How Will You Measure Your Life by Christensen - Book Report/Review Example

Book Review Introduction Book ‘How Will You Measure Your Life?’ Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karen Dillon. Date Published: May 15th, 2012 Publisher: Harper Business Number of Pages: 240 About the Authors Christensen is by experience a Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. Clayton is the author of other seven acclaimed books alongside ‘how will you measure your life. Clayton was named the most influential business thinker in the world in 2011. Karen Dillon, a co-author of the book is a former editor of the Harvard Business Review Magazine. She too has written several other books. Ashoka named Karen in 2011 as one of the world’s most inspiring and influential women. James Allworth is a Fellow for the Forum for Growth and Innovation and has severally worked with Clayton. He is a writer for the Harvard Business Review. ‘How Will You Measure Your Life is an unconventional text of wisdom and inspiration for people that endeavor to achieve a fulfilling life. The book comprises penetrating insights and lucid observations that are structured to assist the readers from vast groups of audience. Whether a teacher or a student, a retiree or a mid-career professional, a child or a parent, the book focuses on helping each of these to forge their paths to fulfillment. The text is an intensely revealing and an extremely engaging book most relevant for young people embarking on their careers (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 9). However, any other person who wishes to lead a meaningful life in line with their personal goals and values can find inspiring guidance in the text. Christensen et al. in the book offer a valuable advice to high achievers to avoid disruptions in their lives. Unlike other force-feeding texts that issue orders on how to improve, the book presents the readers with tools that can instrumentally help them set their courses. The book primarily offers guidance on how one can live ethically, responsibly and successfully. Summary of the Content Through their considerably high intellect and experience, Christensen and co-authors pose a fundamental question that makes the title of the book, ‘How Will You Measure Your Life?’ The book title is an inquiry into various aspects of a person’s living. For example, where are we, why are we there, and how can we know that we are making any difference? (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 17). The text presents an exceptional combination of a deep feeling of business and personal experience. Christensen et al. provide a business view of life although not in terms of profits or losses. Rather, it is a view ethics, ideals, integrity and absolute honesty about oneself concerning where you are, who you are and where you are going. ‘How will you measure your life is a comprehensive moral subject matter. In a chain of theories, the authors explain their position and propose simple ideas that one can successfully use to construct, evaluate and apply their experience. The book avoids giving generic principles and ready-made answers about success as observed among many other motivational books. The book explores the sources of management wisdom and conventional business and provides a new way of thinking about several important issues described in the form of theories. The plot of the book is organized into three principal parts that focus on three key questions. The first part is how one can find happiness in their career and makes a discussion of the basis of reward and motivation (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 47). The second part explores how one can find happiness in their relationships and majors on spending time in line with ones patience and priorities. Finally, the third part presents guidance on how one can stay out of jail. It discusses the pitfalls of full against marginal thinking and living with integrity and honesty. The content is presented in the form of short but well-written chapters that encompass some material presented in some of Christensens key talks. The form in which content is presented appears to be more of equipping rather than preaching to the audience. The key concern of the text is how one can find total happiness and purpose in life. The primary objects of the book are achieved through examinations of failures and successes of businesses that are used as examples of such situations in our personal lives. An extrapolation of life and business lessons in the book makes a combination of three observable principles (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 4). These are: hindsight may be easier, but foresight is always better, what gets measured is bound to improve and that business and life most often run parallel. In a big picture, the book makes an application of business lessons to life choices. The methodology used in the books construct makes it maintain its simplicity and clarity throughout the plot. Analysis and Evaluation of the Book The work by Christensen and his co-authors in the book ‘How Will You Measure Your Life is one of the few texts that achieve their purpose. It is out of its relevance that the book is today the most selling book in the New York Times. Contrary to the views and perceptions about life by different people, Christensen, and his co-authors approach various issues about measuring ones life from a realistic and practical viewpoint. Many people misconceive that the rewards that accrue from a particular job including monetary rewards and other benefits can create happiness. However, the book presents different perspectives on the contrary that these factors are not properly managed merely add to satisfaction (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 72). Challenging jobs, appreciation, responsibility and recognition are known to increase motivation and satisfaction. However, Christensen et al. in their theory about finding happiness in ones career, lay emphasis on the focus on the process as opposed to the results