A review by thestorydoer
So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love by Cal Newport
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
I am not particularly well-versed in self help books. However, I can say very confidently this isnt your average self help book. This is for a couple reasons.
1. It emphasises the complexity and long-term nature of its findings, therefore it is not a 10 step guide to be happy forever. It is an in-depth exploration into the mindsets which give people job satisfaction (or disatisfaction). Giving simple solutions to complex problems is generally why I am ethically opposed to self help books, and this books skates on the brink of that but it never fully crosses over.
2. The author is intimidatingly intelligent. Having conducted a two year leave from his PHD Academic work in computer science, it was good to see a book such as this written so intelligently. It provides multiple demonstrations of the rules the book provides and even puts many of them into action.
3. It doesn't sugarcoat how difficult it is to do what the book is suggesting, and it doesn't use that fact as a motivational factor. The author uses the word "mental strain" and spans the effort required into of incremental improvement.
Now I do have a few issues though.
1. It says "don't follow your passion" as one of the rules but I believe this is incorrect. Many of the examples noted are passionate about their work. Therefore, instead of reading "don't follow your passion", I prefer to read the rule as "follow your passion intelligently" and the book suddenly makes a lot more sense.
2. It defines itself as provocative for a reason, but I do find the term "rule" problematic. I believe that the statements itself are provocative enough that they could've just been called parts. Rules implies this mandated lifestyle change but I could most certainly implement most of what this book said on a far smaller level.
3. The author can also be quite callous in their delivery of examples. For e.g., calling someone whose business failed during the 2008 recession, awaiting government assistance a "loser". The point remained valid, but it felt rather cruel at times.
4. I also wish there was more self-critique of the model it proposes, a little more akin to a science journal. I wish it delved slightly deeper into "exceptions" and shortcomings which I felt it didn't explore enough for something as intelligently written as this.
5. It's also very western centric, assuming you have the capacity in your life to improve a level of expertise to the point of mastery. Therefore, recommending this book to people struggling to make ends meet may come off as ignorant rather than helpful.
Overall, while it has many faults and focuses a little too much on being provocative at times, it's an intelligently written book with valuable advice for middle class workers. 3.5/5
1. It emphasises the complexity and long-term nature of its findings, therefore it is not a 10 step guide to be happy forever. It is an in-depth exploration into the mindsets which give people job satisfaction (or disatisfaction). Giving simple solutions to complex problems is generally why I am ethically opposed to self help books, and this books skates on the brink of that but it never fully crosses over.
2. The author is intimidatingly intelligent. Having conducted a two year leave from his PHD Academic work in computer science, it was good to see a book such as this written so intelligently. It provides multiple demonstrations of the rules the book provides and even puts many of them into action.
3. It doesn't sugarcoat how difficult it is to do what the book is suggesting, and it doesn't use that fact as a motivational factor. The author uses the word "mental strain" and spans the effort required into of incremental improvement.
Now I do have a few issues though.
1. It says "don't follow your passion" as one of the rules but I believe this is incorrect. Many of the examples noted are passionate about their work. Therefore, instead of reading "don't follow your passion", I prefer to read the rule as "follow your passion intelligently" and the book suddenly makes a lot more sense.
2. It defines itself as provocative for a reason, but I do find the term "rule" problematic. I believe that the statements itself are provocative enough that they could've just been called parts. Rules implies this mandated lifestyle change but I could most certainly implement most of what this book said on a far smaller level.
3. The author can also be quite callous in their delivery of examples. For e.g., calling someone whose business failed during the 2008 recession, awaiting government assistance a "loser". The point remained valid, but it felt rather cruel at times.
4. I also wish there was more self-critique of the model it proposes, a little more akin to a science journal. I wish it delved slightly deeper into "exceptions" and shortcomings which I felt it didn't explore enough for something as intelligently written as this.
5. It's also very western centric, assuming you have the capacity in your life to improve a level of expertise to the point of mastery. Therefore, recommending this book to people struggling to make ends meet may come off as ignorant rather than helpful.
Overall, while it has many faults and focuses a little too much on being provocative at times, it's an intelligently written book with valuable advice for middle class workers. 3.5/5