What Should I Do with My Life?: The True Story of People Who Answered the Ultimate Question

I think I am probably just as guilty as a lot of other people to have been in the bookshop, seen this book lying on the table, and thinking,"oh I better look at this, it might help me figure somethings out". I started to read it right there in the store and got through the first 5 stories when I realized this book was NOT a self-help book. And honestly I was sorta relieved. I will repeat this again, THIS IS NOT A SELF-HELP BOOK. I don't think it was intended to be. I think that it was a big book of people, who like us, had serious challenges in their life to face and decided to go through or give up on them. I am more fascinated by the "people" in Po Bronson's book and found myself comparing my life to theirs, apples and oranges really. But then I realized that their problems aren't any different to mine nor were their challenges. How many times have you met a person who really struggled and made it to the top, and came out fine? How many times have you found out information about someone and thought, "Wow look at what their doing! I wish I had the courage, know-how, resources, strength, etc., to do that!" Well like Po Bronson, (I'm sure we all have met at least one), he just put it in text. I loved the book. My background is one of struggle and I love reading books about people who have succeeded no matter or not but gave it their best at it anyway. Some of the reviewers here call this "new-agey" and a "waste of money", but I also think that sometimes people have high expectations of what a book is going to be about directly from its title. But they also don't give a book a chance to be what it is intended to be, a book. I titled this review, "The Mini-Biographies of Everyday People", and I think its fitting because that's exactly what it is - NOT a Self-Help book like some may have expected it to be.

In the grand sense of Studs Turkel, this book delves into people's lives. It is not a self-help book. It does not have answers. It isn't supposed to have answers. It is simply a book about how other people have handled change in their life, both when they have chosen that changed, and more commonly, when that change chose them. Po writes eloquently, for he is on the same journey as the people he is writing about. And his story, interspersed with theirs, is just as intriguing, if not moreso, because of his experiences with these people. I am 36 years old, and am going through my own struggle of a career change. I have found what I want to do with my life, but making that change is not easy. And I am not about to ignore the responsibilities I have to my family while I go through this career change. I have read other books that take on the Nike empowerment of "Just Do It," but forget the fact that life doesn't work that way all of the time. This book deals with that through personal stories, that I found encouraging. True, some stories will relate more to some people than others, but that is the nature of stories and people. A highly recommended book to someone who isn't looking for a "how-to" or "self-help" book, but a reassurance through shared experiences that the struggle of that change is part of the process. And that it may not be easy, and it may not look exactly as you expect, but that "better" is out there.

Po's new book may not provide you with more answers, but certainly will leave you with fewer questions. It is not a self-help book. It is a compelling collection of vignettes describing people 'questing' for an answer to this question. Po is on to something. As a young professional seeking my own career path (during the boom I was a chronic job hopper), there are many stories here that spoke to me. I am sure you will find resonance in some of his stories -- Po covers a wide berth of individuals. There are dog ears and blue scribbles everywhere in my book. It reminds me of how my Lonely Planet guides look when I finish a dusty backpacking trip. The journey is somewhat similar.For those who are unhappy with their career, life, journey, or spiritual direction -- and I assume that this describes the most of us -- I highly recommend this book.A must read.

If you are interested in a "5 Step" plan to finding a better job or simply reading a series of "How I became a rich from humble beginning" stories, this not the book for you. Anthony Robbins style of cheerleading plays no role in these pages.How do people change from what they really want to do for a living with what they are presently doing. How do you reconcile your dream job with how you are still going to make the car payment? What is holding you back from changing? What fears do you harbor? How do you know what is your destiny? These are some of the issues that are addressed in this book. I use the word "addressed" carefully, because you will not find a nice "bullet point" summary of steps to take in this book. Life is not that simple and neither are the issues faced by the average reader of this book. Everyone profiled in the book (50 people... I believe a total of 900 people were interviewed) made the critical decision to act upon their desire to change the way they earning a living. Real people and real decisions. Unlike Hollywood, not every story has a perfect cute ending. The process for change is extremely complicated and ultimately takes a lot of work. Self-doubt was common. But change they did. The people in this book are just like you and me. Bill Gates has no seat at this table.Bronson does a careful job of covering all the different angles. There are people who rejected money to follow their dream ( including Bronson himself), then there are others who make a decision without the support of the their family, there are those who struggle for years to make a change and there are those who make the change immediately. Whether you are extremely rich/successful or just starting out you will be able to relate.Bronson weaves his own story throughout the book and you learn as much about him as you do about the people he is profiling. He is very geniune in sharing his own shortcomings as well as his successes. I believe the average reader can relate to him. The book is an easy read and is akin to being at a cocktail party, gliding from one conversation to another with Bronson acting as your host. The Book holds together well and you build on each conversation. Bronson does underscore some definite trends that he has observed. i.e. nobody he who made a change did it as a result of an epiphany. But stays clears from "one size fits all" type statements.The book is an excellent starting point to begin the long journey of self-examination to develop a sense how you really would like to spend your working hours. There is no magic formula. But one thing you realize is that you are definitely not alone.

Po Bronson spent a lot of time interviewing people around this country and around the world about their careers, their callings, their regrets and their dreams. All of this based on a single question: what do you want to do with your life? If you've ever asked yourself this question before, or if you're struggling with it now, you'll find it difficult to put this book down; you will be absorbed in its pages.This is NOT some kind of new age inspirational, feel-good book! It's much better than that. It's honest, insightful and respectful of the reader's intelligence. While Bronson does add his own thoughts to many of the personal narratives, he doesn't attempt to tell you how to find your way through the forest or make the right moves in your life. Instead, he lets the tales of his interviewees stimulate your thinking and give your perspective based on their diverse experience. There's no sugar-coating here. Sometimes people pulling radical career or life changes pulled it off easily...more often, with great difficulty.Even though Bronson says that he doesn't want to be responsible for changing people's lives with this book, it seems inevitable to me that he will have to assume some responsibility. For people who are tyring to answer the question posed by the book's title, the tales in this work will simply be too powerful to ignore. After reading it, don't be surprised if it causes you to make a significant change in your life.