How Will You Measure Your Life? - Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karen Dillon (?????)

Book 67

This book is a gold mine. Literally every page of every chapter teaches you something. I can’t even begin to list my takeaways from this masterpiece. After recently reading a blog post and listening to a few podcasts by Prof. Clay Christensen, I had to pick up his two most well known books to learn more. I’m so glad I did. 

Takeaways:

“The only metrics that will truly matter to my life are the individuals whom I have been able to help, one by one, to become better people.”

One can be extremely happy and unhappy in their job at the same time. Incentives like money, bonuses, perks, etc. do not drive employee satisfaction; they merely steer you away from dissatisfaction. Motivation, leadership, challenges, meaning, purpose; these are what really drive employee satisfaction. If you do not compensate an employee well, s/he will be dissatisfied. but simply throwing money at them isn’t an incentive to bring out their best and most inspired work. That requires a completely different approach. 

Create a strategy for your life. Then actually implement that strategy. Unless you dedicate your resources to a strategy, it is meaningless. So dedicate your time, your energy, your commitment and your other resources towards your life’s strategy. 

There are two kinds of strategy. A deliberate strategy is one you plan out in advance, for which you design a roadmap and schedule the allocation of resources. An emergent strategy is one you adapt to when an opportunity knocks. You need to have a strong balance of both in order to succeed in business and in life. 

Create a culture for your team, your organization, your company and even your family. What are your core beliefs and fundamental principles that you would like everyone to adhere to? Define them clearly and implement them rigorously. Make them a part of your daily lives so that over time they are taken over by instinct and become second nature to everyone. 

“It’s easier to hold to your principles 100% of the time than it is to hold to them 98% of the time.”

A very highly recommended book and one that will force you to reevaluate multiple aspects of your personal and professional life and equip you with the tools to choose the right yardstick and measure the metrics that truly matter. 

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