La Ley 50

by 50 Cent, Robert Greene

AUTORES:

-Robert Greene (Las 48 Leyes del Poder)
-50 CENT (Curtis James Jackson)

PREFACIO:(Extracto) PAG.17

..."Este es un libro sobre una particular filosofía de la vida, que puede resumirse así: tus temores son una cárcel que limita el alcance de tus actos. Entre menos temas, más poder tendrás, y vivirás más plenamente. Confiamos en que LA LEY 50 te inspire a descubrir ese poder".

CAPÍTULOS: 10

-01.Ve Las Cosas Como Son: REALISMO ABSOLUTO
-02.Aprópiate De Todo: INDEPENDENCIA
-03.Vuelve Dulce Lo Amargo: OPORTUNISMO
-04.Sigue Adelante: IMPULSO CALCULADO
-05.Distingue Cuándo Ser Malo: AGRESIVIDAD
-06.Ponte Al Frente: AUTORIDAD
-07.Conoce Perfectamente Tu Entorno: CONTACTO
-08.Respeta El Procedimiento: MAESTRÍA
-09.Rebasa Tus Límites: FE EN TI MISMO
-10.Enfrenta Tu Mortalidad: LO SUBLIME

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Business, Psychology, Philosophy, Biography, Personal Development

240 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2008

About the author

Also known as Curtis Jackson.

Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as "50 Cent," is an American rapper, songwriter, television producer, actor, and entrepreneur. Known for his impact in the hip hop industry, he has been described as a "master of the nuanced art of lyrical brevity".

Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began selling drugs at age 12 during the 1980s crack epidemic. He later began pursuing a musical career and in 2000 he produced Power of the Dollar for Columbia Records, but days before the planned release he was shot and the album was never released. In 2002, after Jackson released the compilation album Guess Who's Back?, he was discovered by Eminem and signed to Shady Records, under the aegis of Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records.

With the aid of Eminem and Dr. Dre (who produced his first major-label album Get Rich or Die Tryin'), Jackson became one of the world's best selling rappers and rose to prominence with East Coast hip hop grou

Reviews

[Hans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a delightful surprise. It was just what I was looking for on a topic that I am very interested in, Fear. Often I have thought that all human emotions and feelings could be boiled down to two basic forces fear and love. This has always been an elusive and easily misunderstood topic for me. Fear is a shadow that is always present but rarely noticed. My interest in this subject stemmed from the idea that fear may be the opposite of love. This intrigued me because I thought the two couldn't be more different, let alone have any relationship towards each other.

This book is about fear without the love. Which is fine, I just think some people could easily misuse the contents of this book for ill. Essentially this book is about overcoming fear with the backdrop story being the life of rapper/entrepreneur Curtis Jackson also known as 50 cent. He defied all odds from an early age and even though he was set back, shot at, threatened, he never backed down from life and living what he believed his destiny. Powerful and life-altering lessons can be drawn from his experience and that is where Robert Greene comes in and points them out. Underneath everything Fear is nothing more than an unacceptance of our mortality. It is repressed, ignored, avoided and run from really at our own ironic peril. Fear means we can't come to grips with death. We hold on to things when we should let go, we care about things when we shouldn't, we let ourselves be dominated when we are stronger. Death to comes to us all, the rich and powerful as well as the weak and poor. The sooner we accept and confront this reality the sooner we can be liberated from it. Through that liberation life takes on a dazzling new perception and depth. Death isn't the Tragedy, the life not lived is. The greatest irony of all is that we are more afraid of ourselves than we are of anything else. Lifetimes are wasted making excuses for ourselves on why we aren't good enough, fast enough, smart enough, strong enough, caring enough and it is all a lie we feed ourselves to escape the responsibility of being more.

[imane · Rating 5 out of 5]

لدى البشر استراتيجيان للصعود
الاستراتيجية الاولى مقبولة اجتماعيا وهي ان تجتهد وتعمل وتتعب حتى تصعد في الهرم الاجتماعي
الاستراتيجية الثانية هي ان تحطم وتكسر من هم اعلى منك لكي ينزلوا وتصعد انت
دائما ستجد من يوجه لك انتقادات على شكل نصائح لهدف تحطيمك ستجد من يقف في طريق هدفك ستجد من يحفر لك ويحسدك ويحاول اسقاطك. اذا كانوا حشرات مزعجة لا تلتفت لهم وركز على الهدف فافضل انتقام هو ان تصعد اذا كانوا حشرات تضع لك عثرات في الطريق فيجب ان تتخلص منهم بطريقة ذكية وماكرة دون ان يعرفوا حتى

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the first book I have ever returned to Audible, and the first one I have put on my DNF shelf. I am a very patient and sometimes stubborn reader; I'll usually finish a book even if I don't like it, if for no other reason than to think about why I didn't like it (and write down my thoughts in a possibly scathing review).

1 star may not be entirely fair. I didn't hate this book. It wasn't offensive or stupid or badly written.

It was just boring. Soooooo boring and banal and trite.

I can sum up the philosophy of this book in one word: Fearlessness.

Unfortunately, not much of what follows really says anything novel or inspiring about how to get there.

I am not a big listener of rap, nor one of those white boys with a posturing affection for the Gangsta lifestyle. But I admit that I have a sort of fascination with Curtis Jackson aka 50 Cent. I actually like some of his music. Get Rich or Die Tryin' is the only rap album I've ever bought. (I just really like In Da Club.)



He came out of the hood, working corners as a drug dealer, to become one of the preeminent rappers in the world. It's evident that he's a very smart man with great business savvy and serious attitude. 50 Cent has always reminded me of the chapter in Freakonomics about how drug dealers, if you look at them dispassionately without taking into account the criminality and violence, are basically no different than any other businessmen with the same business concerns as any company selling widgets: competition, territory, marketing, PR, unpredictable and fickle customers, supply and demand, government regulation, employees of wildly varying ambition and competence, etc. And the successful ones do basically act like businessmen, not like testosteronic gangbangas lookin' to pop a cap in yo' ass. (Those are the ones who die or go to jail.)

