What To Make Of A Life
I was slightly surprised when listening to a recent The Tim Ferriss Show episode featuring Jim Collins to hear about his new book What to Make of a Life. My association with Collins has always been through books like Good to Great and Great by Choice, which are firmly rooted in the world of business.
Whilst the shift in focus caught be slightly off guard, it made for a welcome surprise as the focus of the new book sits firmly in my area of interest from more of a life philosophy perspective.
What to Make of a Life represents a clear departure from his earlier work although from his explanation in the book it’s been a long time in the making. Rather than analysing companies, Collins turns his attention to individuals, exploring a range of lives that, by most measures, could be considered both successful and fulfilling.
Importantly, that success isn’t always financial. In several cases, if you were to search for these individuals and look at their achievements, you might assume certain periods of their lives were the most significant. The book challenges that assumption in several cases, showing that fulfilment often comes from less obvious moments.
A central theme running throughout is how our lives evolve across different phases. Collins introduces the idea of “cliffs,” representing major life events, alongside the concept of navigating “the fog,” those periods of uncertainty where direction isn’t always clear.
Through extensive research, Collins and his team trace the experiences, skills and turning points across the lives of those featured. These include both positive and often difficult moments that trigger transitions into new phases, sometimes leading to a renewed sense of meaning and purpose later in life.
Many of the individuals covered will likely be unfamiliar, or at least a number of them were for me. What the book leaves you with, however, is a sense of reassurance to a degree that you don’t need to have everything figured out, regardless of where you are in life.
Whether you’re navigating what feels like the fog of midlife, transitioning between careers, or approaching the end of one chapter without clarity on the next, the message is consistent. Some of your most meaningful work and experiences may still lie ahead.
I’ll admit that when listening to the audiobook, the opening section took a little while to fully click. Not because it lacks value, but it just didn’t feel like it had clicked into the full flow yet. Once it moves into the deeper exploration of the individuals, particularly in the latter sections, it becomes far more engaging though, with the stories and lessons flowing naturally.
Although it’s not what I would have expected when hearing Collins had a new book out, it stands apart from his prior business works in a positive way. It feels like something that would be difficult to replicate, given the depth and duration of research behind it.
If you decide to pick it up, I’d be surprised if you didn’t come away with a slightly different perspective on how life unfolds and the transitions that shape it.
Who’s It For?
Whilst there’s value here for readers of any age, I suspect it will resonate most with those in their thirties and beyond, where some of the themes and transitions discussed feel more immediate.
That said, the insights and perspectives offered are broad enough to be relevant at almost any stage of life.