Ask Altucher

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Ep 269 James' Secret to Writing May 13, 2015

Show notes

To write well, you need to continually exercise your brain muscle. As James says, one of the best books on writing is Stephen King's book, On Writing. King says that after a bad bicycle accident, he stopped writing for a few weeks while he healed. When he got back to it, he couldn't write. He couldn't quite connect the words. James writes seven days a week and he tries to do it at his peak productivity time. When Dan Ariely was on The James Altucher Podcast earlier this year, he explained that two to four hours after you wake up are your peak hours. So if you want to be a better writer, then this is probably the best time for you to sit down and write. James wakes up about 6:00 a.m. and spends a few minutes every day "meditating." He then reads for about two hours and makes sure to read some fiction. Then it's on to writing. If you want to improve your writing skills, write every day and give yourself permission to publish something that is not great. Regards, David Newman P.S. James says there are seven huge trends that will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else will give you a huge advantage in work, life, and investing. Click here to learn more about James' great ideas. ------------------------Recommended Resources------------------------- On Writing by Stephen King On Writing Well by William Zinsser Zen and the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott Jesus' Son by Denis Johnson The James Altucher Show EP 65 Dan Ariely Ask Altucher Ep. 91 How to Get Better At Writing

Ep 268 The ONE WORD that will make you RICH May 12, 2015

Show notes

This week on Quora both James and Claudia answered the same question, which was, "What is the one word you need to know to make you rich? The funny thing is, their answers appeared to be exact opposites. Claudia's answer was "Yes" and" and James' answer was "No." Click here to listen as James and Claudia talk about how these two answers are really very similar. Regards, David Newman P.S. James says there are seven huge trends that will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else will give you a huge advantage in work, life, and investing. Click here to learn more about James' great ideas. --------------------------------Recommended Resources--------------------------------- The Power of No: Because One Little Word Can Bring Health, Abundance, and Happiness

Ep 267: Two Hacks for Incredible Monday Productivity May 11, 2015

Show notes

James is thinking about giving up e-mail. His kids are only using Telegram and he wants to see what will happen. Claudia believes she has a better idea… and it's changing her life already. She stopped all notifications on her phone. She says it's given her her life back. She's back in control. Then James says he's no longer bringing his phone to any meetings or conferences. He focuses in on the other person so much better now. Listen as James and Claudia talk about productivity and how it can give you your life back. Give these a try. Regards, David Newman P.S. James says there are seven huge trends that will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else will give you a huge advantage in work, life, and investing. Click here to learn more about James' great ideas. -------------------------------Recommended Resources--------------------------------- James says it's not focus that matters the most. It's "decluttering" that really makes the biggest difference. Get rid of negative people, stop arguing with people, don't go to meetings or conferences that are marginal, and follow Warren Buffett's 5/25 rule. Listen here and learn how to declutter. How To Increase your Productivity by 500%. Saturday, June 6, 2015 – Come meet your COUSINS James and Claudia (yes, we are all related) at the WORLD'S LARGEST FAMILY REUNION– Cousin James is one of the speakers.

Ep 266: How to Get Any Mentor in the World May 08, 2015

Show notes

Gillian Zoe Segal joins James and Claudia today to talk about how you can get any mentor in the world. She interviewed "everyone" for her new book Getting There: A Book of Mentors. People like Warren Buffett, Sarah Blakely, Michael Bloomberg, Kathy Ireland and so many more. James tells Gillian that many of these people have said no to coming on to The James Altucher Show and asks how she did it. Gillian says a friend told her, "Don't take a no from somebody who can't give you a yes." That's what made the difference. If you get a no from the front door then try the back door, the side door or the window. Gillian says she finished this book because she had a need for the material. It was her passion. Listen as James and Claudia have great conversation with Gillian. Regards, David Newman P.S. James says there are seven huge trends that will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else will give you a huge advantage in work, life, and investing. Click here to learn more about James' great ideas. ------------------------------Recommended Resources-------------------------------- Getting There: A Book of Mentors Saturday, June 6, 2015 – Come meet your COUSINS James and Claudia (yes, we are all related) at the WORLD'S LARGEST FAMILY REUNION– Cousin James is one of the speakers.

