The Monk who sold his Ferrari — Book Review

A fable about fulfilling your dreams and reaching your destiny

Rating (★★★★☆)

About the Author

Robin Sharma is one of the world’s most highly respected leadership experts. He is devoted to his mission of helping organizations develop people who Lead Without a Title. He has published 12 books and founded the training company Sharma Leadership International.

About the Book

“The Monk who sold his Ferrari” is a self-help book. It tells a fable teaching us the 7 Timeless Virtues of Enlightened Living.

Overview

The main character of the fable is Julian Mantle, a high profile attorney. His courtroom theatrics often made the front page of newspapers. His whole life revolved around money, power and prestige. But when he has a heart attack in the courtroom, he drops out of the game and disappears. He sells all his possessions and flys to India in search of Nirvana or the true meaning of life.

When he comes back he is a changed man. He has learned the virtues of enlightened living from the Monks in the Himalayas which he shares with his former associate John.

The reader experiences the fable from the perspective of John who listens to Julian when he shares his experience and learnings. The author shows the path to enlightenment through 7 Timeless Virtues and helps you remember them by painting scenery in the reader’s mind with 7 symbols representing the 7 virtues.

Favourite Quotations

“Everything is created twice, first in the mind and then in reality.” — Our thoughts are material messengers that we send out to influence and shape our physical world in the way we want.

“There is nothing noble about being superior to some other person. Ture nobility lies being superior to your former self.” — Focus only on self-improvement. You are in a marathon with yourself and you have to farther than your former self every day. 1% improvement every day for a year leads to 37 times better self.

“Every second you think about someone else’s dreams you take time from your own.” — Thinking about someone else’s journey and success is a waste of your time. Everyone has a different path and a different destination and watching someone else run isn’t going to help you.

Conclusion

This book is a slow-paced fable which will take to through the mystical journey of Julian as he shares the path to enlightenment. It revolves around the fact that even after reaching the pinnacle of material possession one cannot live a happy and healthy life until one knows the path to enlightened living.

The book has certain parts which lose your attention and interest but has a fair share of parts which force you to speed though and dissolve into the tale of “The Monk who sold his Ferrari”.

I would definitely recommend reading this book and learning from it to incorporate some new habits in your daily life.