The 50th Law

The 50th Law is a truly unique book. Easy to read but difficult to categorize, it is part biography, part business memoir, part personal-development, part philosophy. The 50th Law is co-authored by hip-hop artist 50 Cent and Robert Greene, author of The 48 Laws of Power, a book which has become a classic in the world of hip-hop. As an avid reader of Mr. Greene's previous work, I will remind the reader that the work is a collaboration, and there are differences from what we can usually expect from the author. The most noticeable change from his other books is the book length. While shorter than his other three books, The 50th Law is focused on depth instead of breadth, which provides an even greater level of insight into the topic. The new book does contain Greene's trademark style of historical quotes, situational analysis, and stories that perfectly illustrate the content, though in a much more condensed fashion. A second change that becomes apparent is the look and style of the book. The black cover, embossing, and the gold rimmed pages are evocative of the Bible and its many life stories. In this book, 50 Cent's message and life story are the paint and Robert Greene is the painter; together they have created a potent combination. The previous works by Mr. Greene have examined topics of power, seduction and war in a comprehensive approach that enlightens the reader and encourages further research. The 50th Law presents more of a specific philosophy; by limiting the book to a single concept, rather than shifting topics, it allows for more exploration in depth. Whereas his previous books were cerebral, The 50th Law is more intuitive. The knowledge comes from survival stories, not the library stacks. The topic of The 50th Law is fearlessness. Fear is a topic that is usually ignored, but when it is addressed it is approached by focusing on fear itself. This approach can be ineffective as it does little more than encourage the reader to focus on how much there is to fear. Ralph Waldo Emerson in Self-Reliance stated: "Let a Stoic open the resources of man and tell men they are not leaning willows, but can and must detach themselves; that with the exercise of self-trust, new powers shall appear." The 50th Law provides the tools for achieving self-reliance by becoming fearless. The goal of this book is to encourage readers to learn to take control of their own lives. The task is accomplished, not by ignoring fear, but rather by learning to make it work for you. 50 Cent and Robert Greene present us with the first book of the 21st century to effectively analyze this new breed of fearless entrepreneur, one who traverses the gap between traditional business and the street. The line between the two has been blurred in recent years with the success of artists such as 50 Cent. The artist is yet another example of a rapper who has become successful in the music industry in part due to the skills that he learned as a street hustler. While it might seem th

Being a fan of Robert Greene (I often consult his works for advice), I was delighted to get my hands on his fourth book. It looks quite unusual, with is leather-look cover and gold pages one could mistake it for the Bible. This is Roberts first collaboration and a surprising one at that, with rap-mogul 50 Cent. 50 embodies the rags-to-riches myth, and with such an unusual life, he has - a lot - of stories to share. In addition to historical examples, Robert uses a living person as his main inspiration, and this makes the book feel more modern and alive. 50's experience, coupled with Roberts razor-sharp analytical insight result in this `Hustlers Bible'. The good stuff starts with the introduction, where the 50th Law is revealed on p.18: "The greatest fear people have is that of being themselves". This is no an empty proverb, the book very clearly explains its meaning. The main theme of the book is fearlessness. Robert and 50 mapped out ten common types of fears and the power one can obtain by overcoming them. Chapter 1 - Intense Realism x Fear of the ugly truth Chapter 2 - Self-Reliance x Fear of being alone Chapter 3 - Opportunism x Fear of threatening events Chapter 4 - Calculated Momentum x Fear of change Chapter 5 - Aggression x Fear of confrontation Chapter 6 - Authority x Fear of responsibility Chapter 7 - Connection x Fear of people who are different Chapter 8 - Mastery x Fear of boredom, fear of practice Chapter 9 - Self-Belief x Fear of failure Chapter 10 - the Sublime x Fear of death The chapters are structured in the following way: 1) presentation of a problem/fear, illustrated with examples from 50's life (and historical examples), 2) the fearless approach - describes how to overcome this fear, the principles, in general terms, 3) keys to fearlessness - offers practical strategies for mastering these principles (here's where the work is at) The idea is to apply the strategies (described under `keys to fearlessness') to your own life. The book itself is a very entertaining read, but to reap its benefits you'll have to re-read it, seek out connections in your own life, and act accordingly. Forget the 'easy fix', as written in Ch. 8: "The real secret for power in this world lies in accepting the ugly reality that learning demands patience,..." One topic that has resonated with me personally, is the "trap of the middle class": having a stable job, without real satisfaction with your life and career, but without an urgent reason to change your job into something more exciting, or to live life into a more fulfilling way. It's a wake-up call. The book feels like there has been great care put into it (in contrast to many self-help titles that offer empty wisdom). If you're willing to put in the effort, "The 50th Law" will help you to move on to a freer and more satisfying life.

