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Be Useful cover art

Be Useful

By: Arnold Schwarzenegger
Narrated by: Arnold Schwarzenegger
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Publisher's Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

The seven rules to follow to realise your true purpose in life distilled by Arnold Schwarzenegger from his own journey of ceaseless reinvention and extraordinary achievement, and available for absolutely anyone.

The world's greatest bodybuilder. The world's highest paid movie star. The leader of the world's sixth largest economy. That these are the same person sounds like the setup to a joke. But this is no joke. This is Arnold Schwarzenegger. And this did not happen by accident.

Arnold's stratospheric success happened as part of a process. As the result of clear vision, big thinking, hard work, direct communication, resilient problem-solving, open-minded curiosity, and a commitment to giving back. All of it guided by the one lesson Arnold's father hammered into him above all: be useful. As Arnold conquered every realm he entered, he kept his father's adage close to his heart.

Written with his uniquely earnest, blunt, powerful voice, BE USEFUL takes readers on an inspirational tour through Arnold's toolkit for a meaningful life. Arnold shows us how to put those tools to work, in service of whatever fulfilling future we can dream up for ourselves. He brings his insights to vivid life with compelling personal stories, life-changing successes and life-threatening failures alike--some of them famous, some told here for the first time ever.

Too many of us struggle to disconnect from our self-pity and connect to our purpose. At an early age, Arnold forged the mental tools to build the ladder out of the poverty and narrow-mindedness of his rural Austrian hometown, tools he used to add rung after rung from there. Now he has shared that wisdom with all of us. As he puts it, no one is going to come rescue you - you only have yourself. The good news, it turns out, is that you are all you need.

©2023 Arnold Schwarzenegger (P)2023 Penguin Audio

What listeners say about Be Useful

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Must listen

Arnold is one of those people who makes the world a better place, no excuses get to the gym.

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Excellent

Thoroughly enjoyed. Still enjoyed his first book more but really enjoyed him going through his rules for life, and him doing the audio too which was awesome. Very inspirational

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So simple but so hard to get started

Great reading, He can read too 😜. Life is simplier than most of us think so put your phone away and start pumping irons 💪.

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Lots of great sound advice

Really enjoyed listening to this book. I am not am Arnold fan (his being never impacted my world before now) but that has changed. Well read, easy to listen too, great stories and thoughtful advice on how to succeed and livie a kind useful life. I really enjoyed it and will listen to it again, this time with a handy notebook and pen.

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A MUST listen too … Thankyou

Thankyou for continuing to teach and enrich my life with everyday beneficial lessons and all round mindset. A MUST read or listen for any teenager or adult wanting to better themselves. Bless your generous soul for your time and care in sharing your story and mind Arnold. Thankyou again.

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Insightful And Informative

An excellent book, full of inspirational tips and ways to generally improve your outlook on life.
Arnie gives an excellent presentation of his extraordinary life and amazing achievements whilst emphasizing that everyone is able to do great things and live a fulfilled life.
I wish this book had been around 40 years ago so that I’d have more time to implement his words of wisdom. For now, I’ll pass it on to my son and hope that he’ll get as much from it as I did.
Now I’m ‘all in’, thanks to Arnie.

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Arnold is Delightful

I have followed Arnold since his Conan days, watching all of his movies. But it wasn’t until I watched his Netflix series and started listening to his podcast that I got to know more about him as a person - how hard he has worked, his intelligence, his passion for listening and learning, and giving back.
This book is wonderful and I really feel it should be part of school curriculums.
The fact that he narrates is an added bonus 🙌🏻💖

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No fate but what you make

Amazing down to earth and inspiring audio book. Well worth a listen, gives a new outlook on life.

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excellent

everyone loves Arnie. I love him even more after listening to his book. many great lessons

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Nothing fresh

Listening to Arnold Schwarzenegger's accent is always fun but I found the content of the book to be a dry retelling of his personal successes. The author's ego is front and centre, and I didn't get anything new or fresh as a listener.

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  • Jeremy O'carroll
  • 12-10-2023

Funny. Wise. Entertaining.

In one sense, there is nothing revolutionary here. You are unlikely to listen to this book and go, 'Wow! I've never heard that concept before.' But as the saying goes, 'Common sense isn't always common practice.' So even though we may have heard similar wisdom from other sources before, that doesn't mean we are applying it in our life.

So the great thing about this book is that it is a collection of inspiring anecdotes and ideas that all come from Arnold's direct life experience.

He has had the ultimate success in body-building, acting and politics. So it's clear that what he does works.

That's why listening to how he goes about things is inspiring. We can go along for the ride and learn from what he did well and what he messed up.

The book – as the title hints at – is divided up into seven chapters:

Chapter 1: Have a Clear Vision
Chapter 2: Never Think Small
Chapter 3: Work Your Ass Off
Chapter 4: Sell, Sell, Sell (Learn to 'sell', sell yourself, promote what you are doing, etc...)
Chapter 5: Shift Gears (Focus on the positive, learn from your mistakes, then 'get back on your horse'.)
Chapter 6: Shut Your Mouth, Open Your Mind
Chapter 7: Break Your Mirrors (Give back to others, the community. Look beyond yourself. See how you can help others.)

