Pandemonium ensues as Julian, a successful and sharply dressed trial lawyer, collapses in the middle of a packed courtroom in the dramatic opening sequence of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari. John, the narrator of this book and Julian’s colleague of 17 years, explains that Julian “had it all” back then; from his “regal corner office” (2) to his legendary “extra-curricular activities” (3). Julian was at the top of his career when he asked John, a new Harvard graduate with the drive to succeed, to assist him with a “sensational murder case […] the Mother of All Murder Trials” (3). This was a pivotal experience for John, a “rare opportunity to watch a master in action” (3), that resulted in John staying on as an associate at the firm and the formation of a friendship between this junior lawyer and Julian, a demanding and ruthless colleague who, “beneath his crusty exterior was a person who clearly cared about people” (3). 

John senses “impending doom” for Julian, who has a bottomless “hunger for more” (4) and purchases a shiny red Ferrari with his massive income. Both lawyers became “slaves to the clock” and are “blinded by an illusory version of success” (5) that caused problems for Julian; he became unhealthy, exhausted, and lost his touch in the courtroom.