37 pages • 1 hour read
Arnold SchwarzeneggerBe Useful: Seven Tools for Life
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2023A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapter 6-Final Thank YouChapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 6 Summary: “Shut Your Mouth, Open Your Mind”
In Chapter 6, Arnold Schwarzenegger encourages the reader to maintain an open mind and a willingness to learn. His early mentor, Fredi Gerstl, instilled in him the importance of training one’s mind and having a hunger for knowledge. Schwarzenegger discusses the American education system that largely pushes young adults into four-year universities, even if they lack a true purpose and vision for their education and might be better suited to pursue another path. He argues against this system by asserting that the best classroom is real-world experience. He points out a lack of vocational skills in both the United States and Europe and says it is important for young people to value manual labor and trades. He points to a fixation on status as a reason why young people today are less inclined to forgo university education in favor of learning a trade.
To illustrate an alternative career path, he tells the story of Mary Shenouda, a private chef for top athletes, actors, entrepreneurs, and executives. She is entirely self-taught; she became an expert cook to deal with her own food intolerances before developing her talent into a business. As a high school dropout, Mary is an example of what is possible even without a college degree if one has the dedication to pursue learning of their own volition.
Next, he discusses the power of curiosity and its ability to attract the right people and opportunities into his life. He mentions some of the famous figures he has met and developed relationships with, and he credits his curiosity with allowing him to develop these relationships, saying that “[i]mportant, powerful people are drawn to those who ask good questions and listen well” (205). People are eager to talk to those who are humble and patient enough to learn. He underscores the importance of being a good listener and keeping an open mind.
Schwarzenegger remarks that he has been a sponge for knowledge his whole life and tells the reader to use their relationships with others by truly soaking up what they tell them. He reflects on his time as governor and how much he learned about the state of California and the world, remarking that he was lucky to have some of the smartest minds explain concepts and issues to him. One of the reasons people feel stuck in life, he suggests, is that they do not understand the world they live in. As a result, they merely accept their lot in life without realizing they can change it.
Further, it is vital to put knowledge gained to good use, which he describes as “a formula for anyone to create real, meaningful change in the world” (226). Being open to new knowledge and acting on it in the real world can also allow one’s vision to evolve.
Chapter 7 Summary: “Break Your Mirrors”
In Chapter 7, Schwarzenegger first considers the idea of a self-made man. In calling him a self-made man, people are referring to his work ethic, discipline, and motivation. However, Schwarzenegger rejects the notion that he is a self-made man, noting all the people who guided him on his path and America itself for making him the person he is. He remarks that everyone gets to where they are in life thanks to the contributions (both positive and negative) of other people. Additionally, because of the guidance provided by others, everyone has a responsibility to give back and help others in some way—to be useful. Schwarzenegger asserts that accepting one’s responsibility to give back improves both their life and the lives of others.
Schwarzenegger gives a warning about self-help books like his own—they “can become permission slips for selfishness” and justify a self-serving attitude (232). However, he asserts that self-improvement is not a zero-sum game and that everyone can improve, grow, and get richer together. This happens when people focus on the ways they can help others achieve their own visions. He gives examples of his bodybuilding career and how he and his training partners pushed each other and shared training tips. Likewise, actors help each other in their scenes to create more memorable performances. Some data indicate how giving back to others, in addition to benefiting the recipients, increases the giver’s happiness and even has an addictive quality.
Schwarzenegger touches on ways to give back, even if one’s time, resources, or emotional energy are limited. He suggests simply keeping one’s eyes and ears open and being attuned to the world, lending a hand in whatever small way one can. He says that finding opportunities to help need not be complicated; rather, it is a matter of being tuned in to one’s environment. He tells the reader that they have more to offer the world than they may think. Another suggestion is to take inventory of what others have done for them throughout their life and do those same actions for others in need. Building on Chapter 6’s lessons about being a sponge and soaking up new information about the world, he states that curiosity is a tool for being open to the ways one could help solve the world’s problems.
Through his personal examples of giving back, Schwarzenegger highlights the “addictive” nature of helping others. Scientists have dubbed this the “helper’s high”; charitable works release oxytocin and endorphins and produce the neurochemical vasopressin, which is associated with love. The same is true even when simply thinking about or remembering these charitable acts.
Schwarzenegger reflects on his personal journey and how his goals turned from being “me-focused” to “we-focused.” He cites a piece of advice from his father-in-law, Sargent Shriver: break one’s mirrors. In a speech to a graduating class at Yale University, Shriver said, “In our society that is so self-absorbed, begin to look less at yourself and more at each other. Learn more about the face of your neighbor and less about your own” (253). Building on this, Schwarzenegger adds that caring for others is a source of greater contentment and makes the pursuit of one’s own ambitions more meaningful. As an example, Schwarzenegger discusses how his personal projects allow him to keep earning money to support “we-focused” missions that he cares about.
