October Read/2

Title: The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything

Author: Robinson, Ken

Call Number: 153.9 R662E 2009

Subjects: Self-Actualization (psychology); Self-Realization; Creative Ability in Children; School failure

Number of Pages: 274

ISBN: 9780670020478

Book Description from amazon.com:

The Element is the point at which natural talent meets personal passion. When people arrive at the Element, they feel most themselves and most inspired and achieve at their highest levels. With a wry sense of humor, Ken Robinson looks at the conditions that enable us to find ourselves in the Element and those that stifle that possibility. Drawing on the stories of a wide range of people, including Paul McCartney, Matt Groening, Richard Branson, Arianna Huffington, and Bart Conner, he shows that age and occupation are no barrier and that this is the essential strategy for transform­ing education, business, and communities in the twenty-first century.

A breakthrough book about talent, passion, and achievement from one of the world's leading thinkers on creativity and self-fulfillment.

My Read:

            There are eleven chapters in this book: The Element, Think Differently, Beyond Imagination, In the Zone, Finding Your Tribe, What Will They Think?, Do You Feel Lucky? Somebody Help Me, Is It Too Late? For Love or Money, and Making the Grade.

The paragraph on page 21, to me, is the essence of this book. And allow me to quote it here:

            “Being in their Element takes them beyond the ordinary experiences of enjoyment or happiness. We’re not simply talking about laughter, good times, sunsets, and parties. When people are in their Element, they connect with something fundamental to their sense of identity, purpose, and well-being. Being there provides a sense of self-revelation, of defining who they really are and what they’re really meant to be doing with their lives This is why many of the people in the book describe finding their Element as an epiphany (頓悟).”-page 21

            Another paragraph on page 161 is also impressive to me’ it’s about being lucky.

“Wiseman (psychologist Richard Wiseman, author of the book ‘The Luck Factor’) has identified four principles that characterize lucky people. Lucky people tend to maximize chance opportunities. They are especially adept at creating, noticing, and acting upon these opportunities when they arise. Second, they tend to be very effective at listening to their intuition, and do work (such as meditation) that is designed to boost their intuitive abilities. The third principle is that lucky people tend to expect to be lucky, creating a series of self-fulfilling prophecies because they go into the world anticipating a positive outcome. Last, lucky people have an attitude that allows them to turn bad luck to good. They don’t allow ill fortune to overwhelm them, and they move quickly to take control of the situation when it isn’t going well for them.”-page 161

            After reading this book and the other book “Finding Your Element” by Sir Ken Robinson I came to realize why most of people are not happy at work. For it would take positive emotions, full engagement, meaning and purpose to have happiness.  Happiness is not to be pursued; it would take the 3 aforementioned elements plus attitude and passion to the happiness path.

            At the workplace everyday is a day for self-growth and self-revelation. Serving the customers helps us to reflect on what we did, what we could do, and what we could be.

“Do you feel lucky?” “For love or money?” Only you know the answers.