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William Damon

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The Path to Purpose: How Young People Find Their Calling in Life Paperback – April 7, 2009

by William Damon (Author)

4.3 128 ratings

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America’s leading expert on adolescence offers his prescription for instilling a sense of purpose and fulfillment in today’s youth.

Drawing on the revelatory results of a landmark study, William Damon—one of the country's leading writers on the lives of young people, whose book Greater Expectations won the Parents' Choice Award—brilliantly investigates the most pressing issue in the lives of youth today: why so many young people are "failing to launch"—living at home longer, lacking career motivation, struggling to make a timely transition into adulthood, and not yet finding a life pursuit that inspires them.

His groundbreaking study shows that about one-fifth of youth today are thriving—highly engaged in activities they love and developing a clear sense of what they want to do with their lives—but approximately one-fourth are still rudderless, at serious risk of never fulfilling their potential. The largest portion are teetering on the brink, in need of guidance to help them move forward: some are "dabblers" who pursue strings of disconnected interests with no real commitment; others, "dreamers" who have no realistic plans or understanding of what success will require.

What makes the difference? Damon shows that the key ingredient for the highly engaged is that they have developed a clear sense of purpose in their lives that motivates them and gives them direction. Based on in-depth interviews, he takes readers inside the minds of the disengaged and drifting kids and exposes their confusion and anxiety about what they should do with their lives. He then offers compelling portraits of the young people who are thriving and identifies the nine key factors that have made the difference for them, presenting simple but powerful methods that parents and all adults can and must employ in order to cultivate that energized sense of purpose in young people that will launch them on the path to a deeply satisfying and productive life.

Review

The Path to Purpose is a beautiful and important book. William Damon takes on one of the most hidden and yet important elements of child development today and provides warm insight and clear advice." -- Michael Gurian, author of The Wonder of Boys and The Wonder of Girls

"If you are a parent, a teacher, or a policy maker, this is the book to read. Damon socks the crucial problem of our youth -- purposelessness -- right in the jaw and offers us a way out." -- Martin Seligman, author of Authentic Happiness

"As a leading authority on meaning and moral development, Damon writes a timely and important book on one of our most pressing social issues -- how to instill a sense of purpose in the lives of children. Damon gives us a fresh and useful way to look at both education and character development." -- Dr. Mary Pipher, author of Reviving Ophelia and Writing to Change the Worlds

About the Author

William Damon, a developmental psychologist, is professor of education and chairman of the Department of Education at Brown University. He is the author of The Moral Child.

Print length

240 pages
Language

English
Publication date

April 7, 2009
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.8 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

1416537244
ISBN-13

978-1416537243
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Free Press; Reprint edition (April 7, 2009)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1416537244
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1416537243
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.1 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #84,311 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #149 in Parenting Teenagers (Books)
- #2,499 in Schools & Teaching (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.3 128 ratings

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4.3 out of 5

128 global ratings

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chrispark

An Antidote for the Race to Nowhere

Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2011

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As a college admissions consultant, I begin a relationship with a teen client by probing that young person's interests, passions and long-term goals. I am often struck by an absence of purpose, even from students with remarkable talent. So Professor Damon's book truly resonated for me. I once thought that my role with teens was mostly about the "HOW" (i.e., getting into college); Damon's book helped me realize that, as an adult who cares about young people, it is my responsibility to help my adolescents with the "WHY."

I call this book an antidote for the Race to Nowhere, based on a recent film about the pressure placed on high school students today to get into college, without any real vision of where they are really going in life or why it matters.

This book will change you, whether you are a parent, teacher, tutor, coach, extended family member, shrink, or policymaker. Its call to action is to help our society's young people shift in a positive direction along the continuum of categories from disengaged to purposeful.

Damon does not just curse the darkness; he lights a bright candle by making positive suggestions that parents (and other adults) can put into practice on a daily basis with the teens with whom they interact.

Rather than stealing Damon's thunder, I suggest reading this book and internalizing his suggestions. The first is: "Listen for the spark, then fan the flame" whenever the opportunity arises....

12 people found this helpful

Helpful

The Things We Don't Teach

Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2009

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There are many things we teach in school. We teach students about the world at large, how to remember useful facts, how to think. But one thing we often miss is the importance of teaching kids to find and cultivate a purpose. Helping students to find their goal in life, their reason for doing the things they do, and their "end in itself" is just as important. The main thesis of this well-written and -argued book is that kids who have a purpose generally tend to do a whole lot better in a whole lot of areas than kids who are "drifters" or "dabblers," who may have short-term goals but lack a long-term unifying goal.

