Lucio Buffalmano's Blog, page 11

Rollo Tomassi: Red Pill Guru, Or Misogynistic Bias?

Rollo Tomassi is a manosphere figure commenting on intersexual dynamics and male rights issues.

We critically examine Rollo Tomassi’s approach, his teachings, and his worthiness as a role model for men.

Poor Thinking Leads To Poor Analyses

Why Tomassi’s analyses are lacking, in one picture:

It’s the “crap-in, crap-out” model.

Tomassi falls short at all links of the epistemology chain:

Poor data, with poor selection and representativenessPoor analysis, with poor critica...

Why I Stopped Reading “Popular Books”

We have more free full-book reviews here than anyone else on the web.

After that much reading, I came to a few conclusions.

One of them is that I decided to stop reading mainstream books.

And here is why:

1. Mainstream books are to sell, not to inform & perform

And paradoxically:

The more a book sells, the more its priority is to sell.

Exceptions always apply, of course.
But in my experience, best-selling is a better indicator of:

Author popularityMarketing effor...

The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: Summary & Review

The Almanack of Naval Ravikant compiles many of Naval Ravikant’s insights on how to build wealth, happiness, and a good life by focusing on the few essential mindsets, skills, and habits that make the biggest difference.

Exec Summary Wealth is a skillHappiness is a skillFind the 1% that makes all the difference, and go all-inFULL SUMMARY 

About the Author: 
Naval Ravikant is a popular figure in Silicon Valley and startup culture of the early 2000s.
He founded several s...

Principles Life & Work: Machiavelli’s Version

Ray Dalio wrote Principles.

It’s a fantastic book.

But it’s a bit aspirational sometimes.
And you should temper it with human nature and foundational power dynamics.

So to avoid that you may fall for naive self-help pitfalls, we over-correct here with more cynical principles.

These principles will not sound as good. But they probably do work better

Machiavellian Principles

In red are the original principles.
In bold, the Machiavellian version.

Be a hyper-realistBe a hyp...

Art of Strategy: Summary & Review

The Art of Strategy (2008), introduces game theory and its applications to thinking, strategies, effective life and business choices, as well as social-level dilemmas.
The book updates and expands the authors’ previous book Thinking Strategically.

Exec Summary Focusing on competition only is a major strategic (and mindset) mistakeCooperation is foundational to life and business successGood strategy is to maximize the scope for cooperation, while minimizing the scope for cheating ...

The Fund: Did Ray Dalio Just Gaslight Us All?

In The Fund (2023) investigative journalist Rob Copeland pulls back the embellished PR curtain of Bridgewater Associates, unveiling a despotic leader and a cult-like culture of gaslighting, fear, and power plays.

Exec Summary CEOs and founders prefer loyalists. If your goal is to advance, manage your boss relationship with proven power principles.
The Fund shows: anyone who threatened Dalio’s leadership, status and power paid the priceDon’t believe the hype. There are no ego-free ...

48 Laws of Power VS Power University: Which One Should You Pick?

The 48 Laws of Power is a popular book for those who end up on this website.

And for good reasons.
It’s the most popular book on power dynamics, social strategies, and Machiavellianism.

So some people may wonder:

Should I get The 48 Laws of Power , or should I get Power University?

We will answer this difficult question.

INTRO

The 48 Laws of Power is a popular book around here.

It’s one of our endorsed resources.
And many people who end up here have already read The 48 ...

Insightful Manipulation Quotes

Are you ready to discover the secrets of persuasion and tap into the power of influence?

Well, then…

Wake up brother because you’ll need a lot more than a bunch of random manipulation quotes.

HOWEVER…

Our analysis of those quotes provides plenty of guidance and insights.

So here’s the first insightful manipulation quote you straight from our “Start Here” page:

Always be suspicious of those who virtue-signal on avoiding manipulation

The full quote runs:

There’s only...

Content-Based Networking by James Carbary: Summary & Review

Content-Based Networking is a four-part book that makes the case that networking events are prone to randomness and content-based networking allows you to take a more focused approach to connecting with anyone, at any time, and from anywhere in the world.

Exec SummaryCreate content to connect with others: create a platform and invite the people you want to meet onto it for interviews.Follow up after the content collaboration: to deepen the relationship after the interview.Stick w...

Decoding The Gurus Review

In the Decoding the Gurus podcast hosts Matthew Browne and Chris Kavanagh discuss and analyze various gurus’ psychology, and (dubious) claims and theories.

About the Author
Matthew Browne is an Australian psychologist and researcher. He has authored over 40 academic articles and is Professor of Psychology at Central Queensland University.
Chris Kavanagh is an Irish anthropologist. He obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Oxford and at the time of writing, he is a researcher and Associate Pro...