So, 50 Cent does the gangsta posturing, but he got out of the streets and the hustle when he could and now uses his 'hood background as marketing. He's created a business empire. No doubt, much of his swagger is posturing and showmanship; he's turned a failed hit on him into a legend, though merely being lucky enough to survive having someone put a few bullets in you doesn't by itself make you a tough guy. But I believe he is a genuinely hard man, smart and ruthless but as fearless as he claims.

So, I was interested in this audiobook ostensibly summarizing his experiences and philosophy but written "in collaboration with" Robert Greene, a self-help author most famous for Dr. Phil/Oprah-like books like The 48 Laws of Power.

Well, I was hoping for mostly 50 talking about 50, but it quickly became evident that this book was entirely written by Robert Greene, basically a book that probably says nothing he hasn't said in his previous books but "branding" it with 50 Cent's name. There are a few quotes from 50, and each chapter opens with an anecdote from 50's life and rise to power, and then it segues into the sort of generic, banal advice you'll get in any self-help book exhorting you to unlock your strengths, be fearless, embrace your will to power, don't work for anyone else, don't settle for the safe choice, don't become complacent, etc. There is an emphasis on creativity and owning your own work which clearly comes from 50, but this book could just be rebranded with Sun Tzu or Napoleon and say the same thing, and indeed, as soon as Greene is done with his obligatory tying of each chapter to 50 Cent in some way, he then goes on to compare 50 Cent's philosophy to everyone from Napoleon to Sun Tzu to Abraham Lincoln. There are frequent references to Malcolm X and Frederick Douglas too, of course, but it's still essentially a "ghost-written" book (if you can call a book ghost-written when the actual author's name is right there on the cover) that 50 Cent cannily arranged through his savvy marketing campaign. So, well done, 50, your name got me to download and listen. But the book was not interesting or bold enough to hold my attention.

I got about 1/4 of the way through it before deciding that I just was not interested in hearing the rest, and being grateful that Audible has such a liberal return policy.

Now, I'll confess a lot of what 50 Cent/Greene was saying probably is applicable to my life. I have settled for working for The Man, and if I was younger and hungrier I'd be more inclined to do what they suggest and try to carve out a life where I am in complete ownership of myself and my output. So it gave me food for thought.

But, if you're looking at this book because you think it would be interesting to hear 50 Cent talking about life and power and creativity and business, you'll be disappointed. It's all marketing.

[Brandice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene so I was intrigued to read this book, also having been a 50 Cent fan back in high school.

In The 50th Law, the story of 50 Cent being shot was repeated constantly. Certainly not denying or doubting the extent of the impact this would have on anyone’s life, and I understand its relevance to the lessons presented, but, I still felt it was excessively mentioned. The book includes lessons that can be applied to numerous situations in life.

[Sandeep · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read for anyone who wants to learn how to handle fear and be fearless in life. This book is a great introduction and simpler entry point to The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene. I was drawn to this book because I was interested to learn about 50 Cent, the man, instead of his rap persona and see how he was able to succeed in life without having a father and mother to raise him. Robert Greene eloquently tells 50 Cent's story by explaining to the reader how his power is absolute fearlessness on the streets, in business meetings, and how he approaches his music.

The book is a semi-autobiographical account detailing 50 Cent's rise as both a young hustler and as an up-and-coming musician. It also contained lessons and anecdotes from historical figures such as Abraham Lincoln, Sun Tzu, Socrates, Napoleon, Malcolm X, and James Baldwin which were a lot of fun to read.

The book is organized well and I wanted to share a quick overview of each chapter.

Chapter 1
See Things for What They Are - Intense Realism

Reality can be rather harsh. Your days are numbered. It takes constant effort to carve a place for yourself in this ruthlessly competitive world and hold on to it. People can be treacherous. They bring endless battles into your life. Your task is to resist the temptation to wish it were all different; instead you must fearlessly accept these circumstances, even embrace them. By focusing your attention on what is going on around you, you will gain a sharp appreciation for what makes some people advance and others fall behind. By seeing through people's manipulations, you can turn them around. The firmer your grasp on reality, the more power you will have to alter it for your purposes.

Chapter 2
Make Everything Your Own - Self-Reliance

When you work for others, you are at their mercy. They own your work; they own you. Your creative spirit is squashed. What keeps you in such positions is a fear of having to sink or swim on your own. Instead you should have a greater fear of what will happen to you if you remain dependent on others for power. Your goal in every maneuver in life must be ownership, working the corner for yourself. When it is yours, it is yours to lose - you are more motivated, more creative, more alive. The ultimate power in life is to be completely self-reliant, completely yourself.

Chapter 3
Turn Shit into Sugar - Opportunism

Every negative situation contains the possibility for something positive, an opportunity. It is how you look at it that matters. Your lack of resources can be an advantage, forcing you to be more inventive with the little that you have. Losing a battle can allow you to frame yourself as the sympathetic underdog. Do not let fears make you wait for a better moment or become conservative. If there are circumstances you cannot control, make the best of them. It is the ultimate alchemy to transform all such negatives into advantages and power.

Chapter 4
Keep Moving - Calculated Momentum

In the present there is constant change and so much we cannot control. If you try to micromanage it all, you lose even greater control in the long run. The answer is to let go and move with the chaos that presents itself to you - from within it, you will find endless opportunities that elude most people. Don't give others the chance to pin you down; keep moving and changing your appearances to fit the environment. If you encounter walls or boundaries, slip around them. Do not let anything disrupt your flow.

Chapter 5
Know When to Be Bad - Aggression

You will always find yourself among the aggressive and the passive-aggressive who seek to harm you in some way. You must get over any general fears you have of confronting people or you will find it extremely difficult to assert yourself in the face of those who are more cunning and ruthless. Before it is too late you must master the art of knowing when and how to be bad - using deception, manipulation and outright force at the appropriate moments. Everyone operates with a flexible morality when it comes to their self-interest - you are simply making this more conscious and effective.

Chapter 6
Lead from the Front - Authority

In any group, the person on top consciously or unconsciously sets the tone. If leaders are fearful, hesitant to take any risks, or overly concerned for their ego and reputation, then this invariably filters its way through the entire group and makes effective action impossible. Complaining and haranguing people to work harder has a counterproductive effect. You must adopt the opposite style: imbue your troops with the proper spirit through your actions, not words. They see you working harder than anyone, holding yourself to the highest standards, taking risks with confidence, and making tough decisions. This inspires and binds the group together. In these democratic times, you must practice what you preach.

Chapter 7
Know Your Environment from the Inside Out - Connection

Most people think first of what they want to express or make, then find the audience for their idea. You must work the opposite angle, thinking first of the public. You need to keep your focus on their changing needs, the trends that are washing through them. beginning with their demand, you create the appropriate supply. Do not be afraid of people's criticisms - without such feedback your work will be too personal and delusional. You must maintain as close a relationship to your environment as possible, getting an inside "feel" for what is happening around you. Never lose touch with your base.

Chapter 8
Respect the Process - Mastery

The fools in life want things fast and easy - money, success, attention. Boredom is their great enemy and fear. Whatever they manage to get slips through their hands as fast as it comes in. You, on the other hand, want to outlast your rivals. You are building the foundation for something that can continue to expand. To make this happen, you will have to serve an apprenticeship. You must learn early on to endure the hours of practice and drudgery, knowing that in the end all of that time will translate into a higher pleasure - mastery of a craft and of yourself. Your goal is to reach the ultimate skill level - an intuitive feel for what must come next.

Chapter 9
Push Beyond Your Limits - Self-Belief

Your sense of who you are will determine your actions and what you end up getting in life. If you see your reach as limited, that you are mostly helpless in the face of so many difficulties, that it is best to keep your ambitions low, then you will receive the little that you expect. knowing this dynamic, you must train yourself for the opposite - ask for more, aim high, and believe that you are destined for something great. Your sense of self-worth comes from you alone - never the opinion of others. With a rising confidence in your abilities, you will take risks that will increase your chances of success. People follow those who know where they are going, so cultivate an air of certainty and boldness.

This book is highly recommend for anyone who wants to take control of their life and learn how to be fearless in any situation in life. Hearing 50 Cent's story is inspirational and anecdotes and lessons are more than enough to give this book a look.

Chapter 10
Confront Your Mortality - the Sublime

In the face of our inevitable mortality we can do one of two things. we can attempt to avoid the thought at all costs, clinging to the illusion that we have all the time in the world. Or we can confront this reality, accept and even embrace it, converting our consciousness of death into something positive and active. In adopting such a fearless philosophy, we gain a sense of proportion, become able to separate what is petty from what is truly important. Knowing our days to be numbered, we have a sense of urgency and mission. We can appreciate life all the more for its impermanence. If we can overcome the fear of death, then there is nothing left to fear.

[Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best one yet. Far more applicable to your life than the others.

Fear Nothing.


Quotes:

"Understand: no one is born this way. It is unnatural no not feel fear. It is a process that requires challenges and tests. What separates those who go under and those who rise to the above adversity is the strength of their will and their hunger for power."

"The greatest fear people have is that of being themselves. They want to be 50 Cent or someone else. They do what everyone else does even if it doesn't fit where and who they are. But you get nowhere that way; your energy is weak and no one pays attention to you. You're running away from the one thing that you own - what makes you different. I lost that fear. And once I felt the power that I had by showing the world I didn't care about being like other people, I could never go back."

"The key to possessing this supreme power is to assume the active mode in dealing with your fears. This means entering the very arenas you normally shy away from: making the very hard decisions you have been avoiding, confronting the people who are playing power games with you, thinking of yourself and what you need instead of pleasing others, making yourself change the direction of your life even though such change is the very thing you dread."

"Understand: you do not have to grow up in Southside Queens or be the target of an assassin to develop the attitude. All of us face challenges, rivals, and setbacks. We choose to ignore or avoid them out of fear. It is not the physical reality of your environment that matters but your mental state, how you come to deal with the adversity that is part of life on every lever. Fifty. had to confront his fears; you must choose to."

"When you work for others, you are at their mercy. They own your work; they own you. Your creative spirit is squashed. What keeps you in such positions is a fear of having to sink or swim on you won. Instead you should have a greater fear of what will happen to you if you remain dependent on others for power. Your goal in every maneuver in life must be ownership, working the corner for yourself. When it is yours, it is yours to lose - you are more motivated, more creative, more alive. The ultimate power in life is to be completely self-reliant, completely yourself."

"They had become scared and tired of the grind. They wanted the comfort and security of a paycheck. And this would become the pattern for the rest of their lives - afraid of life's challenges, they would come to depend on other people to help them. Perhaps they could go on like this for several years, but the say of reckoning would come when there were no more jobs and they had forgotten how to fen for themselves."

"You came into this life with the only real possessions that ever matter - your body, the time that you have to live, your energy, the thoughts and ideas unique to you, and your autonomy. But over the years you tend to give all of this away. You spend years working for others - they own you during that period. You get needlessly caught up in people's games and battles, wasting energy and time you will never get back. You come to respect your own ideas less and less, listening to experts, conforming to conventional opinions. Without realizing it you squander your independence, everything that makes you a creative individual."

"If you do not own yourself first, you will continually be at the mercy of people and circumstances, looking outward instead of relying on yourself and your wits."

"You are more alone than you imagine. This should not be a source of fear but of freedom."

"Before it is too late, you must move in the opposite direction. You cannot get this requisite inner strength from books or a guru or pills of any kind. It can come only from you."

"Our task as an adult is to take full possession of that autonomy and individuality we were born with. It is to finally over come the dependent phase in childhood and stand on our own. We must see the desire for a return to that phase as regressive and dangerous. It comes from fear - of being responsible for our success and failure, of having to act on our own and make the hard decisions. We will often package this as the opposite - that by working for others, being dutiful, fitting in, or subsuming our personality to the group, we are being a good person. But that is our fear speaking and deluding us."

