

What is the most inspiring biography of a successful man? - maxklein

I've been thinking a lot about the reasons I want to make a lot of money. It's not because I need money (I don't), but rather because I want to feel like I achieved something by the time I die.<p>Do you know of any book about a man who actually achieved a lot? Not books about lucky men or books about well connected men who were well off to start with, but books about men who used their intelligence and discipline to become successful.<p>I'd much rather prefer if the person was someone relatively obscure, and not the common biographies that everyone has read.
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keefe
You have already got money and your goal to feel like you achieved something
is to make more money? I think money is just a means to an end. Think about
your day to day life. Get up, eat, work, drink, be merry. As long as you have
enough money to handle that, I think you're cool on money - unless your
passion requires more. What is the end result here?

If you want to look up people who have inspiring biographies... what about
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Pasteur> or
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Lister> ? Vivien Thomas has one of the
most inspiring biographies out there...
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vivien_Thomas> he really came out of nothing to
contribute to the world.

Yes, if I had more money I'd be a doctor (:

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sebg
I particularly like Aristotle Onassis. Especially when he was in South America
and was working two jobs in order to survive and learn. Note worthy
accomplishments - tobacco fortune, shipping fortune, own airline, married
JFK's widow. Lessons I learned from reading about him: 1. if throwing dinner
party, eat before hand so you have more time to talk while other people are
eating. 2. Don't be afraid to fail as long as you commit to it and fail big.
3. Learn how to harness the power of OPM (other people's money)

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anamax
Ben Franklin's autobiography is the best. He was a world class genius, a
reasonably-effective political animal (the American revolution happened when
it did in part because the English pissed him off), and the old goat admits to
having/liking sex.

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byrneseyeview
Mr. Untouchable is great: it's an autobiography of a heroin dealer (he's a bit
player in _American Gangster_ ). It's a very 'pure' business, in the sense
that you can quantify product quality directly.

Founders at Work is also good.

Lowenstein's hagiography of Warren Buffett is a great bio of a famous guy, but
you should keep in mind that he did have some connections (and almost
certainly would have succeeded even if he didn't).

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coglethorpe
Not everyone likes GoDaddy, but its founder, Bob Parsons is a two-time startup
success story who didn't attend an Ivy League school or Stanford. He built
technical companies outside of Silicon Valley (the current one is in Arizona)
with (from what I understand) no Angel or VC money.

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hunterjrj
Abe Lincoln? Not obscure, but certainly used his intelligence and discipline
to become successful.

