
Man in the Arena
Never Say Quit
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed

Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $24.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
David Michael Semas
About this listen
Throughout his half-century career, self-made businessman David Semas has drawn inspiration from President Theodore Roosevelt’s famous speech on “The Man in the Arena” in 1910, which was about daring to risk everything rather than playing it safe. In the real world, roughly a third of businesses will implode within two years, and half won’t make it past five years. But statistics can’t tell the full story. This memoir provides a detailed road map of trials, challenges, and pitfalls while building a business and offers everyone from budding entrepreneurs to seasoned executives a case history of achievement and failure as well as risk and reward.
The life lessons and inspirational quotes throughout the book deliver powerful and enlightening messages about nurturing hopes and dreams, dealing with mistakes, facing problems head-on, and living life to the fullest. Semas’ story is one of both triumph and despair, and it is sure to help inspire tomorrow’s success stories. David writes to edify his listeners, who, he hopes, can glean a few useful lessons from his lifetime of adventures and challenges, which has fueled his quest to live in the arena, where life plays out on a grand scale.
©2022 David Michael Semas (P)2022 David Michael SemaListeners also enjoyed...
-
On Writing
- A Memoir of the Craft
- By: Stephen King
- Narrated by: Stephen King, Joe Hill, Owen King
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“Long live the King” hailed Entertainment Weekly upon publication of Stephen King’s On Writing. Part memoir, part master class by one of the bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and practical view of the writer’s craft, comprising the basic tools of the trade every writer must have. King’s advice is grounded in his vivid memories from childhood through his emergence as a writer, from his struggling early career to his widely reported, near-fatal accident in 1999—and how the inextricable link between writing and living spurred his recovery.
-
-
Who needs a print edition when King reads King?
- By Cather on 11-18-05
By: Stephen King
-
Born Standing Up
- A Comic's Life
- By: Steve Martin
- Narrated by: Steve Martin
- Length: 4 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the mid-70s, Steve Martin exploded onto the comedy scene. By 1978 he was the biggest concert draw in the history of stand-up. In 1981 he quit forever. Born Standing Up is, in his own words, the story of "why I did stand-up and why I walked away".
-
-
Fantastic
- By Andrew on 11-30-07
By: Steve Martin
-
Elon Musk
- By: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb, Walter Isaacson
- Length: 20 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Elon Musk was a kid in South Africa, he was regularly beaten by bullies. One day a group pushed him down some concrete steps and kicked him until his face was a swollen ball of flesh. He was in the hospital for a week. But the physical scars were minor compared to the emotional ones inflicted by his father, an engineer, rogue, and charismatic fantasist.
-
-
megalomania on display
- By JP on 09-12-23
By: Walter Isaacson
-
Something Like an Autobiography
- By: Akira Kurosawa
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The distinguished filmmaker chronicles his life, from his birth in 1910 to the worldwide success in 1950 of his film Rashomon, and provides a provocative account of the Japanese film industry.
-
-
The early life of Kurosawa
- By A. Parham on 06-26-23
By: Akira Kurosawa
-
$100M Leads
- How to Get Strangers to Want to Buy Your Stuff
- By: Alex Hormozi
- Narrated by: Alex Hormozi
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook contains the playbooks that took me from sleeping on my gym floor to owning a portfolio of companies that generate $200,000,000 per year in under a decade. Wanna know the biggest difference between those two time periods? How many leads I was getting.
-
-
Better than $100M Offers, But Read Both in Order
- By Jonathan and Hannah on 09-13-23
By: Alex Hormozi
-
Steve Jobs
- By: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Dylan Baker
- Length: 25 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on more than 40 interviews with Jobs conducted over two years—as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues—Walter Isaacson has written a riveting story of the roller-coaster life and searingly intense personality of a creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.
-
-
Good Biography, Fine narrator
- By Chris on 10-27-11
By: Walter Isaacson
-
On Writing
- A Memoir of the Craft
- By: Stephen King
- Narrated by: Stephen King, Joe Hill, Owen King
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“Long live the King” hailed Entertainment Weekly upon publication of Stephen King’s On Writing. Part memoir, part master class by one of the bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and practical view of the writer’s craft, comprising the basic tools of the trade every writer must have. King’s advice is grounded in his vivid memories from childhood through his emergence as a writer, from his struggling early career to his widely reported, near-fatal accident in 1999—and how the inextricable link between writing and living spurred his recovery.
-
-
Who needs a print edition when King reads King?