Ep 265: 401(k)s Are Still a Scam – No Matter How Much Hate Mail You Send Me. May 07, 2015

Show notes

Last week James was invited to do a video for Business Insider on whether you should put money into your 401(k). People went crazy attacking James. Not his arguments against saving within a 401(k), they attacked him personally. Here's the scenario 1)Company: "Hey buddy, here's your money. Good job!" 2)Company (1 second later): "WHOOPS! We have to take that from you. Don't worry, you'll get it back 30 years from now and have unknown fees and charges taken out of it. Relax." 3)Person: protests with reasonable argument. Gets maybe minor fact wrong that is not important for the argument. 4)Company: "STONE HIM! HE IS A F'KING MORON! KILL HIM!" If you've not seen the original video, you can watch it here. Your employer is not going to "choose you," you have to "choose yourself." If 401(k)s are so great, then why are so many people broke going into retirement? Listen as James and Claudia talk about the real limitations of a 401(k). Don't shoot the messengers... Regards, David Newman P.S. James says there are seven huge trends will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else will give you a huge advantage in work, life, and investing. Click here to learn more about James' great ideas. ---------------------------------Recommended Resources--------------------------------- The Three Surprises in 401(k)s Saturday, June 6, 2015 - Come meet your COUSINS James and Claudia (yes, we are all related) at the WORLD'S LARGEST FAMILY REUNION– Cousin James is one of the speakers.

Ep 264: How Do I Get Back My Old Rusty Skills? May 06, 2015

Show notes

One of our past Ask Altucher guests Matt Capala from episode 245 emailed Claudia with our question of today. Matt wants to know how to get the skills and passions he used to have, but that he has let slip recently For Matt specifically, chess was something he used to play and enjoy and he'd like to get this passion back. Lsten today as James talks about how to get back those skills you let rust. Regards, David Newman PS. James says there are seven huge trends will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else will give you a huge advantage in work, like, and investing. Click here to learn more about James' great ideas. -------------------------------------Recommended Resources--------------------------------- Chess by László Polgár Greg Shahade on YouTube Saturday, June 6, 2015 - Come meet your COUSINS James and Claudia (yes, we are all related) at the WORLD'S LARGEST FAMILY REUNION– Cousin James is one of the speakers.

Ep 263: "You Must Do the Thing You Think You Cannot Do" May 05, 2015

Show notes

Claudia loves this quote and James hates it. Today they debate this famous quote by Eleanor Roosevelt and what it means to each of them. In the broadest sense of the word, this quote can seem a little ridiculous, but as they talk about it – and rephrase it just a little – it now makes sense. Listen to how James and Claudia work through their differences of opinion. Regards, David Newman PS. James says there are 7 huge trends will shape America. Understanding these trends before anyone else gives you a huge advantage in work, like, and investing. Click here to learn more about James’s great ideas.

Ep 262: Don't Say 'Yes' When You Really Want to Say 'No' May 04, 2015

Show notes

How can you say "no" without hurting someone's feelings? If your immediate reaction isn't "hell yeah," than you should probably say "no." Unless your career is speaking, then don't say "yes" just because you're being paid. There is a right way to say "no," and most importantly, don't put it off. Listen to how James has screwed this up many times

Ep 261: Why You Should KEEP Your Job May 01, 2015

Show notes

The most engaged article on LinkedIn last year was James' article on the "10 Reasons You Have to Quit Your Job in 2014." But today, James is going to tell you why you might want to keep your job. One reason may be that you're creating your own new job, but it's not big enough to totally support you yet. You need to keep your old job until the income from your new business is at least equal to the money you're making at your job. Only then is it the right time to quit your job. Listen today and learn why this subject isn't always just black and white.

Ep 260: Who Is Going to Be the Next President? Apr 30, 2015

Show notes

Recently, James met with one of the current presidential candidates and came away with nothing new. He realized that everyone is out for themselves and for their own self-interests. That's something he already knew. James had the opportunity to ask the tough questions, but he didn't. Listen today and learn why he didn't. And both he and Claudia offer up who they think will win the next presidential election. Who do you think will win? Let James know.

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