"Remember: your bosses prefer to keep you in dependent positions. It is in their interest that you do not become self-reliant, and so they will tend to hoard information. You must secretly work against this and seize this information for yourself."

"Understand: you are one of a kind. Your character traits are a kind of chemical mix that will never be repeated in history. There are ideas unique to you, a specific rhythm and perspective that are your strengths, not your weaknesses. You must not be afraid of your uniqueness and you must care less and less what people think of you."

"Every negative is a positive. the bad things that happen to me, I somehow make them good. That means you can't do anything to hurt me."

"Mentally framing a negative event as a blessing in disguise makes it easier for you to move forward. It is a kind of mental alchemy, transforming shit into sugar."

"It might seem that intense feelings of love, hate, or anger can be used to impel you forward on some project, but that is an illusion. Such emotions give you a burst of energy that falls quickly and leaves you as low as you were high. Rather, you want a more balanced emotional life, with fewer highs and lows. This not only helps you keep moving and overcoming petty obstacles, but it also affects people's perceptions of you. They come to see you as someone who has grace under pressure, a steady hand, and they will turn to you as a leader. Maintaining such steadiness will keep that positive in motion."

"This should be your model in any venture that involves groups of people. You provide a framework, based on your knowledge and expertise, but you allow room for this project to be shaped by those involved in it. They are motivated and creative, helping to give the project more flow and force. You are not going too far in this process; you set the overall direction and tone. You are simply letting go of that fearful need to make people do exactly as you desire. In the long run, you will find that your ability to gently divert people's energy in your direction gives you a wider range of control over the shape and result of a project."

"We work to postpone or avoid conflicts, and when they reach a point where we can no longer play such a passive game, we lack the experience and the habit of meeting them head on."

"What Wright had discovered was simple: when you submit in spirit to aggressors or to an unjust and impossible situation, you do not buy yourself any real peace. You encourage people to go further, to take more form you, to use you for their own purposes. They sense your lack of self-respect and they feel justified in mistreating you."

"This is how it is in life for everyone: people will take from you what they can. If they sense that you are the type of person who accepts and submits, they will push and push until they have established an exploitative relationship with you."

"A group needs a centripetal force to give it unity and cohesion but it is not enough to have that be you and the force of your personality. Instead it should be a cause that you fearlessly embody."

"Master the instrument, master the music, then forget all that shit and play."

"In most cases, it was best to argue on points of narrow procedure rather than on grand concepts."

"Often when you begin a projects of any kind, it is from the wrong end. You tend to think first of what you want to accomplish, imagining the glory and money it will ring you if it succeeds. You then proceed to make this concept come to life. But as you go forward you often lose patience, because the small steps to get there are not nearly as exciting as the ambitious visions in your head. You must try instead the opposite approach, which can lead to very different results. You have a project you wish to bring to life, but you begin by immersing yourself in the details of the subject or field. You look at the materials you have to work with, the tastes of your target audience, and the latest technical advances in the field. You take pleasure in going deeper and deeper into these fine points - your research is intense. From this knowledge, you shape the project itself, grounding it in reality rather than in airy concepts in your head. Operating this way helps you slow your mind down and develop patience for detailed work, an essential skill for mastering any craft."

"He was going to forge a business empire and he wanted to take all of them with him. Whatever any of them wanted, he would provide, as long as the proved themselves dependable and shared his sense of purpose. They could be rappers on the record label he would establish or road managers for his tours; or they could go to college and get a degree - he would pay for it all."

"You could stop deriving your sense of identity and self-worth from others. You could experiment and push past the limits people have set for you. You could take action that is different from what they expect. But that is to incur a risk. You are being unconventional, perhaps a bit strange in the eyes of those who know you. You could fail in this action and be ridiculed. Conforming to people's expectations is safer and more comfortable, even if doing so makes you feel miserable and confined. In essence, you are afraid of yourself and what you could become."

"There is, however, a completely different concept of liberty. It is not something that people grant us as a privilege or right. It is a state of mind that we must work to attain and hold on to - with much effort. It is something active and not passive. It comes from exercising free will."

"Understand: the day you were born you became engaged in a struggle that continues to this day and will determine your success or failure in life. You are an individual, with ideas and skills that make you unique. But people are constantly trying to fit you into narrow categories that make you more predictable and easier to manage. They want to see you as shy or outgoing, sensitive or tough. If you succumb to this pressure, then you may gain some social acceptance, but you will lose the unconventional parts of your character that are the source of your uniqueness and power. You must resist this process at all costs, seeing people's neat and tidy judgements as a form of confinement. Your task is to retain or rediscover those aspects of your character that defy categorization, and to give them even greater play. Remaining unique, you will create something unique and inspire the kind of respect you would never receive from tepid conformity."

[Tosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robert Greene is a friend, but also someone I am a fan of as well. This is a book that he put together with 50 Cent, regarding the role one has to play to obtain a sense of success - which of course can be financial but as well as success on an everyday level.

Although this book is sort of a re-mix of Robert's "48 Laws of Power" it is a little bit more, because one of the focus points is the life and times of rapper 50 Cent. Who in turn is a fascinating figure, in that he knew by instinct how to survive the jungle of hustling, business and music world as well. But the main enjoyment for me is Robert riffing through history to make sense of a world that is totally insane and how to ride that wild horse that's life. 50 Cent is the subject matter, but what he has gone through (and he went through a lot) can be learned in how to deal with various issues. Economics as well as emotional issues. When you lose everything, it makes one stronger. I know that first hand as well.

[thewestchestarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The 50th Law is as much about the hip-hop artist 50 Cent as the movie “Titanic” is about the “The Heart of the Ocean” diamond. If you are a picking up this hefty tome as a fan of “fitty” you are to be disappointed as he appears as author only with brief chapter intros written in a seemingly unauthentic style and as subject only in the well-trod stories of his relatively short life (in a nutshell; he sold crack, got shot for it, was signed to Eminem’s Shady records and later to a number of endorsement deals). Fitty’s bio is an intriguing tale to be sure but one that was adequately covered in his ghost-written autobiography “From Pieces to Weight”. Further, while Fitty may be an inspiration in a number of realms, emulate-able leadership is not one of them. No matter how cutthroat your company’s culture you are prohibited from whacking that jerk in accounting whose bad evaluation is keeping you from promotion to middle management.
Into this seeming insurmountable gap, the real author Robert Greene shoves a host of historical personages most frequently Napoleon and Niccolò Machiavell. You see Greene doesn’t see leadership as needing to be all hung up on that integrity and ethics stuff. In a sometimes airlessly academic style, Greene explains that his concept of fearless leadership is supported by a host of philosophers from Socrates forward. For all their complicated concepts this rhetorical support can be boiled down to: “just do whatever it takes and screw the collateral damage.”
In summary, students of philosophy may find Greene’s perusal interesting but students of the rap game may feel a little short changed. My suggestion would be read the more personal “From Pieces to Weight” if you are a fan.

[Brian · Rating 1 out of 5]

well, fiddy, you are not a great philosopher.

i made it about 20% through this book and i was dumbfounded that there was 80% more yet to read. this was very clearly NOT written by fifty cent. i recently read a rolling stone article about rick ross where the interviewer is at some fancy seafood restaurant in la and ross is just sitting across from him smoking blunt after blunt and eating shellfish talking about his life and how he goes about living it.

i assume the same thing took place for the writing of this book. i imagine some shitty 80's movie scene where a man is being led through some dark hallway with red lighting and a man in front of him is talking about how hard it is on the streets and how he is going to beat it.

i imagine fifty sitting in a big red chair and this little man writing down all the words he says. "shit bad on the street, gotta be strong and can be fraida NOBODY." and that sentence being turned into an entire chapter about strength versus fear in a street hustler situation.

anyway, i do not recommend this book. when is was 15 years old, i fancied myself a real smart kid and thought i could espouse at length about philosophical notions. i often felt as if i were reading my 15 year old journal and laughed out loud.

then football season started and i didnt want to force myself through this book any longer.

[Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Accepting your own mortality. What prevents us from doing what we really want to do is fear. Fear of failure, fear we won't be accepted, fear of death. When we accept the fact that one day we will die, we are empowered. Most of us don't touch death daily so when we experience a death in our lives it rattles us. Just say this out loud and notice how you feel, "I will die." If we think about it, confront it, and accept mortality we are liberated, energized, and empowered to live life.

50's image is just that, an image. He is a voracious reader and carefully calculates business strategy. Knock his flow if you want, but his business acumen is off the charts. I will probably read this one again.

[Desiree · Rating 1 out of 5]

Normally, I would not have read this book, but I picked it up for a friend who is a huge fan of 50 cent. Soooo, I decided to give it a try.

I found it to be the most repetitious book I have ever read in my entire life! The same story is repeated over and over and over again! If I thought it was worth my time, I would count the number of times the story of his shooting and being dropped by his record label is repeated. Also, we are told over and over again how his name used to be Curtis and is now 50 cent! Sheesh!

The rest of the book alternates between his dealing drugs in the hood and other people's stories of how they made something of themselves.

While there are a few interesting tidbits here, I would definitely NOT recommend this one, even to die hard fans!

[Yesenia Cash · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would love to buy this for every teenager in urban communities. Fofty did such a great job with this!!! I mostly loved the way Robert Greene says “the hood” and the way he says Fifties government name. This was wonderful and I’m upset I didn’t hear about it until 2019. This book put me on so many great historical figures I am now adding Catherine the Greats book to my Amazon cart as well as everything written by Richard Wright!

[Damon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved The 48 Laws Of Power and this book, essentially ten additional laws patterned after rapper/businessman 50 Cent, is more an addendum than a stand-alone product.

While Greene's other books have a heavy literary, if not academic weight, The 50th Law is comparatively breezy and light. That said, I had a really hard time putting the book down - I read the whole thing during two very late nights - and I enjoyed seeing the Machiavellian ideas grafted onto the rough Queens neighborhood 50 Cent grew up in.

It is a good dessert for fans of Greene's other law books, but if it comes down to choice, I'd definitely start with his earlier, heftier material.

[Josh Laird · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprisingly enjoyable. An analysis of 50 Cent's life as a hustler and how some of his methods can be applied to the corporate world. An interesting parallel was 50 testing a new batch on a few people he trusts and if it was good, he would know to charge a decent price. Very similar to user testing in Software...

Biggest takeaway was to nearly die so I can learn to not give a fuck and become fearless.

[Jason Navallo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very good. It was interesting to see a more focused case study on the laws that attributed to the success of one individual, as opposed to the first book.

[Nick Short · Rating 5 out of 5]

“This is life, new and strange; strange, because we fear it; new because we have kept our eyes turned from it…men are men and life is life, and we must deal with them as they are; and if we want to change them, we must deal with them in the form in which they exist.” Richard Wright,Native Son

“Reality is my drug. The more I have of it, the more power I get and the higher I feel.” 50 Cent

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

These quotes are the perfect frame for this book. The book explains an understanding of the interplay of fear, despair, illusion, boredom, and death juxtaposed with skill acquisition, knowledge, power, purpose, and the sublime.

This book is a collaboration by rapper 50 Cent and author Robert Greene (The 48 Laws of Power, The Art of Seduction, The 33 Strategies of War, Mastery) who both share a similar intensely realistic, self reliant and zen-like view of the world. 50 came to know himself and the business-world/world not with an MBA or connections or money but on the streets in Southside Queens. Familiarizing himself with the depths of human psychology through trial and error, in drug dealing and the music industry. Greene came to a similar view through traveling the world, working boatloads of odd jobs, and reading tons of history.

These realists stand in contrast to dreamers and charlatans, those of high imagination who more often divert us than inspire us with their ideals and fantastical creations.

