Law 46 - Never Appear Too Perfect | Exploring The 48 Laws of Power - a podcast by Jon & Dre

The green demon is among us! Envy is a dangerous affliction and one which we all fall victim to at times. But being a victim is obviously not what we're aiming for here... and if envy is something everyone is susceptible to, how can we make use of it on our journey to power?

On the flipside, humility can take you a (very) long way. But in a world dominated by social media and self-promotion, have we forgotten to tone down our virtues for the sake of the long game?

Law 46 challenges the cult of the resumé and reminds us to cultivate our sensitivity to insecurities – our own, and the people around us who hold if not the keys, then the locks to our success.

This episode delivers a murder-suicide; Jon getting assaulted on the street; how to defuse other people's envy; and how Putin plays two roles at once to maintain his power.

We encourage you to affect small vices; avoid falling into hero-worship before it turns to bitter poison; and remember that everyone around you may be just one false step away from losing their shit.

In the realm of envy, 'I hate you' is simply a mask for 'your life sounds great' – but how can we avoid making life a rush to the bottom out of insecurity and self-aggrandisement? If the only way you can find to build yourself up is to pull everyone else down, you're not improving at all. You're just a dick.

The answers, as ever, lie within.

This episode includes:

• Envy and masculinity
• The real Ten Commandments
• How to make friends and not piss everyone else off
• Luck and how to deal with it successfully
• The secrets of Machiavelli's perfect prince
• When praise conceals envy (and how to detect it)
• Getting trapped in narratives... and how to escape them

Mentioned in the episode:

• Our companion book: The 48 Laws of Power in Practice
• The monkey test – don't shortchange the monkey!
• Louis CK on fairness
• Neil Strauss on pick-up culture and its many social-intelligence-based tools: The Game
• The scale of the universe – let's keep some perspective!

 

Challenge: When meeting someone new, affect an imperfection as early as possible – and note the differences compared to when you've tried to talk yourself up. Let us know what happened next!

Be silly. Be kind. Be weird.

Join us as we continue our 48 Laws of Power review, exploring Robert Greene’s provocative and compelling book, in which he lays bare the history, practice, psychology, and philosophies of power that ultimately shape all human relations. Often seen as a handbook for the ‘modern Machiavelli’, we take a closer look, beyond the hyperbole, and discuss how understanding and implementing these Laws can actually enrich your life personally, professionally and spiritually.

Jon and Dre aim to get to the heart of each of the Laws, grapple with their sometimes disturbingly amoral nature, and discuss what the Laws mean in everyday life (often revealing their own experiences – good and bad – when they’ve either observed or transgressed them).

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