"9 Steps to Build a Life of Meaning" is a combination of motivational piece and autobiography. The title certainly suggests the motivational side. It echoes something like "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People," although the one book in that category Walker commends is "The Black Swan."

Walker gets to the heart of a certain matter, perhaps even challenging the premise of "7 Habits." People can be very effective at what they do and have little sense of meaning in their life.

He is fairly self-effacing. For example, while in college he had a crush on a girl in his band class, but did not act on that. Fortunately for him, she took the first step by asking him to a Sadie Hawkins dance. They eventually married.

Still, his story begins by describing his early life in business. He was successful at commercial real estate and fundraising for various charities. As a result, he was often invited to high level meetings of movers and shakers in business, especially young men with successful startups—Silicon Valley and otherwise.

At one such conference in Miami, he was one of only two men in attendance who did not take a woman from an escort service. The next morning all the men except for the two who spent the night alone found that their cellphones and/or laptops were either missing or tampered with. It turned out those escorts were working for some Russians.

Even though he escaped embarrassment and personal compromise, he began wondering what was really important. Here were all these smart, rich young men who did something stupid and wasteful. He was fortunate not to have fallen for the tricks himself. He began to inquire about what makes life really worth living. It is more than sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll.

While he uses both positive and negative illustrations, there is one recurring figure throughout the book: Alexander the Great.

He notes that when Alexander’s father Philip was killed, Alexander claimed his father’s throne. To emphasize his legitimacy for his Greek and Macedonian subjects, he claimed that Philip was not his real father, but that Zeus was. In other words, like many ancient rulers, he claimed descent from a god. Obviously, he was proud and used to getting his own way.

That was not the end of the story, however. Josephus tells us that when Alexander was fighting in Syria and Phoenicia, he went to Jerusalem to conquer the Jews. Because of the prophecy in Daniel 8, 10, and 11, the high priest Jaddua met Alexander’s army with the gates of Jerusalem open. Instead of entering and subduing the city, Alexander bowed before Jaddua. He said he had had a dream of a man dressed in such garb (the unique high priest’s clothing) who said he represented the one true God who would give Alexander victory over his enemies, including the Persians.

Here was even someone like Alexander claiming divinity finding someone or something greater than himself. That becomes Walker’s model. Find something greater than yourself. Find a true enemy to overcome and find something greater to love.

There are many more examples. Much of the book is presented as aphorisms or proverbs: “When men lack purpose, they resort to ignoble aims.” “Leadership is not the art of telling you what you want to hear, but what you need to hear.” “Money buys happiness. But never joy.” “The purpose of light is to invade the darkness. The purpose of good is to invade the evil.” “Responsibility means risk. Risk you might lose.” At times this book really does sound like a contemporary version of Ben Franklin. And that can be helpful to many people.

I was at first thrown by the opening sequence of a party of "successful" people the author attended. It was filled with all things immoral and empty. Then I encountered a belief that hatred has its time and place. This is not your normal self-help book. It challenges the reader in its boldness and honesty.
Rick Walker chooses to leave the party and fly back home to his wife and children. He chooses to act in a way that upholds what is important to him. I recommend this book. It makes you think about what is important to you, and I like that it depicts a masculinity that is upright and honorable.

I really liked this book. I really liked the personal experiences mixed in with the steps.. The practical steps along with the authors personal experiences made it beliveable and brought credibility to the book. I thought the addition of the artwork was a unique thing. The Next Moves section in the chapters offers thought provoking questions on your next moves.

Walker is described as a philosopher and writes like one. This is not a book where you will find clearly presented action steps. Walker shares the lessons he has learned through experiences and he tells many of those experiences. His steps are presented within the context of story. He has a very imaginative way of communicating, one that I found required concentration to understand what he was saying. He often writes with incomplete sentences and frequently uses flowery language. Here is an example: “What could I learn by blending a drop of courage into a cup of competence?” (3395/4348)

This is a book for readers who would appreciate a round about way of communicating truth. While he draws from a variety of religious disciplines, there is an emphasis on Jesus Christ near the end. There are definitely life lessons to learn by reading this book. It just may take a little more contemplation and thought than one would normally think required in a book of this type.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

The focus on meaning over happiness is psychologically astute happiness is fleeting, but meaning provides sustainable motivation through difficult times. The endorsements from figures like Dr. Ben Carson and Navy SEAL Dan Crenshaw suggest credibility within traditionally masculine spheres.