Dreamers misread the actual state of things and act upon their emotions toward their idea of the ideal state of things. Greene explains these people as being the source of the greatest mistakes in history—wars not thought out and disasters not foreseen. “Realists on the other hand are inventors and innovators. Men and women of imagination, but their imagination is in close contact with reality—they are empirical scientists, writers with a sharp understanding of human nature, or leaders who guide us thoughtfully through crises. They are strong enough to see the world as it is, including their own personal inadequacies.”

It is imperative to study the apprenticeship phases of the life of great humans who came before us. Avoid the legend and the hype. Ask who were they before they did the work that got them where they ended, and what was their mindset during this learning phase?

Greene tells the stories of historical figures from Napolean who acquired a finger tip feel for how to command mass armies, to writer Dostoevsky who wrote pretentious socialist novels for intellectuals until he was sentenced to a Siberian prison in 1849, lived with realities of man instead of observing them through books and ‘studies’ and thereafter wrote some of the greatest novels in existence, to the political savvyness Abraham Lincoln, industrialist James Vanderbilt, primatologist Jane Goodall, to the Roman stoic Seneca who learned how to die and thus learned to live. These are just some of the examples.

One of the greatest obstacles to any transformative effect in life is hampered by the routine, conventional, surrounding yourself with people who have the same illusory and socially reinforced baggage that mis-define what are and what are not obstacles and achievements. This is brought about by an interrelated effect between boredom and fear. Those who can not only endure boredom but learn to derive pleasure from it are those who succeed in life.

Modern americans live with an incredible amount of free time and also an incredible amount of monotony (work). We live for the free time. But the free time is spent on diversions and with a hope in the back of the head that maybe someday an opportunity will come to change this. “Confronted with such freedom, the mind has a tendency to gravitate towards anxieties about the future—possible problems and dangers. Such empty time faintly echoes the eternal emptiness of death itself.” RG

“Most people can’t handle boredom. That means they can’t stay on one thing until they’re good at it. And they wonder why they’re unhappy..the greatest fear people have is that of being themselves. They want to be X celebrity or someone else. They do what everyone else does even if it doesn’t fit who they are. But you get nowhere that way; your energy is weak and no one pays attention to you. you’re running away from the one thing that you own-what makes you different. I lost that fear. And once I felt the power that I had by showing the world I didn’t care about being like other people, I could never go back…” 50

But, RG explains "There is however, another possible relationship to boredom and empty time, a fearless one that yields much different results than frustration and escapism. it goes as follows: you have some large goal that you wish to achieve in your life, something you feel that you are destined to create . I fyou reach that goal, it will bring you far greater satisfaction than the evanescent thrills that come form outside diversions..have the larger goal will lift your mind out of the moment and help you endure hard work and drudgery..as you become better at this task or craft, it becomes increasingly pleasurable. you see improvement, you see connections and possibilities you hadn't noticed before. Your mind becomes absorbed in furhter mastery. and in this absorbtion you forget all your problems--fears for the future or people's nasty games. Unlike diversions from outside sources this comes comes from within. You are developing a lifelong skill, the kind of mental discipline that will serve as foundation of your power."

Boredom is for people who don’t listen to themselves.

People who cling to their delusions find it difficult, if not impossible, to learn anything worth learning. In today’s world our idea of freedom largely revolves around the ability to satisfy certain needsand desires. We feel free if we can gain the kind of employment we desire, buy the things we want, and engage in a wide range of behavior, as long as it does not harm others. According to this concept, freedom is something essentially passive—it is given and guaranteed to us by a government (often by not meddling in our affairs) and various social groups. There is, however, a completely different concept of liberty and it is a state of mind and not an outside granted ‘privilege’ or ‘right’. Become an individual who would rather perish than take work that isn’t pleasurable or won’t leave you satisfied at the end of the day. Derive a sense of self worth coming from yourself alone, you are the book you must study the most intensely.

“I had reached the point at which I was not afraid to die. This spirit made me a freeman in fact, while I remained a slave in form.” Frederick Douglass.

In reality, we as free as we want to be. There seems to be somewhere in the subconscious life a purposeless primal fear and despair, compounding its influence on every decision in our life, compelling us to seek submission and trust in other people besides ourselves and various external ecstasties. 50 doesn't bother with pleasing people, drugs, alcohol, or partying-that's distraction and diversion.

50 cent got shot nine times. His thoughts on this are brief: “People talk about my getting shot like it represented something special. They act like they’re not facing the same thing. But some day everybody has to face a bullet with his or her name on it.” RG from here explains the stoic Seneca’s life and writings that through much practice he was able to understand that death is already within us and has been since birth. We are born alone and die alone, all else is perception.

"All bulls–t aside, now it’s time to be honest. I fear no man, for death is all that’s promised." 50 Cent, I'm a Hustler

Incredibly interesting stuff, I've read this twice now and highly recommend it. Robert Greene writes lucidly about ideas usually abstruse.

[Read By Kyle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Skim read this while rewatching Yugioh.

Did you know if you just like, eliminate fear, you'll be successful?! Like Fifty!

[Jean-Luc · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you haven't already read Robert Greene's 48 Laws of Power, then definitely pick this book up. It's a self-help book disguised as an autobiography of 50 Cent.

If I had to pick 2 books that belong in every library in America, then it'd be Ramit Sethi's "I Will Teach You to be Rich" and The 50th Law.

[Bianca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was more interesting than I anticipated. It discusses fear in modern society and intelligent ways of harnessing it instead of letting it destroy your life. It encourages awareness of the world that is in our proximity and to face reality instead of running away from it. My favorite take was that regardless of the cultural phenomenon going on in the culture you're in, it's your responsibility to address things properly at a personal level. Anyone that encourages objectivity and realism is on the right path in my eyes and the collaboration for this book was very fascinating.

[Akshay · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4/5 stars)

Fear is expensive. Freedom begins when you stop allowing it to make your decisions.

The 50th Law by 50 Cent and Robert Greene is an unapologetically pragmatic book about ambition, self-reliance, fearlessness, and survival. Drawing on 50 Cent's experiences growing up amid poverty, violence, and uncertainty, and combining them with Robert Greene's analysis of power and human behavior, the book develops a single central principle: do not let fear dictate the way you live.

