Choose Yourself!

Be Happy, Make Millions, Live the Dream

By: James Altucher

Narrated by: James Altucher

Length: 4 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

The world is changing. Markets have crashed. Jobs have disappeared. Industries have been disrupted and are being remade before our eyes. Everything we aspired to for "security," everything we thought was "safe," no longer is: College. Employment. Retirement. Government. It’s all crumbling down.

In every part of society, the middlemen are being pushed out of the picture. No longer is someone coming to hire you, to invest in your company, to sign you, to pick you. It’s on you to make the most important decision in your life: Choose Yourself.

New tools and economic forces have emerged to make it possible for individuals to create art, make millions of dollars, and change the world without "help." More and more opportunities are rising out of the ashes of the broken system to generate real inward success (personal happiness and health) and outward success (fulfilling work and wealth).

This audiobook will teach you to do just that. With dozens of case studies, interviews and examples - including the author, investor and entrepreneur James Altucher's own heartbreaking and inspiring story - Choose Yourself illuminates your personal path to building a bright, new world out of the wreckage of the old.

©2013 James Altucher (P)2013 James Altucher

Excellent, Motivational + Real

What did you love best about Choose Yourself!?

Choose Yourself really brings you inside of James Altucher's perspective. He speaks candidly and honestly, without formulaic and deliberately scripted cadence. Having an author narrate his own book from the heart is powerful, because he has the power to enunciate the specific words he chooses, in the way he sees fit, to deepen your comprehension as a listener.

What did you like best about this story?

Altucher has no reason to hold back and nothing to hide. Because of this, the story reads with sincerity. I love hearing the truth of the worst parts of his life thus far - like spending Thanksgiving alone eating a turkey sandwich and making up stories that he's a psychic on Craigslist just because he needed to feel the connection at such a low point in his life.

Everyone wants to be the millionaire but nobody talks about the struggle.

Which scene was your favorite?

The concept of Idea-Sex is my favorite. Since learning this tip, sometimes I cannot think straight without creating a list.

What did you learn from Choose Yourself! that you would use in your daily life?

There's a concept... well, an exercise where you make a list of 10 things daily. I have been making it a point to get this list done on a more consistent basis.

Interesting story, ideas & ways to live your life

Would you listen to Choose Yourself! again? Why?

Yes and I will. James Altucher is a fascinating person who has earned it all then lost it all then earned it all again... and again. This audio book has interesting insights on investing, making wise choices, succeeding or avoiding failures in career, relationship advice and a plethora of other useful and entertaining topics.

Who was your favorite character and why?

James the author who is a one-of-a-kind, self-proclaimed addict who indulges in his new obsession of writing self-help & investment advice.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The author's story of becoming a self-made multi-millionaire then losing everything twice and coping with suicidal urges after going from riches to rags... then again he goes from rags to riches. Remarkable roller coaster journey.

Excellent!

Would you listen to Choose Yourself! again? Why?

Yes. It's the type of motivational book you wouldn't be embarrassed to tell someone you listened to.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Choose Yourself!?

All of it. Though off the top of my head, the intro and the chapter on becoming an idea machine.

What about James Altucher’s performance did you like?

In 100+ books I've listened to, this is the first one that made me laugh out loud at the first sentence. James proves again why I love when authors read their own book (for non-fiction at least). Also love whenever authors go off the book script, which James did occasionally.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

This book is great while on a walk with your dog. Just as you start to feel embarrassed by the fact that your dog waited to poop until you were near the busiest intersection on the walk, James breaks out self-depricating humor that makes you forget you just picked up dog poop with a plastic bag in front of 20 strangers.

Any additional comments?

James Altucher is the most interesting man in the world. I enjoyed this from start to finish.

Great book, bad narration

I have read this book four times on my Kindle and since I loved it so much I decided to get the audiobook.

Since James is such a great Podcast host I thought it would make for an enjoyable listen as there is supposed to be some extra content in the recording.

All I can say is this: stop what you’re doing, close Audible and go to Amazon. This book will change your life, this audiobook is hard to follow.

Not what I thought but still good

This book wasn't what I thought it was or what I expected however the content was good overall. James makes some very valid points...some that truly make you wonder and think things over.

James approach to reading this audio book was rather different than any other book I have listened to before and it seemed like he was ramblings on throughout the entire book. Perhaps that is just his personality.
This book won't make me jump at change but combined worth some other books I have read I could see me applying some of the principles.

The author is blissfully ignorant to reality.

while I can appreciate his marketing approach (self help books) here the author is just talking out of his a**. He just keeps repeating himself saying the same thing again and again just a little bit differently and passing it off as something new. I grew very tired of this guy pretty quickly when I realized he has a huge EGO. And while he tries to be clever and disguise his love affair with himself in stories of his so - called failures his admitting he's a hedge - fund guy betrays him. This guys idea of failure is losing a billion dollars when he has 10 billion in the bank. This was perhaps one of the most dishonest displays of 'role-up-your-sleeves' advice I've seen in a long time. The author is blissfully ignorant to reality.

Great for some but don't buy because of reviews

What disappointed you about Choose Yourself!?

