How Will You Measure Your Life Summary & Review

Author: Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth

Synopsis
How Will You Measure Your Life (2012) helps you better direct your attention on what you value most, with stories and expert advice on how to make meaningful changes. After reading, you will be able to make sure you spend your life living happy and fulfilled, not just making money and having a high-powered career. The author also shared the rules for personal and professional success. It’s not about money; it’s about the life you want to live.
how will you measure your life summary
Source: amazon.com

Detailed Summary of How You Will Measure Your Life

Do you want to know how you are going to measure your life? Do you want to understand the secrets of those who have figured it out? Are you looking for a way to achieve real happiness in your life? That’s what the How Will You Measure Your Life summary is all about!!

It is time for us to question what makes us happy. When we’re old, and our careers are over, will we sit back and say, “I did a great job!” Or will we look back at our lives and say, “I made a difference! I helped people! I built bonds with others that last forever!” I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “If this is your life, it’s not your fault, but if this is your choice, it’s your fault.” What does this say about how we spend our time?

Many of us get so focused on family and friends that we miss out on the important things in life. Whether working late at night and waking up tired or missing events because of work, we tend to choose efficiency over effectiveness.

But it’s okay to say no sometimes. It’s okay to step back from work. It’s okay to stop everything you’re doing and just be a friend.

You might also like to read Real Artists Don’t Starve Summary.

How Will You Measure Your Life Summary Key Points

We easily get distracted by worldly affairs. But it does not mean you must get lost in your work all day long, from morning till night, to make money and forget about your loved ones. Maintaining a bridge between work and relationships is essential. You must know that you have a life that requires your attention and participation in other chores as well.

Though money is necessary for spending life but does not waste the precious moments of your life behind money which makes you regret it in your old age. So, what should you do then? How to find the measure of life?

The following points will help you focus on what matters in our lives.

Relationships are like plants. They require your attention even though when they don’t ask for

Whether it’s the seduction of a well-paid job that takes over your daytime hours or a social life that sucks up all your spare time, or even just a hobby (which leaves little time to make calls to our friends or even see them face-to-face), we all make time for what we want. We give it precedence over the people who matter most.

You know why. You’re busy. With your job and your hobbies and your life. You tell yourself that if you just got that promotion, or if you just got out of school, or if you just saved up a bit of money… then you could get around to building and keeping those relationships in ways that serve the whole relationship you are.

The fact is relationships require your attention. And when you’re working with others, it can be hard to keep that in mind, even with our traditional employees, contractors, and even our users, who all need our attention.

Sometimes, it’s easy to forget the value of these other relationships. While some relationships are more time-consuming than others, we’re all constantly re-prioritizing what we’re doing to meet the needs of those around us.

Relationships are like plants. They require attention. Watering, feeding, and paying attention to their growth will keep them alive and happy. However, some things will kill your relationships, while others will let them grow.

Treat your Relationships like a Job

It might sound a little strange because jobs come with their own set of rules, regulations, and expectations, but there’s a good reason for this. Treating your relationships like work should not, ironically, make them seem more like work.

I’ve taught this trick to countless entrepreneurs who swear by it, and they tell me it’s worked wonders in their business and personal lives.

So here’s the deal: Have you ever noticed how relationships could be one of the more stressful parts of our lives? I mean, we’ve all had those moments when we feel so overwhelmed by keeping up with family life tasks that we feel like all the stress is about to kill us. You know what I’m talking about!

Because of that, it’s important to keep putting into place tools and habits that will help you cope with life rather than hardwire in bad habits that only make it more stressful.

Ironically, thinking of your relationships like you do about the thing you’re supposed to give up a bit of – work – will make you better at them. You might think there’s no way having an approach to your relationships analogous to a job will help you get better at it. After all, in a typical workplace, your boss doesn’t make you spend time with your co-workers.

Try to avoid Marginal thinking while Making Decisions

“Marginal thinking” is a term we’ve been using to describe the tendency to make decisions based on what is easiest rather than what is best. We define the term “best” as creating the greatest possible value, either overall or in the long run.

The consequence of marginal thinking is that it prevents any decision from being made because of fears that it’s too risky, might hurt someone’s feelings, or will cause too much trouble. It’s a trap that many business owners get caught up in and is one that we all need to be mindful of.

Every decision made by every single person influences so many things. Sometimes, even the smallest decision can have a huge and lasting effect on your life.

Marginal thinking happens whenever you do something that makes a situation better but also makes another situation worse. Being able to recognize when you’re thinking marginal will keep you from making decisions that hurt you or your business.

The following is an Example of Marginal Thinking

I’m looking to hire my first employee and want to find the best person for the job. But I don’t have any resources to train a new employee properly. If I hire this person, there’s a chance they may not work out, and I’ll have lost money and time.

Scaling my business is most important, so if I just hire someone who is “good enough,” then I can focus on building my business and not worrying about hiring and training.

This is an example of marginal thinking because even though hiring an average employee would be better than no staff at all, it’s still not the best option which is finding a great new team member who can help me propel my business forward.

How Will You Measure Your Life Quotes

“It’s easier to hold your principles 100 percent of the time than it is to hold the 98 percent of the time.” Clayton M. Christensen

“Intimate, loving, and enduring relationships with our family and close friends will be among the sources of the deepest joy in our lives.” Clayton M. Christensen

How Will You Measure Your Life Review

How Will You Measure Your Life summary will not teach you to skip your work and give your time to your family, friends, and relationships? This book is the one that tells us how to maintain a balance between personal and professional lives. I like the strategies while writing this summary. Recommended by me.

To whom would I recommend the How Will You Measure Your Life summary?

  • The one who wants to know how to keep balance in life.
  • Anyone who just work and forgets that he/she has relations to spend time with.
  • Anyone wants to know in which state he is in his life.

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