of our careers. Many people pursue the results and the rewards in their careers and are unhappy in the end. Getting concerned about the process according to Christensen entails the activities and inputs that are required to get the results. For them, it is in the process that one can earn happiness and not in the monetary rewards (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 81). Christensen explains that those unhappy with their current careers and jobs should use an ‘emergent strategy’ or try out new things. Being happy in one’s job is not static and can change with time. Today one can be happy in what they do but the next day they get unhappy due to change of circumstances. Christensen et al. add that the people who are happy in their current jobs should apply ‘deliberate strategies to make improvements. Although with distinctive ideas, the selection of strategy, as given in the book, coincides with many other texts and hence appears a standard advice that has repetitively been given on careers. Most often people are confronted with the question of ‘how can I find happiness in my career? In his approach to answering the question, Christensen, and his co-authors prefer an indirect approach that applies various models to peoples personal lives. Christensen used the very models to address the Harvard Business school class of 2010. The important thing in the approach adopted in the book is that people derive answers themselves as opposed to getting answers from the author. That way, it becomes increasingly easier to implement the resolutions that one has arrived at about their lives than pursuing that which has been passed on to you. Christensen in the book is careful to observe that people make wrong choices with regard careers (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 84). He postulates that he made a wrong decision based on the presumption that he would work with the private sector all his life. However, he later discovered that what he thought the private sector was may not be the reality and opts to try the government. Young people often and repeatedly do such mistakes about career choice. We are influenced by various factors in choosing our careers. Even then, many young people prefer well-paying jobs thinking that good salaries would make them enjoy their work and be happy. Christensen et al. borrow from Frederick Herzbergs articulation that ‘money is not the most powerful motivator in peoples careers. Christensen and his co-authors in the book point out that how well the management role is performed in both business and life also matters (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 89). They explain that good management practices help others to learn and grow, be recognized and take responsibility. They make a powerful observation that engaging in business deals cannot provide the profoundly significant rewards that result from building people. The concept of finding happiness in one’s relationships as brought out in the book best fits the situation of a parent. The book in this part majorly makes a dedication on how parents can raise better children. The society we live in is used to rewarding results based on the performance of children. Sometimes a child can unethically score an A in an end-term exam through cheating and are rewarded for the result. The basis of award, in this case, is on the result rather than the ethicality of the means used to generate the results. Christensen et al. explain that children should be congratulated based on their work ethics and not the results (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 106). When rewards are based on the results, unfulfilling relationships will exist. Christensen observes that such relationships cannot generate happiness. He stresses the point that we should treat people in our lives and ourselves as ‘jobs. Such is an utterly fascinating way to approach life. The book ‘How will you measure your life proposes that people should think about their relationships in terms of the job the other person wants you to do. The presence of parents in the early years of a childs life is given emphasis for a cognitive advantage on the part of the child. The mistake in life is that people often place unnecessary emphasis on building careers and then making relationships. Instead, Christensen et al. give the idea that people should find the time and employ efforts to building both. Not every family relationship endures. Sometimes in life, people find themselves in questionable situations. Christensen et al. observe that the question ‘how can one be sure that their relationship with their family will become an enduring source of happiness? Serves a fundamental importance. Many people use misleading approaches in their parent-child relationships and end up leading unhappy lives. A hint is based on Christensens profound cogitations, long hours of reading at night, and long hours of an inquisitory prayer about Gods purpose for his being on earth. In his personal experience, Christensen urges that one must endeavor to find purpose in life if they must lead a meaningful and satisfactory life of relationships. The book points to the importance and the value of personal decisions in this concern (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 118). Just as it is done in a business, personal decisions involve the commitment of energy, time and talent. That way, Christensen maintains his faith that people would by all means avoid narrow and short-term perspectives about life. Much often, people are confronted with questions of how integrity manifests in their lives. In fact, many are the instances when our lives do not conform to the fundamental principles of honesty and integrity. Although people may misconceive that the path of integrity as is long and difficult to follow, the converse is more costly. In their views about ‘staying out of jail, Christensen et al. briefly explore the concept of living a life of integrity (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 135). According to them, integrity