The Preparation
By Doug Casey, Matt Smith, and Maxim Smith
298 pages
Published August 2025
One of the most interesting ways to deal with the failure of the American education system arrived in my inbox last month. It was an early edition of The Preparation, the product of three generations of thinkers: legendary investor and bestselling author Doug Casey (who I mentioned above), entrepreneur Matt Smith, and 20‑year‑old “beta tester” Maxim Smith. It distills their hard‑won wisdom into a 16‑cycle program.
It’s not really a book. I would describe it as a treatise and a curriculum and a personal story wrapped into 298 pages of wisdom, common sense, and advice that anyone interested in an educational option for young men and women would be smart to read.
The first thing that struck me about The Preparation was the one similarity it has with US college education today: It is structured as a four-year program.
That’s it. The rest is different. And thought-provoking.
It’s an invitation to an amazing adventure that takes the student all over the country and even abroad, where they can have fun developing and even mastering essential mental and physical skills that will prepare them for whatever their future holds.
As one critic put it, “The Preparation is a field manual for young men (and the parents who love them) who know the old college formula is broken and want a roadmap that actually forges competence, confidence, and real‑world value.”
Here is some of what you will discover in The Preparation:
* The 16 themed cycles – Medic, Cowboy, Pilot, Fighter, Hacker, Maker, and more – each built around a hands‑on “Anchor Course” that forces you to learn by doing, not by cramming.
* An earn‑while‑you‑learn design that shows you exactly how to pay your way through each cycle and graduate debt‑free.
* The cost: roughly one year of tuition – yet it delivers four years of marketable skills, global travel, and a network of do‑ers, not talkers.
* A foundational philosophy rooted in Stoicism and Renaissance thinking, so you don’t just master tasks – you master yourself.
* A bullet‑proof curriculum: step‑by‑step schedules, book lists, online courses, and locations for every skill, so you’re never guessing what to do next.
* Battle‑tested results – Maxim Smith used the program to rack up EMT shifts on Oregon wildfires, fly solo over the Rockies, ranch in Uruguay, and sail the Strait of Magellan before he turned 20.
But wait… there’s more!
The education provided by The Preparation is a smart financial move. College now averages $140,000+ and often delivers little more than ideology, debt, and obsolete credentials. The Preparation compresses that money and time into a crucible that turns raw potential into a modern‑day Renaissance Man – one who can protect, build, heal, sell, and lead in a world being up‑ended by AI and economic turmoil.
Check out this interview by Glenn Beck with Matt and Maxim Smith about this alternative to a college education.
The College Scam
By Charlie Kirk
288 pages
Published July 2022
One of the things that made Charlie Kirk loved and hated in the US college environment was his claim that most colleges and college education is a scam.
In this video, he presents his argument in simple economic terms.
And in this one, he gives an example of how he thinks colleges should work.
Kirk goes into much more detail in his book, The College Scam, putting the industry on trial with a 10-count indictment of why academia has lost all credibility. He asks: Why do we send our kids to college? Why do we spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a useless degree? Why do we let our children get indoctrinated by those who fundamentally disagree with America’s greatness? In The College Scam, he builds his case against the four-year degree, answering all of these questions and more.