The author states in this book that he has a website and and is the top result in search engines for "I want to die". This book might be a great book for people who would search for such a term, and if this book helps if you are feeling like that, then it deserves praise. But if you aren't searching for that a life line, this may not suit your needs. The author narrated the audio himself, and while that whiny tone from someone who's obviously been kicked around a lot may be just perfect for those that need this book, I couldn't finish it. I tried to finish listening because of all the great reviews, but there was nothing there for me.

This may be an excellent book for those that are really down, and it probably is judging from all the the positive reviews. But if you're doing pretty good already and just want to improve on that, it might be best to pass on this and save the author another bad review. I think the tile is somewhat misleading. A better title may be "How NOT to want to die".

Has Choose Yourself! turned you off from other books in this genre?

Only the ones where the titles don't match the content.

What didn’t you like about James Altucher’s performance?

Absolutely nothing.

What character would you cut from Choose Yourself!?

There are no characters. There's room for improvement audible.

A Very Different Kind of Self-Improvement

I would’ve never picked this book up on my own. That’s the truth. Probably, because of the title. I’ve read a lot of self-improvement books… And I expected this one to be more of the same...lots of positive affirmations...and good juju. Not like that’s all bad...there’s just a superfluous amount of it. This was anything but that.

My friend strongly recommended it to me… so I read it. Lots of practical advice, easy to implement, written for the every-day guy/girl. What I really loved was the total absence of bullshit.

I would recommend this book to anyone who’s REALLY struggling with life...”on the floor,” as James says. Even if you’re not, you should still read this book. (Personally I’m not on the floor. I just opened my own real estate company, and am feeling/doing really well right now.) If you’re one of those people who love the positive affirmations and good juju, you should read this book. That’s in there too...mixed with practical, no bs advice.

10 ideas every day...I’m going to start with 10 ideas...for 10 ideas! : ) Become an “idea-machine!” Read this book!

-Thomas Barkoczy

Decent book made worse in audio format.

narrator... aka the author... was painful to follow but the book had good ideas. I find it worth the read/listen because it's so quick. however, this doesn't follow the book precisely, and therefore I might recommend the book over the audio book.

this is the first book I've ever said that with.

Choose yourself and don't waste your time

Well, I bought this book at an audible's promotion but I don't think it was worth the money. The author has no substance, has attachment problems, is egocentric (he writes that he saved Wall Street, and the world, by giving chocolate to brokers) and the theme wonders and wonders and doesn't arrive nowhere.
Run away from this book. Choose yourself and listen to any other book out there.

Please listen to this book

I was recommended this book by a post from Chris Brogan and I downloaded the audio version. I like listening to books while I walk to work every day.
I got also the written version but I really like the audio since its read by James itself and he is a very down to earth guy and funny also.
The contents and ideas are not new in the sense that other authors are writing about the massive change in our economy and labour panorama but what makes this book unique is that they are really simple techniques and ideas to implement in your life that anybody can follow.
The whole thing sounded to me more like a chat with a dear friend while having coffee than a lecture. James is not standing on a perfection pedestal and he talks about his dark moments where he lost everything. And that's the kind of advice that I find so relevant to this moment in time in our world.
Hope you enjoy it!!

Most authentic writer ever

James is the man. A true inspiration and he touches on a lot of great things. A big one for me is admitting fault.
It's the funniest self help book going (he mentions more than once how he hates self help books) A must read for people early in their writing career or people going through a tough time.

Thank you so much James!!!

Funny, real and useful

The principles are simple. James Altucher guides you through a series of real life stories that help to concrete his actual experience with these simple steps of choosing yourself.

Before I was halfway I had already started to implement some of the suggestions.

Clever and funny

Refreshing and real

Short, full of real life and delivered with his own trademark style. I’ve got this book after listening to his podcasts.

Wish he had read the text instead of having a conversation with himself about the text

One of the main points of books is that the text has been proof-read and been written with some precision and care. Early on in this audiobook, James Altucher proclaims that he will not stick to the script and instead discuss everything he wrote, because he says this feels more “natural” to him. The result, in my opinion, is that he rambles a lot, the spoken text is uncontrolled, and wastes a lot of time on pointless stories (which he often tries to force into the theme if choosing yourself - sometimes successfully, and sometimes not). My argument is that there should be little difference between whether the text is spoken or written/read - having a conversation is one thing, but this is an audio BOOK, not a radio show or an unscripted podcast.

Finished in 2 sittings

Wish it was longer I enjoyed it so much. Really interesting stories about James's business and life experiences. Tons of useful tips and information and made me feel good about things in general . Highly recommend to everyone.

Engaging

I love the way the author has decided to tell the book rather then read it. It made a world of a difference.

Excellent Audiobook

What did you like most about Choose Yourself!?
Content in the way it was presented

Who was your favorite character and why?
James Altucher has done a great job

What does James Altucher bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
Yes, the narration was next level

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
all about the book is awesome

Any additional comments?
Lovely books

Simple ideas you can implement to get started on choosing yourself

Want to feel better? Improve your prospects and kickstart your brain? This book is a great starting point. Using examples from his own experiences James is able to guide you through a way to de lutter your mind and improve your outlook.

Real talk

I really enjoyed listening to this, it felt real, motivational and enjoyable. Totally worth it!