The Path to Purpose is based on some studies that Damon and his students have done about kids and purposes. What they found is alarming: "In our interviews and surveys, only about one in five young people in the 12-22-year age range express a clear vision of where they want to go,what they want to accomplish in life, and why." (kindle location 234) Some are "drifters" who don't have much direction to their lives, while most are "dabblers" who have toyed around with a few ideas as to what they want to do and why, but haven't found any clear direction yet.

The first part of the book focuses on the problem and why it matters. Why a purpose? Because cultivating a sense of purpose gives kids (and adults) a reason to try hard, a passion about which to learn, and a reason to endure both good and bad. Just like working a meaningful job versus a meaningless one, students tend to excel when they are working towards a goal and feel that goal to have meaning.

The second part will be the most interest to those already convinced that a problem exists. Here, Damon gives advice on how parents and teachers (with focus on parents) can help kids find purpose. Some answers are obvious: be there for your kids, listen when they talk, expose them to ideas, support them even when you may not agree with their chosen purpose (within reason, of course). Other answers are less obvious: tell your kids why you do what you do, expose them to outside influences, talk ideas through with them Socratically rather than solving problems for them, let them know the importance of persistence.

The one thing I will deduct a star for, however, is that Damon doesn't focus nearly as much as he should have on the data showing that having a purpose tends to lead to success in most areas (academic, social, etc.) He tells us this repeatedly and there is no reason to doubt him, but I was curious as to what the data show: how much more successful are those with purpose versus those without?

Also, I really wish Damon would have addressed a question many of us (especially teachers) have about how we can talk about purpose in a way value-neutral enough to be appropriate and not preachy. How can we guide kids towards purposeful lives without imposing certain values on them (when a child, say, chooses a purpose we may feel is maladaptive)? This would have been a helpful discussion to have and his book suffers for lack of it.

But all in all, this is a very important book to read for teachers and parents. As a teacher, I would like its message to inform my future teaching, and to take time whenever possible to allow kids to reflect on what their purpose is or what they'd like it to be.

28 people found this helpful

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Brady

Powerful Ideas on Building Moral Character

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2016

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I have been trying to understand how to instill moral principles in the minds and hearts of students. This is hard to do in a secular world. Dr. Damon of Stanford has wonderful insights on how to help youth develop moral character. It never occurred to me that there is a strong correlation between sense of purpose and moral character. I'm excited to apply these principles in my future career and other practical daily situations.

Helpful

austen

I start reading it, but did not find it ...

Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2015

Verified Purchase

I start reading it, but did not find it too interesting. The author should get to the point without too many stories that did not do much to inspire. Should be written in a way that would pique the interest of a young person. I bought it for my son, but now think that he will not go pass the first 2 pages.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Linda Liguore

Insightful

Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2019

Verified Purchase

Great and to the point, this author does a wonderful job of outlining the current situation and the path toward raising purpose-filled children. Well done. I was inspired myself to get involved in my community again.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Karl W. Reid

An informative and practical guide to help young people develop a sense of Purpose

Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2014

Verified Purchase

This is a well-written, very informative book based on empirical studies of young people who demonstrate wide ranges of a sense of purpose. It succinctly and compellingly answers the question, "Why Purpose?" then details case studies of children-the 20% of the sample-who've identified their distinct contribution to the world, how they discovered it, and who who helped them along the way.

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Take children out of the bottom of Maslow’s pyramid

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2018

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Damon provides both the rationale and practical tips on why and how to take children out of lives stuck at the bottom of Maslow’s pyramid -which should be a human right...

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Arrived as described A+

Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2015

Verified Purchase

Arrived as described A+

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

P.M. - satisfied customer

Strongly recommend

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 26, 2020

Verified Purchase

Very good book. Promote a purpose in any education system should be seen as a priority. Strongly recommend this book.

jonathan barker

Helpful Overview of Huge Societal Problem

Reviewed in Canada on January 27, 2014

Verified Purchase

I'm a twenty-something looking to find my way after University and I've been seeking out books on the subject. No book has explained the threat that lack of direction can have on a persons life better than this. There are lots of reasons why this is happening, and the book goes through all of them one by one. This is highly recommended for policy makers, school counselors, teachers and parents that are looking to help their kids find meaning.

There is a helpful survey at the end that brings a lot of your life into focus.

To be honest, I still haven't found my purpose, but I feel more comfortable in my skin with knowing its a global problem and that I'm not alone.

Five Stars.

4 people found this helpful

Madhavi Parker

An easy, logical and well researched book on how to ...

Reviewed in Australia on May 19, 2015

Verified Purchase

An easy, logical and well researched book on how to help young people live to their potential and find their purpose. Highly recommended

SO

Seems ok

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 16, 2019

Verified Purchase

Haven’t finished reading it yet.

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