Reading
Community Resources
Books:
While individual achievement is desirable, a purpose of the Society is to work together. This necessitates certain common study and practice. You need to read the Prosperity Society Manifesto before you move forward with membership inquiries.
I have personally read most of these books and only endorse ones that I think get to the point. I will not list repetitive or redundant books or ones that I think have no use.
Members are not required to read any of these, I just thought they were interesting books to read. I do expect initiates to do some very basic study of a useful skill (like self defense, business, or law). We can discuss a plan that is catered to your individual interests and strengths in private.
The Prosperity Society Manifesto: Outlines our groups practices and philosophy. I can loan you a copy if you don't want to buy it.
Social Philosophy: In Practice
The Way of the SEAL: Think Like an Elite Warrior to Lead and Succeed: This book will introduce you to habits and culture found in Hraftzerism. Some of this overlaps with your one year Hraftzerism study.
Social Philosophy: Law and Justice
Capital In the 21st Century: by Thomas Pikettyis (Professor (directeur d'études) at the École des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS), professor at the Paris School of Economics and Centennial professor at the London School of Economics new International Inequalities Institute). A sweeping account of rising inequality… United States and Europe is heading to the middle ages where a an inherited wealthy elite rule over impoverished peasants. Also has important implications for those who wish to build up wealth.
The Concept of Law: by H.L.A. Hart, 1961: Still used in college classrooms. Gives a great discussion overall of the history of law as well as legal concepts and the philosophy behind them.
Social Philosophy: Race and Society
A Troublesome Inheritance: Genes, Race, and Human History: Nicholas Wade: A good overview of race and genetics.
Civilization: The West and the Rest: Niall Ferguson: Attempts to document cultural traits that give Western society an advantage. I write about this as well in my own book, but I have slightly different views. Still many good points are made in the book. Definitely relevant to what traits we should promote in our own Hraftzer culture or what kind of philanthropic values to promote.
Coming Apart: The State of White America: Charles Murray (B.A. History at Harvard, and PhD in Political Science at MIT, he works at the conservative policy think tank "The American Enterprise Institute" and is listed as an extremist by the Southern Poverty Law Center): This is like a part two of the original ground breaking book "Losing Ground" which dealt with how the welfare system meant to help minorities was actually failing them (also a great read). While Losing Ground is overly technical with statistics, Coming Apart is a much easier read for the lay man. In Coming Apart, Murray focuses on white people to show that this is not a problem relegated only to minorities. Murray points out that cultural and economic life has remained relatively stable for upper class American, but working class America has rapidly deteriorated since the 1950s. This gives a good over view of social and cultural decay in America and how we can restore a healthy culture.
The Bell Curve: Charles Murray; Richard Hernstein (held the Edger Pierce Chair in Psychology at Harvard University): The Bell Curve establishes that I.Q. is real and can be measured to a large degree (I.Q. representing a general intelligence called g). Intelligence is not knowledge, but the ability to learn quickly and to solve problems through reasoning. Higher intelligence increases performance even in regards to menial jobs (like sweeping a floor or being a military grunt). Differences in wages or social class among different races are largely attributed to difference in average intelligence rather than inherent anti-black racism (or white privilege), as I.Q. scores are a good predictor of life outcomes, job performance, academic ability etc. Non Jewish whites males are actually highly under represented in colleges and high wage jobs when adjusted for I.Q. (this is due to affirmative action and other policies against them). The book is a good primer on the nature of intelligence.
The Neuroscience of Intelligence: I did not read this book (I already agree with the conclusion anyway) but it was recommended elsewhere and looks like a good book. It further examines I.Q. and genetic heredity.
Jewish Eugenics: John Glad: An interesting book about Jewish culture's relation to Eugenics. Hraftzer culture has taken many of the same positive attributes.
Business Videos
Introduction to Finance Theory MIT Lecture: You can fast forward to about 12 mins into the video where it gets interesting.
Business Books
A Primer On Organizational Behavior: Introduction to both sides of this important discipline: micro (motivation, perception, communication, group dynamics, leadership) and macro (organizational structure, culture, environment, and change). It will familiarize students with all the terms and concepts they need to understand OB and its application in modern organizations.
Form Your Own Limited Liability Company: Anthony Mancuso: Basics about LLCs. Society Members can form an LLC real estate investment company which is owned by multiple partners and buys rental property or form a small business with limited liability. Expect to fall down some along the way and learn from mistakes. Just do your homework and proceed cautiously to avoid any highly expensive mistakes. Consulting with other members will be an asset in this case.
Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business: Fred S. Steingold: I would read the small business start up kit first, then proceed to this book, and then perhaps the one on LLCs (as most likely you will want to form an LLC in any case).
