This is a short book at 168 pages consisting of ~70 vignettes - each opening with a quote followed by 1-2 page essay. The book is centered on the daily struggle of how "to stay, not be dissuaded, not lose focus, not be overwhelmed, not succumb to exhaustion or despair." Essays cover a wide range of topics including Fear, Failure, Blame, Laziness, Grief, Death, Choice. While it is "Short" - I did not find it to be a quick read or simple. It took me several days to finish as I found the writing to be DEEP and highly introspective. This book is not what I expected. It certainly is not a 7-step how-to guide for getting rich.
I would find myself dismissing some of the recommendations out-of-hand one minute...mumbling to myself that this is fantasy land...impractical...not grounded in the real world...more meditation (which I believe in, but haven't accomplished)...zen...where's-the-sutra-ohm-type stuff. And then after putting the book down...I found myself saying...she might have a point. And then later upon deeper reflection asking myself...how do I possibly move from my current place - from here to there.
This book is certainly not for everyone. Yet, for +/-$8.00, I received considerable value from it. I'm confident that 10 or 15 years ago, I would have found this book to be full of zen-mumbo-jumbo. Today, many passages in this book stop me in my tracks and I continue to reflect on them. I believe that this introspective activity is a mark of a great self-help book that has made a difference. However, you must be in the time of your life to be able to appreciate it. I'm "almost" there - and therein lies the reason for my 4 out of 5 Amazon rating.
This book is kindle/e-reader friendly. Save a tree and buy it on Kindle. (I also need to buy a hard copy...put it next to the bed stand and let the wisdom drip and seep in slowly.)
Here's several of my favorite passages:
* Lost: When we are overwhelmed and confused...we reach for old maps, the routine responses, what worked in the past...To navigate life today, we need new maps. Our old ones confuse us unendingly. These new maps are waiting for us. They'll appear as soon as we quiet down and, with other lost companions, relax into the unfamiliarity of this new place, senses open, curious rather than afraid. The maps we need are in us, but not in only one of us. If we read the currents and signs together, we'll find our way through."
* Everything Changes: Good times don't last forever. And neither do the bad ones. Whatever is happening now, good or bad, is giving birth to the next state, which will be its opposite.
* Destination: We could lighten up - we could go for direction, not destination. We could invite in what the world seems to want for us, what it's offering us right here, right now.
* Discipline: "We've been conditioned to follow our passion, to do what we love, to connect our work with our life's purpose so that we'll be highly motivated. But life doesn't work that way, and work doesn't get done this way. After the first rush of romance in discovering meaningful work, there's the actual work to be done. The work will, at times, be boring, repetitive, uninteresting, senseless...If our life lacks discipline, we wend up always looking for a substitute. We seek new work, new causes, new relationships, something or somebody that will fire up our passion and make us feeling motivated and alive again. Propelled by passion rather than by discipline, we end spent, exhausted, unhappy. And we lose the capacity to persevere
* Faith: The journey of perseverance begins with fire, with passion for our cause, with hope to change things. As the journey continues, passion dissolves into weariness. The obstacles are larger than we expected. The insanity is more than we can bear. But we still travel on, one foot in front of the other. And then there comes a point when we realize that we will not see our work bear fruit before we die. And that's OK...Perhaps holding true to the vision and not losing our way is enough for one lifetime.
