How Will You Measure Your Life?

If you’re a high achiever like me, you may have asked yourself several times which direction you should “climb the ladder” to achieve your version of success. Towards your career or towards your personal life?

Often, we can’t define what motivates us until we see it, and the authors’ use of theories on motivation, destination, and the journey truly illuminated my next steps to “measure” my life. Honest perspectives are provided no matter what stage you’re in.

Ultimately, this book challenges you to decide if your career or your personal life is the joy worth fighting for.  

An excellent book on how to find meaning and fulfillment in your career and personal relationships, and to be true to your values even when it’s tempting to make an exception ‘just this once’.

In a surprising change of career tack, Harvard Business School’s Clay Christensen moves from contemplating innovation and industry change to seeking to understand how you truly gauge success.

Clay Christensen was my mentor for over a decade and I had the honor of first hearing these ideas when I was a student in his HBS class.

His way of applying business frameworks to your personal life completely changed how I thought about investing in and managing my life. That class was so impactful I asked him to repeat it as a lecture for all 900 graduating MBAs that year… and that was so powerful it turned into the most-read article on HBR (ever!), which is how it then became this book.

Trust me: this is where you should… show more.

This book combines personal anecdotes, business concepts, and academic research to explore how individuals can find happiness and fulfillment by aligning their personal, professional, and societal goals, and making choices that reflect their values. In challenging times, I’ve personally referred back to the lessons of this book often, especially as a reminder to lean into my values. If you’re just charting your course for the life you want to live, this will be a guidebook that helps you travel with confidence.  

I’m sometimes guilty of comparing my success to that of others without stopping to remind myself that their values system might be different than mine. This book challenged me to formally and decisively answer the question, “How do I want my life to be measured?” I now have greater peace about my career and life choices because they are being made in better alignment with my values.