The Dream Dean

I just finished reading Angela Duckworth’s book, “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance.”  There was a lot to enjoy in this book; however, there was one question in that book that stuck out for me, so much so that it’s been on my mind for two days now.

“What is your life philosophy?”

In the book, the question is posed to her by Pete Carroll, coach of the Seattle Seahawks (professional football).  This question is focused on what are you trying to get out of your life.  And over the course of two days, I’ve watch several videos/talks addressing “passion” and my favorite is by Brian Johnson of Philosopher’s note:

“not fired up excitement or romantic passion, but something much deeper, something that drives your action every day.  A passion that guides your life, like a compass, that points you in the direction that you want to go.  A passion that endures, that’s long lasting.  You do what you you do because it’s something that keeps you up at night.  It’s your ultimate concern, something you’re willing to structure your life around.” (https://brianjohnson.me/philosophers-notes/grit-angela-duckworth/, then choose the free option “Watch PNTV”)

Another way to look at this: in Neil Pasricha’s ‘The Happiness Equation: Want Nothing + Do Anything = Have Everything,” he talks about “ikigai” (pronounced “icky guy”), which translates to “the reason you wake up in the morning.”  What gets you out of bed in the morning?  What is it that you love to do so much, that you’re even willing to do for free?

I’ve thought about this for two days and came up with the following:

“I am driven to empower students, faculty, and staff in higher education to become self-experts to become the best version of themselves.”

So, what is YOUR life philosophy?  Write it down on an index card so that you can see it every day!