The title's central idea is simple but deliberately provocative: “Fear Nothing.” The authors argue that fear is one of the greatest obstacles to independence because it encourages people to avoid risk, depend on institutions, seek approval, and remain trapped in familiar circumstances. Their answer is not reckless bravery. It is the cultivation of self-reliance—becoming capable enough, adaptable enough, and psychologically independent enough that uncertainty loses much of its power.

That philosophy gives the book its strongest moments.

Rather than presenting success as the product of talent alone, Greene and 50 Cent emphasize adaptability. The modern world is unpredictable, and therefore rigid plans can become liabilities. Their ideal individual learns to observe reality, recognize opportunities, respond quickly, and keep moving when circumstances change.

“The goal is not to eliminate uncertainty, but to become strong enough to operate comfortably inside it.”

50 Cent's personal story gives these ideas considerable force. His transformation from a dangerous and unstable environment into an internationally successful musician and entrepreneur provides the book's practical backbone. His experiences demonstrate the mentality the authors are trying to communicate: don't romanticize your circumstances, don't wait for someone else to rescue you, and don't confuse temporary security with genuine freedom.

One of the book's most useful concepts is the emphasis on self-reliance. The authors repeatedly challenge the assumption that stability comes from depending on other people, employers, institutions, or social approval. Instead, they encourage readers to develop skills and resources that increase their autonomy.

This idea can be valuable far beyond the world of entertainment. Whether the subject is career development, entrepreneurship, negotiation, or personal decision-making, the underlying lesson is practical: build options.

Another major theme is the importance of confronting reality instead of hiding from it. The book argues that denial is a form of weakness because it prevents people from responding accurately to their circumstances. A person who can look directly at an unpleasant truth has a strategic advantage over someone who needs reality to conform to their expectations.

That principle fits naturally with Greene's broader interest in power dynamics. The writing encourages readers to observe people carefully, recognize incentives, identify hidden motivations, and understand the social environment before acting. There is a distinctly Machiavellian flavor to the book, but it is presented less as a manual for manipulation than as a warning against being naive.

The book is especially effective when it discusses turning adversity into an advantage. Instead of treating difficult circumstances exclusively as obstacles, Greene and 50 Cent argue that constraints can force creativity. Having fewer resources can encourage greater resourcefulness. Being underestimated can provide freedom to operate. A difficult beginning does not have to determine the final outcome.

That message is undoubtedly empowering, but the book's greatest weakness is also found here.

The 50th Law can sometimes oversimplify complicated social realities. Its philosophy strongly favors personal agency, which is useful, but structural inequality, luck, privilege, mental health, and circumstances beyond individual control receive less attention than they deserve. The suggestion that fearlessness and resourcefulness can overcome almost any obstacle can become overly absolutist.

Some of Greene's interpretations of history and human behavior are also presented with considerable certainty. Readers should treat them as strategic frameworks rather than universal laws. Human beings are more complicated than any set of rules can fully capture.

Another potential drawback is the book's emphasis on an aggressively competitive worldview. The language of power, dominance, enemies, manipulation, and survival can be motivating for some readers but excessive for others. Not every relationship is a battlefield, and not every interaction requires strategic calculation.

Nevertheless, the combination of Greene's analytical style and 50 Cent's autobiographical perspective makes the book unusually readable. The theoretical lessons are repeatedly grounded in concrete examples, which prevents the book from becoming a purely abstract discussion of philosophy.

What works best

A memorable and easy-to-understand central philosophy.
Strong emphasis on courage, self-reliance, and adaptability.
50 Cent's life story gives the ideas practical credibility and personality.
Useful observations about power, perception, and human behavior.
Highly quotable principles that are easy to remember.
A direct, provocative style that encourages action rather than passivity.

What could be stronger

The philosophy can sometimes become too absolute or reductionist.
Its focus on individual agency underplays structural and situational limitations.
The Machiavellian worldview can encourage an unnecessarily adversarial interpretation of relationships.
Some ideas are repeated enough that the book occasionally feels longer than necessary.

Final Verdict

The 50th Law is ultimately a book about freedom from fear. Its argument is not that danger, uncertainty, or failure can be eliminated; it is that allowing fear to control your decisions guarantees dependence and stagnation.

The most valuable lesson is therefore not simply “be fearless.” It is become less dependent on circumstances going your way. Develop skills. Accept uncertainty. Learn from reality. Build your own options. Move toward opportunities instead of waiting for perfect conditions.

At its best, the book is an energetic combination of autobiography, strategy, and personal philosophy. At its weakest, it can mistake a powerful mindset for a universal explanation of success. Readers who approach it critically rather than treating every maxim as absolute will get the most from it.

Provocative, practical, occasionally excessive, but undeniably memorable, The 50th Law is a compelling guide to cultivating independence, resilience, and the courage to act without waiting for fear to disappear.

Recommended for readers interested in:

Personal development
Entrepreneurship
Psychology and human behavior
Strategy and negotiation
Self-reliance and resilience
Robert Greene's philosophy of power
50 Cent's life and career

[Sean · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have to believe that few people are reading this for 50 Cent and most are reading cause Robert Greene is involved. However, despite Greene's involvement this book is complete dogshit. It's one part motivational story, one part 50 Cent's life story, one part how his life story relates to everyone from Napoleon to Caesar (seriously). This was described to me as 10 additional laws to add to the 48 laws of Power, which is a fantastic and brutal read. This addition is so unneeded and stupid it's amazing that the same people who loved 48 are even thinking about pushing this.

Let's be real: 50 Cent's life story is a joke. Got shot 9 times? Don't care. Used to sell drugs? Don't care. Mom died when he was young? Don't care. It's all so superficial and fake and this "empire" that Greene keeps talking about that he built is laughable when you remember that he went bankrupt a few years ago.

