it? He also writes, You work to make a dream come true. You don't wine it into existence. I thought that was hilarious. That's pretty direct and fair enough. I can be disappointed when something doesn't go the way I hoped. Eventually, though, I have to decide what to do next. That's where this book worked for me. It brought familiar ideas back to my attention and challenged me to use them. Would I have liked a little more depth in places? Yeah, probably. And recognizing some of the stories took Away a little of the surprise. But I enjoyed the book and I appreciated where it ultimately points toward being useful to other people. It left me thinking about what I want to accomplish and who benefits from the effort. So would I recommend be useful? ⁓ yeah. I came away wanting to get clearer about where I'm going, take responsibility for my part when things go wrong, and do something constructive with the problems that I encounter. That gives me plenty to work on, believe me. For more episodes, visit the Scott Townsend Show YouTube channel, listen on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.