Favourite Quotes from The Art of Work by Jeff Goins

In January I received an invitation to join the launch team for The Art of Work by Jeff Goins. Although the official launch date of the book is tomorrow, March 24, 2015, everyone on the launch team received a copy of the book a couple of months ago. In this book, Jeff shares from his personal experience as well as from the experiences of others about how to discover what you are meant to do with your life.

I found myself nodding my head and sighing with relief while I read the book. Jeff tells it like it is: finding our calling is often a confusing and messy path. Many times we have to work for a living while we pursue our passion on the side. If we’re not careful, we can become so obsessed with our passion that we shut out our family and friends – the very people we need to keep us grounded:

Every story of success is, in fact, a story of community.”

“As you strive to achieve your life’s work, be careful of at what costs you chase it. It will be easy to resent those closest to you, to make your biggest supporters into your worst enemies. To hoard your work away from the rest of life. You may be tempted to see every relationship not as a lifeline, but as a competing force, something to be mistrusted. And in doing this, you may destroy the very things that could save you.”

Jeff addresses many issues, like commitment, apprenticeship, and learning to embrace failure as a friend:

The risk of not committing is greater than the cost of making the wrong choice. Because when you fail, you learn.”

“Failure is a friend dressed up like an enemy.”

“Will you wallow in regret, wondering why such a thing has befallen you, or will you choose to act, making the most of your obstacle, and allow it to evolve into an opportunity?”

“Successful people and organizations don’t succeed in spite of failure; they succeed because of it.”

 

I especially appreciate Jeff’s reminders to those of us who are passionate about the arts:

 This is an important distinction when considering your life’s work. Most people won’t continue doing something they aren’t passionate about, especially when it gets hard. Putting an activity through painful practice is a great way to determine your direction in life. If you can do something when it’s not fun, even when you’re exhausted and bored and want to give up, then it just might be your calling.”

“Humility is a prerequisite for epiphany. Without it, your dream will be short-lived and self-centered.”

“Answering a call will sometimes feel that way. It won’t make sense and may even open you up to rejection and criticism, but in your heart you will know it’s right.”

“We are caretakers of our vocations, stewards entrusted with a vision that is bigger than us. Our responsibility is not to hoard our gifts but to use them in challenging ways so that others can benefit.”

The Art of Work is a book everyone could benefit from, because we all want to know that our lives will count for something:

Success isn’t so much what you do with your life; it’s what you leave behind. Which may be what a calling is all about: leaving a legacy that matters.”

Get your Free Audio Book + Bonuses by purchasing the book from any retailer!