I read The Alchemist a couple of years ago and I was quite impressed. So much that I forgot almost everything about this book. Now, I decided to read it again in order to remember why I liked it the first time and to discover more considering a spiritual book more than anything.
This novel is about changing your personal life from what you think it would like into the life you have always wanted and dreamed of. After a number of pages, I already felt a friend of the main character, Santiago and next to him, I went on a self-discovery and exploration journey.
The main lesson I learned and it can be applied to both personal and professional life is the fact that the thought of not being successful is the biggest obstacle to happiness, “there is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.” I learned after reading this book that we take into account the opinion of other people and this is the main reason why we are not who we want to be. I personally must admit that the fear of not looking stupid and not being judged is the motive for all my excuses and procrastination.
The beginning of the action is taken place in Andalusia, Spanish where the main character, Santiago, a young shepherd is dreaming of a treasure in Egypt. He sold the flock of sheep he was taking care of against his father’s wishes and started his journey to Africa. After a short time, he met a man who pretended to be the King of Salem, Melchizedek who told him to follow the ones in order to find the treasure. He received from him 2 stones to consult him whenever he needs help interpreting the omens. Being a naive young boy, he is being robbed but that is the moment when he made a mature decision in order to pursue his Personal Legend: he chose to see himself as a wanderer, not a victim. Short enough he met a crystal merchant and decided to work for him as long as he earned enough money to buy some sheep. He worked for a month but decided that it was not what he wanted to do with his life and he did not want to become like his boss that gave up his dreams for security reasons. He became more self-confident and instead of „No, I cannot do that” he adopted a proactive attitude regarding himself and the world. That was the reason why he joined a caravan that went across the desert with its final destination: Egypt. During this journey, he met an Englishman who told Santiago about the Alchemist, an elusive man who can turn any kind of metal into gold. Lately, he will find out that the gold was a metaphor for somebody’s inner self and accomplishment. This man split the metal into two parts: the liquid is the “Elixir of Life” and the solid is the “Philosopher’s Stone”. This transformation makes sure that it will be rid of every other property except its own individual one and what remained was the Soul of the world, the language with which all things communicated. When Santiago reached the oasis, he learned how to be patient and persistent and how to live in the present rather than the future or the past. He also found what is the meaning of love by falling for Fatima but he has to make a hard decision in order to accomplish his mission and purpose. After that moment, he had visions again and confessed them to a stranger that turned out to be the Alchemist who told him that his dreams are prophetic. During this conversation, the two get arrested but the Alchemist told the captors that Santiago can change into the wind. And he did that even if he was stunned himself. They left on separate paths and he finally reached Egypt but there met another man who told him that he had also a dream about a treasure situated in a church in Spain. That was the moment when Santiago realized that he had the treasure in his hometown, a spiritual one. In the end, his dreams have come true and are far better than he had ever hoped.
What I really enjoy about reading all kinds of books is the fact that I can easily make connections between them. To be aware of distinct types of writings and perceptions is fascinating to me, personally. I recently read another book for personal development: The 7 Habits of Effective People by Stephen R. Covey. I found both books very deep and full of precious life lessons but what I enjoyed most in The Alchemist was Santiago’s journey and the language that put me next to him in this spiritual road. I see this book as a beginning for the 7 Habits. The Alchemist talks about the paradigm shift and The 7 Habits tells you how to do it and why. What I find the main difference is that The Alchemist is a cautionary tale but the other one is full of structured information and specific stories. I know that this book is a philosophic one but I would like to have at the end of the book some sort of daily-based applications on how can we implement what we learned from it just like the 7 Habits has at the end of each chapter. Overall, both books are for personal development and it was a real pleasure reading something so inspirational.
What is the most valuable thing that I learned from The Alchemist is that sometimes we put the wrong questions and we are disappointed when we do not receive the answer. But the good part is that when you finally decide to put the right and the most meaningful questions for yourself, the Universe will do its best to make whatever you want happen. I learned how to be more passionate and how to keep faith in myself during the hard times because I often choose to be the victim in a situation, not the wanderer. What I also learned is that if you do not care about others’ opinions and you stay focused on your road, you will certainly succeed. You have to cut all the distractions that might appear during your journey even if is love because love will come back to you when you are ready. And when is that? When you accomplish your destiny. I also find out how important is to do things in order to fail and learn something because it accelerates the process of self-development and self-education. But if I have to choose one thing to start changing right now at myself it will be the importance of being present. I am planning to read more and do more in order to fill happy about being in this specific time of the present and not feel guilty anymore about the past and also not try to complicate the future. I trust more after reading this book that I have a certain mission in this life and I will just go with the flow and be surprised.
It changed my business mindset too because the most important thing that I learned is that we can not satisfy everyone. Each of us is unique and that makes my business unique also. What I also decided regarding the professional side is that I will not fear anymore because there is no regret bigger than the one that came from fear of doing something. I will do things no matter what others are saying because life is beyond words, actions.
From my point of view, this book is an inspiration. It is a must for everyone who is looking for the best questions and inner self. It is a philosophical book that not only answers some of your questions but it also challenges your mind to add some more to your list and try to figure it out. It is a book for believers or it turns you into one. It is a provocation in itself.
To sum up, it is a reminder that we, as human beings, have the capability to change our mindsets and beliefs and improve ourselves because all of us have a destiny. It is an engineer full of oil ready to be useful for any „car” that wants to go on a journey of self-growth. After this book, I am at one specific point in my life: reinventing myself. I feel that I am on the right road again and I love this feeling. I am very motivated to keep it this way.