By Caprice Hogg
In this book, the author states that we all have a certain amount of regret, and advises us how to avoid these regrets and live with more motivation, confidence, and aspiration. “Our official policy on regret in these pages is to accept its inevitability but reduce its frequency. Regret is the depressing counterweight to finding fulfillment in a complex world. Our primary theme is achieving a life of fulfillment—what I call an earned life.”
While the advice is very good, I found it difficult to relate to the examples the author used. Goldsmith is a life coach to major CEOs and large management teams. He used many of these influential people as examples to show how they made difficult decisions. Since many of these stories were from extremely wealthy people in elite positions, the decisions they were making were not what many of us encounter in our daily lives. For most people, this is not the realm where we reside and our daily decisions regarding our jobs, finances, and family life are greatly different from these stories. It does, however, give us a look into that world and Goldsmith states that it is helpful to look at your heroes to see how their choices allowed them to succeed. I feel that there is a large discrepancy from that type of lifestyle to perhaps that of a single mom or a teacher who has a fulfilling job but is making a low income.
Still, no matter what our life story is, Goldsmith’s advice is valuable. His recommendations are applicable to each one of us. “We are living an earned life when the choices, risks, and effort we make in each moment align with an overarching purpose in our lives, regardless of the eventual outcome.” At the end of each chapter, there are exercises that help the reader ponder their own life and examine where changes can be made. Some exercises struck a chord with me, and I probed a few deep thoughts that I uncovered as I went through the exercises.
I do not feel that the advice in this book is anything revolutionary, but it is valuable reading it in a new context. “The secret to living an earned life: It is lived at the extremes. You are maximizing what you need to do, minimizing what you deem unnecessary.” This helps us to examine our life and hopefully discontinue being on autopilot with our decisions. He discusses inertia and how sometimes the act of doing nothing at all squashes our successes. Who doesn’t need those types of reminders once in a while? Goldsmith offers step-by-step guidance to follow our dreams by simply reminding us that any step towards our goals is a step in the right direction. Action and avoiding inertia are key.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.