Friday, September 16, 2016

books: So Good They Can't Ignore You; Deep Work

So Good They Can't Ignore You
So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love - Cal Newport

Cal Newport - Author of Deep Work, Study Hacks Blog

Cal Newport has Ph.D from MIT (in Computer Science)
He observed what works and what does not,
and that it is opposite of conventional belief.

Cal Newport: "So Good They Can't Ignore You" | Talks at Google - YouTube

Cal suggests that Steve Job's advice and common "wisdom":
"follow your passion" taken literally is wrong.
Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address - YouTube

Most people have hard time selecting one ultimate goal that is consistent with conditions.
Steve Jobs was right in his view that "you can not connect dot's looking forward it all makes sense when looking back". It is like "waterfall planning" vs "agile" development: you have minimum information at be begging, so start and do steps the best you can and keep adjusting.

In his next book, "Deep Work" Cal does acknowledge huge value of selecting #1 goal and focusing solely on that, passionately. A good advice supported by research:
"passionately do the work that you are doing"

Specifics of the work you do for living does not matter too much, it is general lifestyle traits like "autonomy", "impact", "power and respect", "being creative" that are represented in tasks and career.

The same view is also presented in this classic bestseller book by a career expert:
What Color Is Your Parachute? 2014: Richard Nelson Bolles

Cal's suggestion is: "we should look Steve Jobs and do what he did, not what he said"
Result is a "snowball effect": early success => interest, motivation = deliberate practice, skill acquisition => separation from other people with less skills => identity, intrinsic motivation = more deliberate practice => separate more, stronger passion

deliberate: start from vision based on somebody already successful, and work backwards how to get there; use "career capital" to evolve to the next level



So Good They Can't Ignore You by Cal Newport | PhilosophersNotes - OPTIMIZE with Brian 
Johnson
sub-title: “Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love.

No comments: