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

"So Good They Can't Ignore You" is based off a Steve Martin line. The book has four big points, illustrated by about four chapters each. Each chapter is basically a long blog post (warning: this book is a giant blog post, which makes it super readable in a single setting).

1. People who are happy and successful do not actually follow their passion.
2. People who are happy focus on their work first, and success follows.
3. Focusing on work consists of deliberate practice and building skills.
4. Missions arise naturally from finding out what work you're good at, and doing that work.

One of the big strategies that Cal kind of implies is that taking options that maximize your potential options available is a good place to find happiness. If you learn things that are useful in many areas, or skills that are in high demand in many areas, you will be able to choose. Furthermore, building skills means you have more ability to tell other people what you want and because they need you, you can control outcomes.

I skipped a lot of the story-telling in the books, because I have personal examples from my circles and they are available upon request.