Rapper 50 Cent's life as a hustler (aka drug dealer) in Queens and subsequent rise to fame as a rapper and entrepreneur served as the inspiration and the framework for the book "The 50th Law." So what is The 50th Law? The back cover of the book bears the imprint "Nihil timendum est.", Latin for "fear nothing" and that's the gist of The 50th Law's message. Fiddy, a fan of social science writer Robert Greene's 1998 book,"The 48 Laws of Power," approached Greene to work on a possible project. The result was the "The 50th Law," a street-smart primer on power and self improvement. Greene's prose and research hinges on historical and psychological underpinnings interspersed with tales of Fiddy's life on the streets. Napoleon, explorer Andrew Selkirk, and the philosopher Seneca have a lot more in common with a rapper like 50 Cent (and other successful modern people who've overcome adversity) than you might think. Touchy-feely self-help books and the "everyone's a winner" mumbo jumbo favored by women's TV talk shows and California psychic/chakra types may make people feel good temporarily, but they don't spur the complacent into action. Robert Greene's rational, proactive approach in this book, as in his previous works,"The 33 Strategies of War" and "The 48 Laws of Power" will do just that. I discovered Greene's work after reading a list of "The 48 Laws of Power" on some random website. I noticed that I had unwittingly followed some of those laws during several happy and productive times in my life. So there is something relatable about Greene's writing for people from all walks of life. "The 50th Law" distills the doctrine from Greene's other books, including the brilliant "The Art of Seduction." While "The Art of Seduction" brimmed with examples (and quotes) from the lives of European courtesans and philosophers, "The 50th Law" quotes Malcolm X, James Baldwin, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. The fact that 50 Cent is a co-author might scare away middle of the road types looking for some life coaching, but that would be a mistake. There's a lot of good advice here. Whether you seek fame or fortune or just want to live life on your own terms, "The 50th Law" will shake you into repositioning yourself for success. The book isn't sugarcoated or simplistic, but it's not Machiavellian, either. I know many people use that term to describe Greene's work, but I don't agree. "The 50th Law" is a dose of reality, assertiveness and common sense.

Full disclosure: I'm founder of Sonshi.com, the largest website on Sun Tzu's Art of War and where we interviewed Mr. Greene after he wrote "33 Strategies of War" and later "The 50th Law." But please understand this: We like his works so much we invited him, not because we invited him we like his work. Now to my review. First of all I'm an avid reader of nonfiction, specifically business books. Most business books I read are mediocre and sometimes so far from being realistic that they hold little practical value. The 50th Law is far superior to anything I have read in a long long time that I've decided to write a review here. Every paragraph in the book is PACKED with insights so profound yet clear that only someone with Robert Greene's knowledge and literary skill can pull it off. The powerfully useful concepts never let up from beginning to end (very rare in books -- most would taper off by the end). I took notes to highlight the good stuff but soon gave up because it was causing me to pause too darn often. Here is where I'm supposed to discuss the specific topics Mr. Greene discusses in his book such as: fear, having a learning mind, adapting to your environment, death, etc. But the 50th Law's depth, clarity, wisdom are impossible for someone of my caliber to render in my own words without falling short in a tragic way. Anything I say would only shortchange the book. So I won't try. Trust me on this one, once you read this book, you'll know exactly what I mean here. OK just for balance, here are some caveats: If you happen to like lame self-improvement books by Kenneth Blanchard and his ilk, move along -- you will never grasp this book's genius. Also if you want a detailed account of 50 Cent's life, you won't find it here; what you WILL find are extraordinary analyses of 50 Cent's major decisions, how they made him a better person, and, in turn, how the lessons from them can help you in your life. A small annoyance is the book's repetition of "(now known as 50 Cent)", which sounds fine after the 2nd time but after the 5th time it got downright strange and I wonder if an unyielding editor had a heavy hand in Robert Greene's writing; no big deal, perhaps it's just me. To conclude, if you have read Robert Greene's previous works -- I have read them all -- you will NOT be disappointed. The 50th Law is a must read for you. If you have never read his works and if you have an open but critical mind for strategy and personal development, you will be blown away. In summary, if you want honest, logical, and useful advice, The 50th Law has it in spades. This book will change the way you look at your life forever, and, I might add, change it for the better. Thomas Huynh, founder [...]

The 50th Law, a book like nothing you've ever read before. I first expected a continuation of Mr. Greene's other books (48 LOP, TAOS); this is to say the least completely different. Fearlessness is the basic focus of The 50th Law. The book explains how fear can cripple most people from living their lives well and with power. It also gives examples of those who lived on the fringes of society, who applied themselves fearlessly to the mastery of their own particular goals in the midst of despairing circumstance. The book's co-author 50 Cent, is one of Robert Greene's most adept pupils who rose in fame, money and power in a few short years amidst many life-changing setbacks. What an inspiration for anyone who wants more than their current situation in life can give them right now. This book is for the hustler, he doesn't think like everyone else because so many people are afraid to have his responsibilities and therefore don't enjoy his rewards. That's the book's "audience", the hustlers who make ways were none seem to be available and prosper because of it. This is why the hustler will always find a way to have power in this world. Read this book with an open mind, you may realize that fear is the only thing holding you back from what you truly want. It may be hard, gritty and abrasive yet this is the only book that will tell you the truth about how exactly one rises to power in this world; it's not pretty and it's fearless.