Book Summary - So Good They Can't Ignore You by Cal Newport

I first heard Cal Newport  on a podcast promoting his book "Digital Minimalism" post which I looked him up. He is a New York Times best selling author of seven non-fiction books in addition to being an associate professor of Computer Science at the Georgetown University. He coined the term "deep work" in  his book by the same name which redefined the concept of work.  I liked that his books address real world problems - how to get into a flow state with all modern world distractions, how to build a compelling career, how to manage digital clutter - and provided actionable frameworks to tackle them.

A lot of books talk about discovering your passion, following your passion, monetizing your passion, living the dream etc. I picked this one up as it was a refreshing change - it upfront says that following your passion is dangerous advice.

I believe this book will benefit anyone aspiring to have a fulfilling work life. The concepts in the book can be easily applied. They have been distilled over real-life experiences of people with diverse work experiences from community farming to yoga to script-writing to VC's.

The title is derived from quote "Be so good they can't ignore you" by comedian Steve Martin which captures what is needed to build a working life you love. The book is divided into 4 rules.

Rule #1: Don't follow your passion

Follow your passion is bad advice which leaves a lot of people feeling stuck or clueless as they expect passion to be this magical, effortless thing that makes them happy and fulfilled only if they find it. 

Success stories of people following their passion are an exception rather than the norm. Research shows that a small fraction of people have passions that can realistically be converted into a full time career. Even in that case, you may not end up loving what you do as it puts a lot of pressure on your interest; especially if you don't have the skills to back it up.

Rule #2:  Cultivate "Career Capital" by deliberate practice --> COMPETENCE

Have a craftsman mindset as opposed to a passion mindset

Career Capital is a word Cal uses to describe rare, valuable skills that can be offered to get rare, valuable jobs. You can get these rare and valuable skills by putting in intentional hours to get better at various aspects of your craft. It is often not fun but necessary. It is what keeps you from plateauing at average.


Athletes, musicians set aside time for regular  practice. Cal argues that each of us, regardless of our profession must put in the time to get better as it is the only way to acquire and retain career capital.

Rule#3: Use your career capital to get control --> AUTONOMY

Control is one of the most powerful traits you can get with your career capital. It is shown to increase happiness, engagement and fulfilment. However, getting control will often be met with resistance no matter how good you are. There are 2 control traps to avoid
  1. Trying to get control without having career capital in exchange as it is not sustainable
  2. Overcoming resistance to control you want because your career capital is valuable and your control only benefits you
To understand whether the resistance is because of #1 or #2 ask if people willing to pay for your control? If yes, go ahead and if not, back off till you acquire the necessary career capital

Rule#4: Use your career capital to have a compelling mission --> RELATEDNESS / IMPACT

A unifying mission to your work can be a source of great satisfaction that keeps you energized. You need relevant career capital for your mission to be successful. 

  1. Most innovations happen in areas adjacent to the current cutting edge of any field. You need career capital to be at the cutting edge where these innovations become obvious and then capitalize on them.
  2. Make little bets which encourages you to fail fast, fail small, and get feedback quickly. Feedback builds your career capital which in turn makes you more valuable
  3. Have ideas that stand out (purple cow) + launch it where it is accessible by many (open source platform or a blog)


Conclusion

Working right trumps finding the right work. Focus on being the master of your craft.

My key takeaways

  1. Just because something interests you, does not mean you will automatically be good at it. You have to put in time and effort to develop skills to get better at your interest. 
  2. No matter how good you are at something, you have to keep working on your skills to stay on top of your game
  3. Once you get really good, you can leverage your position to get more control over how you spend your time, what kind of work you take on, how you want to work etc.
  4. Feedback is critical. Take risks that give you feedback quickly so you know in which direction to steer next

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