There are some books that you come in contact with in your life that change you.
My top ones in no particular order are
- Tuesdays’ with Morrie
- The Last Lecture
- Great Mental Models
- Fountainhead
- 1984
- Angela’s Ashes
- Functional Training For Sport
- Poliquin Principles
- Strongest Shall Survive
- Muscle Smoke & Mirrors
Having a favorite book is like having a favorite movie. It’s hard to describe but easily felt. Who you are in the moment when you read a book has a profound influence on how you will perceive that book. Some of the books on that list are just as much a product of the quality of writing as my ability to receive the message. Every one of those books is probably more of a product of my emotional state of needing to change or a need to understand more as the reason I think they are good.
For instance, my mother passed away when I was seven years old. I grieved, I remember, but I do not think about it often. Part of my connection to Tuesdays with Morrie was the fantasy of being able to connect with her in a more meaningful way before she died. The Last Lecture was a letter from a terminally ill professor at Carnegie Mellon to his children. I just interchanged the author with my mother’s voice and felt a sense of deep emotional connection to the book. I can tell you with great confidence that a connection to a book is personal, not objective.
I love S&C. It’s my entire identity as a person. I have no hobbies and do not care to ever have one. I am not well-rounded. I typically resent coaches who have outside interests. I walk away from any conversation about real estate, investing, cars, golf, etc. To me, it is a huge waste of time with no real upside. With how in-depth and ever-expanding S&C is, there is no time to diversify your interest. You are a real one or you are not in my mind.
That creates a deep need to connect to the beginning of our profession. Muscle Smoke and Mirrors is a connection to our roots. It is the equivalent of being in the same room with Eugen Sandow, Joe Greenstein, Charles Atlas, John Grimek, Bob Hoffman, Joe/Ben Weider, Vince Gironda, Peary Rader, Bill Pearl, Don Howarth, Rheo Blair/Irvin Johnson, and Mauro Pasquale. You get all the amazing insights and innovations with all their faults. It creates an incredible amount of human connection combined with pure awe of their genius.
They made it all up. We take for granted that some of the stuff that we are so adamant about was just something conjured up by someone over a hundred years ago. You get a first-hand look at Edison making the lightbulb and how he was perceived by his friends and colleagues. The politics and bickering cannot be detached from the output. It all matters in the grand scheme of things. It gives perspectives on our strengths, not our weaknesses, based on peer-to-peer disagreement. It’s our checks and balances.
Your problems are not new and not significant, is all I can think about when reading Muscle Smoke and Mirrors. Pettiness amongst strength coaches is as old as time. We are competitive and strong-willed. More significantly, we are insecure. You can deny it if you want to, but a large part of the reason you gravitated to S&C was because you felt inadequate and wanted to change. But you are not alone, physical culture’s foundation is based on the awareness of inadequacy and the desire to change.
Our forefathers, the trailblazers, were marginalized and pushed to the fringes of society. They were the redit chat rooms. They sought after understanding and deeper meaning. When they could not get the information they needed, they experimented. When they could not find from experimentation, they sought counsel from others. When they found success, they probably claimed it as universally true and tried to sell books and magazines. They were flawed, and that is what makes them perfect. I’m proud of my heritage in S&C and thankful to Muscle Smoke and Mirrors for sharing that.