Shattered by Titus Hauer Review

Shattered is a book about one thing and that is breaking your illusions (to unlock your mind). Shattered is a book of maxims which usually I don’t like but made an exception for because of the author’s Titus Hauer’s work. Titus runs a blog over at Breaking Your Illusions that I would highly suggest checking out. At the blog he covers neuroscience, masculine development, and overall self-improvement. A great resource for anything in those areas. Alright now back to Shattered.

Shattered is broken down into six chapters that each contain maxims related to the chapter title. The chapters are truths about life, destroying illusions & false beliefs, winning, emotions, relationships, and then a chapter for miscellaneous maxims that did not fit anywhere else. Each chapter starts off with a brief introduction by Titus about what the chapter will be covering and the maxims themselves. These aren’t trite overused maxims like you would find in some quote book or in some “motivational” B.S. these are tried and true maxims Titus came to through his own study and experience.

Here I’m going to give you a brief overview of the book’s main chapters and my favorite maxims from each. I wish I could include more but I don’t want to get everything away. If anything you read rings true with you then I highly recommend you pick up Shattered you won’t be disappointed. Alright now on to the book.

Truths About Life

“Freedom is something you have to fight for, rather than something you’re given. Being free means being prepared to carry that burden.”

Titus highlights the fact that freedom of any kind is not something that you just happen to stumble onto or that is given to you by another person. Freedom is something you have to fight for day in and day out and create for yourself. Just like becoming champion of a tournament or chiseling a great work of art. It’s done through blood and sweat. Freedom is not different.

“When you find a way of life that you can truly be proud of, you’ll be forced to fight battles you like it or not. Because people will get angry at you for living the life, you worked so very hard for. It’s envy, and most people can’t stand it to see other people being proud, happy and fulfilled.”

The majority are slaves and don’t want others to break out of slavery. This ties together with the maxim above it. Freedom is something that is fought for and then once you have it you have to fight to keep it. The miserable want others to be miserable. Think of poor losers wanting to take the riches money and so on and so forth. People will take what you have even if they can’t get it themselves just so you won’t have it.

“The difference between the novice and the master is that the master has failed more times than the novice has even tried.”

This is something that few understand. Those that are masters got there through perseverance and failing again and again and again until they finally made it. When you have failed more than the average person has tried you’ll begin your journey to mastery.

Destroying Illusions & False Beliefs

“You need to accept that you’re not the best and have the will to strive to be better than anyone you face.”

There will be others better than you and it is your duty to become better than them. Nothing animates me more then knowing my opponent is better than me. Than knowing that unless I grow in strength and power I will be crushed. Use your betters to propel you to heights above and beyond them. And then find those even higher and repeat the cycle.

“The last thing anyone in this society wants for you is to be free. They need men to be beasts of burden, useful utilities because a free man is a danger to all their carefully laid out plans. He must be caged, re-educated, or eliminated. For if one is free, he will inspire many to strive for their own liberation.”

The system does not want you to be free, people do not want you to be free. Titus repeats this theme throughout the book driving this important point home. Society is not for you, to be free you have to overcome resistance and fight for it.

Warfare, Winning, & Leadership

“The world runs on power. Everything is determined by the superior power. When you are weak, you are destined to lose.”

Titus understands the brutal truth of the world. That power is what matters and those without power can only watch as those with power do what they will with them. Love cannot save you but power can. Understanding this is a large step in becoming wise and being able to survive in this world.

“The weak don’t get to decide anything, not even how they die.”

This ties into the maxim above. Without power you can do and be nothing. As Titus says you can’t even decide how you die if you don’t have power. Don’t think because we don’t live in the jungle that humans or human nature has changed. Humans are just as brutal and ruthless as ever they just go about it in different ways.

Men, Women, & Relationships

“Women despise being in charge and will never forgive a man’s inability to lead.”

Titus understands how men and women were meant to interact. A “man” who makes a woman lead will be hated and eventually abandoned by that woman. Women were not meant to led and deep down they all know this. Women will always respond to a man who takes charge and is a leader. As such a man knows how to survive.

“If you’re still on your journey and developing skills, talents, and knowledge, do not have serious relationships with women. Women will make you complacent and diminish your creativity, of course, there are exceptions but the chances of finding that exception are slim, and it’s best to stay realistic about this whole endeavor.”

Staying single is going to be the right choice for the majority of men. Most women simply suck a man’s life and resources making him less than he could be. Interactions with women should be short and have purpose (i.e. sex) then left alone. Bringing a woman into your life is pretty much a guarantee your development is going to suffer. Best to use them for what you need and then leave them alone until your ready to bring the right one in.

Shattered

Shattered contains many more maxims of wisdom and I would encourage everyone to pick up a copy. The maxims are short and to the point, exactly how I like them. And like I said there’s no fluffy motivation bullshit in them either. All killer no filler.

So if you want to break any illusions that you may be harboring about how the world works then go and get a copy of Shattered today.

 

Charles Sledge