He asks the reader to give back and be as useful as they can be. He believes that when giving back becomes a part of everyone’s vision, everyone benefits and can succeed. His closing message is that readers can help themselves by helping others, thereby becoming the most useful versions of themselves.
Final Thank You Summary
Schwarzenegger concludes the book with a final thank you, inspired by Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations, the first book of which is a list of people who helped or taught Aurelius throughout his life. Schwarzenegger takes inspiration here and, in lieu of a traditional acknowledgments section, ends his book by listing all the people who guided him over the course of his life and what they taught or provided him. His final piece of advice is for the reader to generate their own list, both to stay humble and refer to when they need help or inspiration. He goes on to list mentors, friends, family, and collaborators who supported him on his journey through all the stages of his life.
Chapter 6-Final Thank You Analysis
Arnold Schwarzenegger concludes Be Useful by promoting a “we-focused” rather than “me-focused” perspective on self-improvement. All of the book’s advice about vision and the value of hard work leads to Schwarzenegger’s ultimate goal of helping others and being of service to the world. Much of this section focuses on personal relationships; thus, the theme of Committing to Others and Giving Back takes prominence here.
Chapter 6 emphasizes the importance of learning and soaking up new information. Even with his vast life experience, Schwarzenegger still defers to the wisdom of others and stresses the importance of being a good listener and remaining a sponge for new information. He encourages the reader to do the same. He makes a point to explore the many ways it is possible to be a lifelong learner, asserting that college is only one avenue (and perhaps not the right avenue for everyone). Returning to The Importance of Having a Clear Vision, he notes that many young people are being pushed into universities without a clear sense of why they are going and what they hope to accomplish there. It is important to note that he is not disparaging college education but rather highlighting a troubling trend that young people are pursuing status rather than their visions and true interests, which is antithetical to living a meaningful life. He asserts the importance of showing young people what else is possible for their lives through real-world learning opportunities, using anecdotes to underline alternative paths for learning and nurturing curiosity. The simple act of connecting with other people can expand one’s vision or forge relationships that directly help one fulfill that vision. However, Schwarzenegger also stresses that being humble and patient enough to learn not only attracts new opportunities into a person’s life but also opens them up to ways they can serve others by making them more aware of what is happening in the world. This also involves having the patience to understand complicated issues and taking the initiative to learn about them on one’s own.
As Schwarzenegger mentions earlier in Be Useful, mental health conditions and a general sense of hopelessness are widespread in current society. This has given rise to a wealth of self-improvement books and other content that attempts to remedy the lack of control people feel over their situations. However, in Chapter 7, Schwarzenegger largely shifts the focus off the “self.” He acknowledges a tendency in self-help advice to encourage a self-serving attitude, intervening in the genre and establishing credibility by situating his ideas in opposition to these. Schwarzenegger stresses that self-improvement is a game everyone can win if everyone makes giving back a core part of their personal missions. For him, giving back gives meaning and purpose to ambition. As noted in the Introduction, everyone has a different definition of what it means to be useful, but if everyone makes a point to help others to the best of their ability, everyone can improve and live a purposeful life.
The central message of Be Useful culminates in the final chapter, “Break Your Mirrors,” which is fully dedicated to the importance of serving others. Schwarzenegger highlights that giving back is not only helpful to the community and the world but has tangible benefits to the giver as well. He supports this idea not only through anecdotes but also scientific ideas, building logos in this section. He includes a call to action, encouraging readers to give back however they can, even with minimal resources. He also presents concrete examples for doing so, including large charitable works and small gestures. In this way, he ensures everyone can become involved in spreading good in their community, no matter what they have to offer.
Finally, Schwarzenegger pushes back against the idea of a self-made man, arguing that everyone has help on their journeys to success, and thus, no one is truly self-made. Here, he uses a more literal definition of “self-made” than how it is popularly used, and he acknowledges this. Still, Schwarzenegger subverts this archetype, which is common in both American cultural mythology and the self-help genre. Rather than overemphasize individualism, Schwarzenegger asserts that it is important to acknowledge gratitude toward the people who came before and to pay it forward by elevating those who come after. Thus, he ends his book on a note of gratitude and humility, paying thanks and homage to people in both his professional and personal life who were instrumental in his success. He borrows this tactic from Marcus Aurelius, giving his book an air of authority by situating it in conversation with the Roman emperor and philosopher. His final challenge to the reader is to generate their own list of people who helped or guided them, both as a reminder to stay humble and to reference when in need of inspiration.
