The Warrior Ethos

The Warrior Ethos

Author: Steven Pressfield

Buy It: Amazon

Entertainment Value: 7/10

Life Value: 7/10

Read If: You are in a leadership position, are in the military, or are interested in stories of past military conquests and parables from antiquity.

Do Not Read If: You value meekness as a primary virtue, or you have something else really great to read first.

Pressfield's other non-fiction The War of Art was one of the most influential books in my career. Accordingly, when I heard he published a book called The Warrior Ethos I was beyond stoked. I purchased it on my Ipad kindle and read it within 24 hours of hearing about it. It is a short read, only 90 some pages, and while I enjoyed it, it wasn't exactly what I expected. I was hoping for Pressfield to construct a paradigm similar to what Carlos Castaneda did in Wheel of Time. I wanted a real practical guideline about how to build your own warrior code.

The Warrior Ethos is an insightful discussion of the great warrior cultures of the past--A passion of Pressfield. The stories and parables from Sparta, Alexander's Campaigns, and Cyrus the Great's Persia are worth the read by themselves. Personally, the work reminded me what it takes to be a great leader and gave me a lot of cool stories to tell over a campfire or in the board room. I recommend it, but is it an absolute necessity? Probably not.

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1 comment

  • This book had a profound impact on me. Not only was it one of the fastest reads I have sunk my teeth into, it is also one of the most applicable to my day to day.

    My favorite highlight from my kindle is…

    “Let us be, then, warriors of the heart, and enlist in our inner cause the virtues we have acquired through blood and sweat in the sphere of conflict, courage, patience, selflessness, loyalty, fidelity, self-command, respect for elders, love of our comrades (and the enemy), perseverance, cheerfulness in adversity and a sense of humour, however terse or dark.”

    Dude… I don’t think Pressfield missed anything in that one!

    Brandon Clift

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