- By Cather on 11-18-05
By: Stephen King
-
Born Standing Up
- A Comic's Life
- By: Steve Martin
- Narrated by: Steve Martin
- Length: 4 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the mid-70s, Steve Martin exploded onto the comedy scene. By 1978 he was the biggest concert draw in the history of stand-up. In 1981 he quit forever. Born Standing Up is, in his own words, the story of "why I did stand-up and why I walked away".
-
-
Fantastic
- By Andrew on 11-30-07
By: Steve Martin
-
Elon Musk
- By: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb, Walter Isaacson
- Length: 20 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Elon Musk was a kid in South Africa, he was regularly beaten by bullies. One day a group pushed him down some concrete steps and kicked him until his face was a swollen ball of flesh. He was in the hospital for a week. But the physical scars were minor compared to the emotional ones inflicted by his father, an engineer, rogue, and charismatic fantasist.
-
-
megalomania on display
- By JP on 09-12-23
By: Walter Isaacson
-
Something Like an Autobiography
- By: Akira Kurosawa
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The distinguished filmmaker chronicles his life, from his birth in 1910 to the worldwide success in 1950 of his film Rashomon, and provides a provocative account of the Japanese film industry.
-
-
The early life of Kurosawa
- By A. Parham on 06-26-23
By: Akira Kurosawa
-
$100M Leads
- How to Get Strangers to Want to Buy Your Stuff
- By: Alex Hormozi
- Narrated by: Alex Hormozi
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook contains the playbooks that took me from sleeping on my gym floor to owning a portfolio of companies that generate $200,000,000 per year in under a decade. Wanna know the biggest difference between those two time periods? How many leads I was getting.
-
-
Better than $100M Offers, But Read Both in Order
- By Jonathan and Hannah on 09-13-23
By: Alex Hormozi
-
Steve Jobs
- By: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Dylan Baker
- Length: 25 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on more than 40 interviews with Jobs conducted over two years—as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues—Walter Isaacson has written a riveting story of the roller-coaster life and searingly intense personality of a creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.
-
-
Good Biography, Fine narrator
- By Chris on 10-27-11
By: Walter Isaacson
-
Shoe Dog
- A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
- By: Phil Knight
- Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Phil Knight - introduction
- Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company's early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world's most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.
-
-
Just read it. (or listen, whatever)
- By Dan D on 07-07-16
By: Phil Knight
-
Setting the Table
- The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business
- By: Danny Meyer
- Narrated by: Danny Meyer
- Length: 5 hrs and 33 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Danny Meyer started Union Square Cafe when he was 27, with a good idea and scant experience. He is now the CEO of one of the world's most dynamic restaurant organizations, one that includes 11 unique dining establishments, each at the top of its game. How did he do it? How has he consistently beaten the odds in one of the toughest trades around?
-
-
ABRIDGED VERSION!?
- By Gregg Strader on 02-19-18
By: Danny Meyer
-
Theodore Roosevelt (An Autobiography)
- AOG Annotated Edition
- By: Theodore Roosevelt
- Narrated by: C.J. McAllister
- Length: 23 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The popularity of Teddy Roosevelt has only increased in the more than a century that passed since his term as president of the United States. This incredible first person account of his life and philosophies provides a remarkably revealing look at what made this timeless individual tick - and perhaps, into what made his impact on modern culture so profound and enduring.
-
-
An amazing man gives his version of his life
- By MolllyT on 07-30-20
-
Principles
- Life and Work
- By: Ray Dalio
- Narrated by: Ray Dalio, Jeremy Bobb
- Length: 16 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ray Dalio, one of the world's most successful investors and entrepreneurs, shares the unconventional principles that he's developed, refined, and used over the past 40 years to create unique results in both life and business - and which any person or organization can adopt to help achieve their goals.
-
-
Idea-meritocracy/Principles Reference
- By P Eberle on 06-30-18
By: Ray Dalio
-
Alexander Hamilton
- By: Ron Chernow
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 35 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Historians have long told the story of America’s birth as the triumph of Jefferson’s democratic ideals over the aristocratic intentions of Hamilton. Chernow presents an entirely different man, whose legendary ambitions were motivated not merely by self-interest but by passionate patriotism and a stubborn will to build the foundations of American prosperity and power.
-
-
An Outstanding & Riveting Book!