But hey, 50 knew this drug dealer who couldn't adapt and therefore got killed for it so lemme tell you how that makes him like Machiavelli. This is literally the book. Some event in 50 Cent's life that happens that is laughably compared to a great man in history. It's like dude you make degenerate music for dumb intoxicated people wasting their time in clubs. You ain't Edison.

[Juan Velasquez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es cierto lo que se lee en muchas otras revisiones de GoodReads sobre este libro, la historia del cantante se repite muchas veces, quizá demasiadas. Sin quitar mérito a un ejemplo de superación tan notable, a su éxito y determinación ante vivencias tan difíciles durante su niñez y parte de su adolescencia, encuentro a menudo artificiosa la idea de hacer ver todos sus actos como parte de un plan maestro.
Por otra parte la historia de la vida de 50 Cent contada por Greene difiere en algunos aspectos muy notorios de la que muestra la película Get Rich or Die Trying, que contó con la participación del mismo 50 Cent, lo que hace pensar que en este libro, que es posterior a la película, se quieren "suavizar" algunos temas de su vida, sobre todo unos que no le favorecen tanto.
Al margen de lo anterior el libro es muy bueno, presenta al miedo como un determinante del fracaso. Vale la pena resaltar como siempre la impecable manera de Greene de presentar las historias de éxito a partir de las estrategias, de los juegos de poder, y particularmente en esta obra, a partir de la intrepidez y la audacia de sus protagonistas.

[Sunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book quite simply has to be one of the best management / business related books I have ever read. It’s about 50 cent the rapper and Robert Greene who is a business writer. The book is about fearing nothing essentially and uses fiddys life as the string through which some of the key morals and principles of the book are skilfully weaved. It essentially proselytises the carpe diem mentality which saw 50 cent through all sorts of travesty in his life. He was orphaned very early and got into hustling and then a few weeks before his first album was going to be launched he got 9 bullets pumped into him one of which went into his jaw. But he got back up again, changed, adapted and carried on. The book looks at some other very important characters in time and especially the qualities that made them excellent leaders. Highly recommended if you work in business. Very Machiavellian in places and definitely worth the read.

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who ever really wrote this book looking at 50 has the eyes of a pure poet like paint brush with words if that makes meaning to you. This book is up there with Sun Tzu, Michio Kaku, and Niccolo Machiavelli.

[Teyim Pila · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read. This Book Literally changed my life. I loved chapters 5 and 7 most. I will have to read this again sometime when I'm feeling down.

[Raphael de Ocampo · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 50th Law seems like a mix and match of different principles from Robert Greene’s previous works. The book feels like a good introduction to Greene’s paradigms, using a modern context and anecdote to connect with the reader. Ultimately a good book, but I’d recommend reading all of Greene’s other works as well, to fully flesh out his ideas.

[Sharon :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leave to 50 Cent to have me listening to history when I am not a history fan.....but it was so interesting. Has me researching alot history that day to day life had me rusty recalling from high school 🙈🙈

[Marco Reyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

No importa qué tan creativo ni emprendedor seas, este libro, te hace ver que probablemente, estés dejando de lado aspectos clave en la exitosa realización de cualquier proyecto.

El hecho de tener talento y dedicar el tiempo libre a nuestro hobby no bastan. Hay un montón de cosas igual o más importantes que el proceso creativo si es que se quiere llegar a algún lado con lo que se emprende; tales como las relaciones sociales que haces al trabajar en tu proyecto, lo esencial y el poder de atracción que hay en un artista o emprendedor independiente (saludos a esos artistas que piden “ayuditas” en sitios como Patreon y similares 😅), ver con objetividad el resultado de tu inspiración, es decir, como es y no como tus anhelos frustrados lo colorean, aprender a escuchar al público (cuando no reacciona a lo que haces te está hablando muy claro, solo que no lo escuchas) y un sinfín de lecciones contenidas en tan solo diez capítulos. Cada uno, una guía para mantener el enfoque y a la actitud en el lugar correcto.

Incluso si no se es emprendedor, a nivel personal la obra ofrece consejos muy aplicables para sacar lo mejor de cada situación. Todos ilustrados con las hazañas de grandes maestros estrategas que ya lo hicieron en el pasado, tales como Napoleón Bonaparte, Maquiavelo, Sun Ztu, Miles Davis, Malcom X y hasta el rapero Curtis Jackson (50 Cent).

Recomiendo encarecidamente que se adentren en la obra de este autor, ya sea con este, o con cualquiera de sus otras obras. Las he leído todas y son de las lecturas más ricas e ilustrativas que han llegado a mis manos.

📚 ¡LARGA VIDA A LOS LIBROS! 📚

[Clifford Onehundredd · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 50th law is amazing...Robert Greene once again lays out the genius philosophy of everyday credentials...this subject in particular : fear. Based on 50 Cent's encounters and events that transformed his life we learn how to overcome fear and be successful in life. I learned alot about using fear and other downfalls as opportunity for victory and ambition...I'm definitely going to buy this book...I read it from front to back and loved every page...Unlike Greene's previous books 48 Laws Of Power and Art of Seduction,The 50th Law didn't have a table of contents and the laws weren't on the back of the book as the usual style of Greene's books...it had to be read from front to back,very unique considering his other self help books are open and shut books (open and shut books are books that you could search for specific things and then close the book until you need something else.) No matter how diverse his style is I always read his books from front to back...The 50th Law is very well written and I highly recommend it.

[Braga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a great fan of fictional stories involving meticulous strategy and action, going through historical masterpieces makes them even better to read. Curtis Jackson's early life (50 Cent) was one such story. His life resembled more of HBO's famous series "The Wire" - hustling in the streets, real and violent gangsta lifestyle. Having lost his parents so early due to violence and being completely isolated, he had defied all the odds and obstacles that were thrown at him. Greene's obsession with analyzing and dissecting 50's story with historical references is what makes this a fascinating read. This is the third such book I'm reading from the same author and I will definitely finish off his other two as well. As for this one, I don't think everyone may like it because of the brutal facts presented and harsh realities, but I for one definitely loved it!