entails setting a boundary, living to it and never violating it. Not even once. For example, one can set a boundary to attend church service every Sunday. For them to live a life of integrity, they must never violate that limit. However, how can one be confident that they will stay out of jail? Christensen et al. present a thought about the marginal costs and the tendency to always allure low for ‘just this once. According to the book, people make a mistake to violate their life principles on the presumption that they will only do it once (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 142). However, the crisis is that after ‘that once situation, we develop the tendency to commit the same mistake in the future. Christensen asserts that it is much easier for an individual to live to their principles 100% than it is for them to live to such principles 98% of the time. People end up in jail just because they allow themselves to embrace and do the wrong things just once. The book directs that people should have an everlasting quest for the truth and integrity, and should always focus on matters of high-impact. Christensen et al. arrive at a conclusion that an apparent mistake in life is that people develop the attitude that only smarter people can teach them. That way, their learning opportunities become incredibly limited. According to them, the virtue of humility allows people to learn from everybody and hence have unlimited chances of learning in life. Humility can keep one out of jail. Purpose plays a significant role in the achievement of the discussed subjects. In their concluding epilog, the authors attribute meaning to commitment, likeness and metrics (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 163). In setting goals, one should consider their values, measure them and commit to achieving them. For Christensen, believing in the essential goodness can help one discover the cause of problems in their lives. Christensens idea in the book is that one must measure a life they purposively create themselves. Just as people cannot achieve happiness from what is not their individual interest, they too cannot derive satisfaction from copying others. The urge is that people must learn to pursue the right goals in life to achieve happiness. In a more generalized idea, ‘how will you measure your life’ is a book that examines how companies stay relevant and cutting-edge through disruptions (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 194). Its primary purpose, as observed in Christensens interaction with Andy Grove, is to teach people how to think. While staying out of jail may appear as a flaw in the book that majorly talks about finding happiness, a prudent analysis of its meaning would correct our misconception. The authors of the book present their work in a self-help mode that as much strives to avoid the illusionary and deceitful comfort that manifests in the ‘you can do it too genre. Instead, Christensen anchor the book in a ‘you are not any unique premise. That assumption as applied in the book carries the lesson that although life can be rewarding, it is difficult as well. In essence, the authors point out that people must learn how to grapple with life. Their idea melts down to acceptance, working with and making an appreciation of what we have. To make an achievement in life, purpose and process are stressed as critical factors. Christensen warns that people must differentiate between purpose and priorities and never confuse the two. Towards its inspiring end, the book advises that people should cogitate about the lives ahead in terms of who and not what they want to become (Christensen, Allworth and Dillon 198). To achieve this, the book proposes that everyone must understand how the things they do affect their lives. Christensen associates the failure of many products to the companys wrong perspective of what the company wants and not what the customers want. Likewise, people fail due to false views. Conclusion The book ‘How will you measure your life compares human lives to the business cycle that entails booms, recessions, depressions and recoveries concerning true happiness in careers and relationships. The principles applied during the different Cycles according to Christensen can be twisted and be used in personal lives. The book uses different models used in the industry to help the readers deduce the answers to common questions themselves. The authors arrive at a conclusion that it is not money but the opportunity to grow in responsibilities, learn, being recognized for achievements and contributing to others that bring happiness. Christensen et al. articulate that finding purpose is important for one to avoid a hollow life. For them, short-term perceptions result in empty and unhappy lives. The building of an appropriate culture among the children is more effective than the use of power tools for instruction by the parents. The book votes integrity in one’s life as a means to achieving real satisfaction. From a logical point of view, any reader of the book must come to a conclusion that Christensen and his co-authors demonstrate attributes of deep thought, integrity and reason. The book makes the emphasis that people should know what priorities in their lives are and focuses their efforts to achieving them. Every person yearns to be happy in life. Whether in terms of career or relationships, the avoidance of reward as a basis for making choices is paramount to achieving true happiness. The book makes an assertion that through humility, honesty, and integrity, one can leave out of the jail. Compromising ones principles even once is dangerous and results in tendencies to live below our standards. The book can thus be referred to as an appropriate tool to kick mediocrity and complacency out of people. It can help people ensure that their day-to-day efforts are aligned with their dreams and the things they want. Works Cited Christensen, Clayton M, James Allworth, and Karen Dillon. How Will You Measure Your Life? New York, NY: Harper Business, 2012. Print. Read More