This is a further post in what has become a series about self development. The idea is that I take an article or perhaps a video or an infographic and summarize what it really means. I have always been a believer in self development even before it became trendy!
Shucks I even write about self development in my About page! And if you need to know more then please check out my Personal Development page.
Formal Education vs Self Development
Indeed, I am a great believer in self development. Formal education can only teach you so much. The rest is up to you. Learning is within the capacity of all. We do it as soon as we leave the womb and it should be a continuous process. You are never too old to learn.
Through my passage in life, I feel qualified to pass on my wisdom about self development. I feel so strongly about it that I intend to eventually offer one to one consultations to help anyone who is prepared to listen. Listening and learning are the easy bits. You as an individual have to implement those lessons. No one can do it except you!
You can be the most intelligent person on earth but without self- awareness and self development then you run the risk of stagnating. Even worse, you could go backwards.
Before I turn to the article let me say this. I have been researching and reading volumes over the past twelve months. The internet is a wonderful thing. But there is so much stuff out there!
Before you accuse me of adding to it, I willingly plead guilty! Yet, it is done in an effort to aid and guide you the reader. To try and short circuit the time involved in ‘getting to the good stuff.’
Feedback is always welcome.
Summary of the Article
Jeff Goins is a well known name. It is a tad ironic therefore that he writes on Medium Nobody’s Heard of You and That’s Okay – 3 Advantages of Anonymity in a World Obsessed with Fame.
He is such a talented writer and starts off this article with the sad story of F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author of the Great Gatsby.
He concludes the introductory Fitzgerald story by asking this question – “In a world obsessed with fame, there is a problem we often don’t acknowledge: success can sometimes hurt more than it helps. So why do we continue to strive for it?”
It doesn’t take a former detective like me to work out the next part. He then goes on to explain by way of 3 reasons why it’s okay to remain anonymous.
Goins reaches this conclusion –
Here are three steps you can take today if you aren’t as famous as you’d like:
- Don’t avoid the spotlight, but don’t race towards it, either.
- Build your craft slowly, and let the fanfare come when it does.
- Be intentional, but not anxious.
Remember: All great work gets its due, eventually.
It’s well worth the read. I always say that but it truly is.
I believe I have found part of the solution to helping you “build your craft.”
Reading Time of the Article
8 minutes
Favorite Quote from the Author In the Article
About the Author and Lessons Learned From The Article
Jeff Goins lives in Tennessee and his Medium profile describes him thus – Writer. Speaker. Entrepreneur. Dad to Aiden & husband to Ashley. Author of four books, including The Art of Work.
One of the key lessons I took away was how to write an awesome article!
Goins describes how to deal with failure and how to turn it into an advantage. It makes sense.
I particularly recommend a close study of these words from the article:
Failure Is a Friend Dressed Up Like an Enemy
Scott Fitzgerald’s last royalty check before he died was for $13.
At the time, The Great Gatsby was practically out of print and couldn’t be found anywhere. What copies had been bought were apparently by Fitzgerald himself. A once-promising writer who was writing movie scripts to survive now considered himself a failure.These days, we love to glamorize failure. But we forget how painful and demotivating it can be, how it sometimes demoralizes a person from ever attempting anything again.
There is, however, a secret side to failure: we can choose to see it as a friend, not an enemy. We can learn from it.
My Take
My take is simple. I have suffered life’s failures and yet here I am still working away. But now I am doing it at my own pace and not because I think I have to.
In any event I have never sought fame and still don’t. I have had my “15 minutes of fame” and that was enough.
There is so much downright common sense in Goins’ words. I know. It is simply one of the best articles of its kind I have ever read.
Conclusion
It’s a must read. After all it’s only an 8-minute read. It is the kind of read that makes you want to sit and have a coffee and a chat with the author.
One of the advantages of me going through many hurdles of trying to create in my retirement is that I have discovered things that work. Things that aid productivity.
One of those is Blinkist.
The aim of this series is to summarize to you articles that I believe assist in self development. Damn it! More than that – help you achieve, be a better person. Blinkist does that too. It will give you a synopsis of excellent books written by experts in their respective fields.
It helps you work smarter and be smarter!
To find out more about Blinkist click here.
You know, writing is a tremendous source of self expression and development. It’s fun! Anyone can do it. Click the banner below to find out more –
Disclosure: this post/page contains ethical affiliate links. I promote certain products and services that I have 100% confidence in. If you purchase as a result of clicking on my affiliate links, I receive a small commission. That commission is not added to the price you pay at checkout.
You can find all books in all formats by Jeff Goins on Amazon by clicking this link.
USA TODAY, WASHINGTON POST, AND PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY BESTSELLER!
Jeff Goins, a brilliant new voice counting Seth Godin and Jon Acuff among his fans, explains how to abandon the status quo and live a life that matters with true passion and purpose.
The path to your life’s work is difficult and risky, even scary, which is why few finish the journey. This is a book about discovering your life’s work, that treasure of immeasurable worth we all long for. It’s about the task you were born to do.
As Jeff Goins explains, the search begins with passion but does not end there. Only when our interests connect with the needs of the world do we begin living for a larger purpose. Those who experience this intersection experience something exceptional and enviable. Though it is rare, such a life is attainable by anyone brave enough to try.
Through personal experience, compelling case studies, and current research on the mysteries of motivation and talent, Jeff shows readers how to find their vocation and what to expect along the way.
Goins’ Book Amazon.com
Goins’ Book on Amazon.co.uk
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