How Will You Measure Your Life? (book review)
How Will You Measure Your Life? is about what investors call “out-of-sample tests”. If an idea works in more than one area then it probably will work again.
Wisdom is an example. Proverbs 16:32, He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city becomes, it’s not if you win or lose but how you play the game.
Timeless.
Clayton’s choice combines business ideas with personal goals in two areas: career and relationships.
Measuring your career. There are legible aspects to a career: money, titles, promotions, and career paths.
Clayton cautions not to over-index on the legible. Careers, he writes, offer a mix of “hygiene” and “motivation” factors. Money, health insurance, and perks are hygiene factors. These factors have capped advantages and diminishing returns.
Non-legible, like motivation, interesting problems, and growth have an upside. This is the good stuff. Just because it’s hard to count doesn’t mean it’s not of value. In fact, it’s really valuable!
And because it’s hard to count and valuable means people underrate it.
But there are legible things to count. How do you spend your time? Your money? Do these reflect your priorities, hopes, and dreams?
Through legible and not, the aim is intentionality. Are you intentional about the important?
Who is this choice for?
“Parents have their own job to be done, and it can overshadow the desire to help their children develop processes. They have a job of wanting to feel like a good parent: see all the opportunities I’m providing for my child. Or parents, often with their heart in the right place, project their own hopes and dreams onto their children.”
We don’t have to teach our kids to tie their shoes. With technology, fashion, and other people it doesn’t have to happen. But it does.
Now apply that to everything.
Helicopter or consultant parent provides a good contrast. It feels good to be a helicopter parent. “See all the opportunies…”. But helicopter parents are selfish parents. Their choices are first for them, not their kids.
Instead, Christensen uses a short-term-pain long-term-gain model. Live verbs first. Experiences are expensive tuition but essential in the school of life. It’s the right choice for them.
…
How Will You Measure Your Life? is a difficult book to report because the lessons are personal. For every, I never thought about it that way situation, someone else would have solved it years ago.
I needed Christensen to write this book.
It’s written by a man of faith. A Harvard professor. He’s a best-selling author. He developed a famous business theory. Anyone that knew him brings up how much they miss him, years later.
I needed his permission.
Permission to think about life, not hacks or hustle. For the important things, not the urgent things. You read it as a reminder of why we live and an admission that we need help to live better.
It matters that it’s Clayton freakin’ Christensen. He lived well and we aim to.