Sharing what I have learned from what I have read: A blog by Joe Abittan
In his book When, author Dan Pink investigates how humans relate to and understand time. He considers the time of day, the timing of events, and also how we understand things based on time dimensions such as beginnings, middles, and ends. His focus on endings is one of the more surprising parts for me, someone … Continue reading In The End, We Seek Meaning
John Boyd was a brilliant military officer, strategist, and consultant who helped shape a generation of military leaders. Boyd is the focus of one chapter in Ryan Holiday's book, Ego is the Enemy, titled, "To Be or To Do?" Boyd, Holiday explains, was a terrific air force pilot and a very insightful and influential mind … Continue reading It Comes Down to Purpose
A real challenge across the globe in the coming decades will be helping people find ways to do meaningful work. A lot of our work today really is not that meaningful, and as more jobs can be automated, we will find ourselves with more people looking for meaningful work. Helping people find meaningful work will … Continue reading Create Great Work
Cory Booker starts one of the chapters in his book United with the following quote from George Bernard Shaw, “This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a … Continue reading Building a Purpose
The Most Good You Can Do is a book written by Peter Singer about a philosophy known as effective altruism. Those who follow the philosophy are characterized by making large donations and directing greater than 10% of their income to charities and organizations that make meaningful changes in the lives of those who are the … Continue reading All of Our Stuff
Peter Singer’s book, The Most Good You Can Do: How Effective Altruism is Changing Ideas About Living Ethically examines a new movement toward ethical responsibility on a global scale. What Singer explores in his book is the way in which effective altruists measure their impact in the world and go about trying to make positive changes. … Continue reading Why Do the Most Good?
Peter Singer in The Most Good You Can Do recounts a quote from an effective altruist who visited Singer's classroom to speak to his students, “We don’t need people making sacrifices that leave them drained and miserable. We need people who can walk cheerfully over the world, or at least do their damnedest.” The speaker was an … Continue reading Cheerful Sacrifices
Colin Wright in his book Act Accordingly wrote a passage about the meaning of life and our purpose. What I liked about his approach to the question is that he brings purpose down to an almost day to day level to examine the goals we set and drive toward. “There’s much ado about the ‘meaning of … Continue reading Purpose
In James Harmon’s collection of advice letters, Take My Advice, Dr. Laura Schlessinger writes, “Your role is to find out what your purpose is, and to face it with nobility, integrity, and courage.” She writes this after explaining that the meaning of life lies with our relationships and services to other people, and it is … Continue reading Finding a Role
One of the writers who sent James Harmon a letter to be published in the book, Take My Advice, is Tom Bobbins. His letter is very short and focuses on refocusing and finding a way to keep mind, body, and soul in harmony. Bobbins writes, “At least once a month, remind yourself that your purpose … Continue reading Purpose