Arnold does a great job narrating his book. Yes, he has a thick accent, so if English isn't your first language, you might find it a little harder to understand than most books. But his language is clear, simple and lucid. It is also conversational, irreverent and funny. He does swear occasionally (something I felt made the book more authentic), so if that kind of thing offends you, this mightn't be the book for you.

All in all, it's an enjoyable read that is full of wise nuggets. So definitely worth 1 credit.

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  • Parin
  • 02-12-2023

Overflowing with Wisdom

Thank you for putting your beautiful life story into this masterpiece, you are an absolute inspiration and I hope the world will deeply embrace your advice! I certainly will!

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  • Rikki Sheterline
  • 29-11-2023

No such thing as self made

His story shows that you should never judge a book by its cover - a fantastic message. Ngā mihi

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  • Anonymous User
  • 21-11-2023

Very practical

Very practical and useful tips from someone who has walked the talk, definitely would recommend

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  • Seneca
  • 19-11-2023

Great wisdom and life advice from one of the world’s most successful people

Decide what your vision and goals are for your life, then what habits you have to do every day to achieve them.

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  • Marc Jeffrey
  • 16-11-2023

Inspirational!

Grit, sweat and perseverance! Love it!
So many great insights and lots of subtle laughs.

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  • Anonymous User
  • 14-11-2023

Inspirational and life changing stuff

Inspirational and life changing stuff
So much to gain from his life experiences
Definitely a must listen

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  • Mr Paul Andrew Butel
  • 11-11-2023

Excellent audio book

Resonating story that has a lot of life lessons interwoven with passion and inspirational reflection. I think this will have meaning to men and boys, something needed. Thank you a great book.

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  • Guslogan
  • 23-10-2023

Brilliant and Inspirational

I have always admired Arnold Schwarzenegger, I not only love his action movies but what he has achieved throughout his life so far - acknowledging the people who helped him along the way. He is a very humble man, a beautiful human being. I recommend this to anyone who wants a no nonsense advice on how to realise one’s dream to be successful, and a positive contributor to our community.

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  • Anonymous User
  • 21-10-2023

I want to be useful

Love this book! Love Arnold Honest, Motivating, Genuine, Uplifting, one of the best books I read this year thank you Arnold!

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  • Anonymous User
  • 17-10-2023

take it with pinch of salt

There is a side to this fanaticism that takes a huge toll on ones mental health. He talks about people being depressed because they feel useless. I agree. But there is the other side of people that are pushed to the extreme anxiety due the obsession to succeed, perfectionism, and the ‘you win or you loose’ mentality. There is no space for self-love and self-compassion in this book, or doing something simply for a purpose of joy. There is little joy in life, just feeding your ego and achieving it all, no matter the cost. Arnold is great, the advice to have a vision and purpose is also right. But this ‘all or nothing’ mentality and this blind perfectionism has been shown by science to be damaging and lead to overall unhappiness. So take it with a pinch of salt. The book is not backed by science and is shortsighted in many ways.

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  • michael davison
  • 10-10-2023

My new bible

Absolutely incredible. I can’t put into words how inspiring I found this book. Simultaneously pragmatic and motivational in a way that so many of books in this genre fail to be. Can’t recommend it enough. Amazing.

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  • nelly fritatata
  • 14-10-2023

oh dear

If you want a 'guru' to tell you you are lazy and stupid you can get that for free on youtube. I enjoyed the netflix show of him but this was dull and pointless; and kind of offensive in it's short-sightedness.

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  • Sebastian
  • 15-10-2023

What a life and message!

Fascinating and inspiring - a great listen in Arnold’s own voice. Incredible advice delivered with true life stories.

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  • Corne Moll
  • 11-10-2023

Well worth the wait!

I am so thankful that Arnold read his own book! The listener can feel the excitement, sadness and passion in his voice. The content is great and to the point. Definitely going to listen a few times to help me focus on my own goals.

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  • Anonymous User
  • 11-10-2023

THIS BOOK SHOULD BE READ AT EVERY SCHOOL

Eduardo Goeloe:

First of all, the epic disclaimer and having Arnold talking to you as the narrator makes this audiobook EPIC!

Each chapter goes into depth and is truly motivational!

As a teacher here in Holland, I would love to have my students read this book!

Hopefully, I can buy a signed copy someday!

Thank you Arnold for sharing your knowledge and life experience with us!

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  • Ms M.
  • 19-10-2023

Pure Arnold.

Fantastic. He’s a Human encyclopaedia of his industry and more. Amusing and honest… so Useful!

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  • Brian Wood
  • 19-10-2023

Inspiring stuff and well read by the man himself !!

Simple and basic but resonating and and inspiring. Annie draw on the many fascinating parts of his life and career that link to being useful across the 7 tool for life

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  • Adam
  • 19-10-2023

Be Useful

Useful advice from Arnold on the key drivers of life and how to apply them. Motivating and aplicable. Given in his own words and charismatic style.

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  • Anonymous User
  • 13-10-2023

How Arnold works.

Directly one is pulled into Arnold's living room. The start is so personal, honest and vulnerable that you feel a real connection to him. It is a true treat to get a peak into his mind. I truly listened in one go. Thanks so much for all the motivation Mr. Schwarzenegger!

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