- By Kevin on 03-04-05
By: Ron Chernow
-
The Everything Store
- Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon
- By: Brad Stone
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Amazon.com started off delivering books through the mail. But its visionary founder, Jeff Bezos, wasn't content with being a bookseller. He wanted Amazon to become the everything store, offering limitless selection and seductive convenience at disruptively low prices. To do so, he developed a corporate culture of relentless ambition and secrecy that's never been cracked. Until now.
-
-
Did you know how bad it is to work for Amazon?
- By Shamu from New York on 12-07-13
By: Brad Stone
-
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
- Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers
- By: Ben Horowitz
- Narrated by: Kevin Kenerly
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ben Horowitz offers essential advice on building and running a startup - practical wisdom for managing the toughest problems business school doesn’t cover, based on his popular ben’s blog. While many people talk about how great it is to start a business, very few are honest about how difficult it is to run one. The Hard Thing About Hard Things is invaluable for veteran entrepreneurs as well as those aspiring to their own new ventures, drawing from Horowitz’s personal and often humbling experiences.
-
-
For large company managers, not startups
- By Thomas on 03-18-14
By: Ben Horowitz
-
Citizenship in a Republic
- "Man in the Arena" Address Given at Sorbonne in Paris, France, on April 23, 1910
- By: Theodore Roosevelt
- Narrated by: Douglas Harvey
- Length: 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“Citizenship in a Republic” is the title of a speech given by Theodore Roosevelt at the Sorbonne in Paris, France, on April 23, 1910. In the speech Roosevelt discusses the attributes required of its citizens and leaders to sustain a thriving national character, not least of which are a high moral character and energetic engagement.
-
-
A Timeless speech on the requirements to be a useful citizen.
- By Jack T. on 09-10-24
-
The Man in the Arena
- From Fighting ISIS to Fighting for My Freedom
- By: Eddie Gallagher, Andrea Gallagher
- Narrated by: Eddie Gallagher, Andrea Gallagher
- Length: 15 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On September 11, 2018, Navy SEAL Chief Edward Gallagher - a highly-decorated combat veteran with nine deployments to war zones in Africa, Afghanistan, and Iraq - was arrested for war crimes at the TBI medical clinic where he was receiving treatment. His incarceration was the culmination of a year-long whisper campaign started by a group of disgruntled members of his SEAL platoon. While heavily covered in the media, the full story of how a war hero was railroaded and nearly sent to prison for life for crimes he didn't commit has never been told.
-
-
Outstanding!
- By Sean Davis on 07-20-21
By: Eddie Gallagher, and others
-
Andrew Carnegie
- By: David Nasaw
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 32 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Scottish-born son of a failed weaver and a mother who supported the family by binding shoes, Andrew Carnegie was the embodiment of the American dream. In his rise from a job as a bobbin boy in a cotton factory to being the richest man in the world, he was single-minded, relentless and a major player in some of the most violent and notorious labor strikes of the time. The prototype of today's billionaire, he was a visionary in the way he earned his money and in the way he gave it away.
-
-
Andrew Carnegie
- By Peggie on 10-01-07
By: David Nasaw
-
The Love Stories of the Bible Speak
- Biblical Lessons on Romance, Friendship, and Faith
- By: Shannon Bream
- Narrated by: Shannon Bream
- Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Bible reveals not just butterflies and broken hearts. In Scripture, we see God’s beautiful design for the partnership of marriage. We witness friendships that cross all boundaries. We watch as families navigate the many seasons of life. Our guiding example for them all is the deepest, most abiding, foundational love ever known: God’s unconditional love for His people. In The Love Stories of the Bible Speak, Shannon Bream draws lessons from the good, the bad, and the ugly of Biblical romances, friendships, and families.
-
-
Uplifting and motivational book
- By Joseph Sullivan on 03-31-23
By: Shannon Bream
-
The Bond King
- How One Man Made a Market, Built an Empire, and Lost It All
- By: Mary Childs
- Narrated by: Mary Childs
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Before Bill Gross was known among investors as the Bond King, he was a gambler. In 1966, a fresh college grad, he went to Vegas armed with his net worth ($200) and a knack for counting cards. Ten thousand dollars and countless casino bans later, he was hooked, so he enrolled in business school. The Bond King is the story of how that whiz kid made American finance his casino.
-
-
Being a good writer does not make you a good narrator
- By John Mallory on 05-14-22
By: Mary Childs
Integrity
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
P.S. Unless an author is a professional voice actor, it’s probably best to just hire one instead of performing the narration. Ugh.
Too long
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.