Rich Dad, Poor Dad: by Robert Kiyosaki: Robert's books get repetitive, but he has published a few really good ones that cover key concepts. This is one of them. This book teaches basic economics. Acquiring capital (assets) is more desirable than working for a living for a number of reasons. This will prime those from lower class backgrounds into a more "elite" mentality in regards to income earning.
Small Business Start Up Kit: Peri Pakroo J.D.: Although the "small business for dummies" book is fairly good, this one seemed a little better and a little more formal and practical. This will cover the basic legal documents you need to register a small business, but most likely you will still want to sit down with a lawyer for an hour or two before finalizing any kind of major project (like an LLC partnership with other members).
The Entrepreneur's Guide To Law And Strategy: by Constance E. Bagley (Senior Research Fellow at Yale School of Management, formerly Professor in the Practice of Law and Management and a Senior Research Scholar at Yale Law School and Associate Professor at Harvard Business School, a Senior Lecturer in Law and Management at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, and a corporate securities partner at Bingham McCutchen LLP.) Standard reading at America's elite business schools. Examines the stages of starting a business, while highlighting legal and strategic decisions.
Why We Want You To Be Rich: Donald Trump; Robert Kiyosaki: I initially thought this was going to be another garbage kiyosaki book. After writing the insightful best seller "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" Kiyosaki decided he could get rich writing books about getting rich, so just started turning out one book after another that repeats what the previous book said (but in a less effective way). This book actually had some interesting real estate tips and other information.
Negotiation
Law of divided cloth negotiation video:
Psychology
The Like Switch: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Influencing, Attracting and Winning People Over: By John R. “Jack” Schafer, PhD, (psychologist, professor, intelligence consultant, and former FBI Special Agent). -And- Marvin Karlins (PhD in Psychology from Princeton University and is currently Professor of Management at the University of South Florida’s College of Business Administration): I have read many books on influencing people, reading people, or using psychology to sell a product (including yourself). Most of those books have little useful information. This is the one book on the subject that I thought was accurate and practical. Social skills are probably the most important trait to have in an organization like Prosperity Society or in business or life in general, yet at the same time, social skills are often over looked in most books or school programs.
Thinking Fast and Slow: By Daniel Kahneman (Psychologist and Economist awarded the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences): A very thick book and really fun read all the way through. Explores different aspects of the irrationality of human behavior, which has many practical implications when dealing with people. However, this book is useful on its philosophical and entertainment value alone. I have read a lot of psychology books, most are ho-hum but this is probably my favorite.
Real Estate
Build A Rental Property Empire: Mark Ferguson: I have not read this yet, since I read a lot of real estate books as a teenager and understand the basics. But this looked to be one of the best books to introduce the subject. I can't find any good introductory books on the subject right now, but one should also research how to do "rent to own" properties as there are many significant advantages to doing rent to own deals instead of just plain renting them.
Commercial Real Estate Analysis and Investments: Learn to analyze commercial real estate from an investment perspective. Textbook used by students of elite colleges such as MIT or Wharton.
Trump Strategies For Real Estate: George H. Ross (Trump partner): Some good pointers on real estate investment (such as, how to increase property's perceived value).
Strategic Books
Strategy is primarily based on "Game Theory" which is the science of strategic interaction. Game theory bases one's strategy on anticipating the reaction of others (many theories seem good on paper but in reality don't work well because people are irrational or their behavior was not as expected).
Game theory is applied to human relationships (such as dating) and also applies to business decisions. It is based on opponents' decisions and their expectations about other people's behavior.
Co-opetition: The Harvard Business School's Adam M. Brandenburger and the Yale School of Management's Barry J. Nalebuff, scholars and consultants, have developed a five-part business strategy that shows how to do more than play the game of business. It shows how you can change the game of business for maximum benefit.
The Art of Strategy: Game theory means rigorous strategic thinking. It's the art of anticipating your opponent's next moves, knowing full well that your rival is trying to do the same thing to you. Though parts of game theory involve simple common sense, much is counter-intuitive, and it can only be mastered by developing a new way of seeing the world.
Thinking Strategically: Thinking Strategically is a crash course in outmaneuvering any rival. This entertaining guide builds on scores of case studies taken from business, sports, the movies, politics, and gambling. It outlines the basics of good strategy making and then shows how you can apply them in any area of your life.
Movies:
Idiocracy: This movie is fiction, but it represents the general concern and social theory of Hraftzerism pretty well. It deals with American culture and its lack of concern with competence, combined with dysgenic pressures that create a future dystopia where the nation is too dumb to solve even simple problems.
Instructional Videos