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 - An Unexpected IntroductionI had a personal encounter with Michael, until then a stranger to me, in which he turned my criticism of something he had done into positive feedback for himself and as an expression of gratitude, he sent me this book! A week or so ago I read the introduction and I am still digesting the powerful insight derived from conducting a simple exercise to "Find the Most Meaningful Thing." It is amazing and wonderful that a couple of pages which arrive so unexpectedly and are read at the appropriate moment can create such an affirming experience. Rating: - Whitman was right: We are large...we contain multitudesIn the Foreword, Jim Collins recalls his first encounter in 1982 with Michael Ray and Rochelle Myers, two Stanford professors who together taught a course for MBA students called Creativity in Business. (They later co-authored a book of that title based on the same course in which Collins had enrolled.) Myers quietly informed Collins and his classmates, "You are about to embark on a ten-week journey to discover your deepest inner essence." Immediately Collins began to search for a replacement in the catalogue. Later, at his wife Joanne's urging, Collins remained in the class and accepted "a fundamental challenge issued to all of us: [begin italics] Make your life itself a creative work of art. [end italics]" More than two decades later, Ray offers in this volume a core process based on the meta-concept of "live-with heuristics" whose objective is to help a person achieve her or his "highest goal." Time out. Those who have read this commentary to this point may be tempted to move on, just as Collins once was. Please don't. Hang in there just as Collins once did. As Collins explains, there are certain "mantras of living" that one implements for a period of time (usually a week or more) and then reflects upon what has been experienced as a result. For example: If at First You Don't Succeed, Surrender Pay Attention! Ask Dumb Questions Destroy Judgment, Create Curiosity Don't Think About It Be Ordinary Do Only What Is Easy, Effortless, and Enjoyable At Ray's urging, I came up with a few of my own: Don't Resist...Absorb When Encountering Abstract Art, Don't Look at It...Listen Remember What Really Bothered Me Last Week [Note: I never can] Each New Day Is a Mulligan [Note: I am an avid golfer] When Hearing Music, Don't Listen...See It As Ray explains, he realized over time that the impact of his course, Personal Creativity in Business, went beyond its structure, procedures, and exercises. "It touched something very deep in people. They made discoveries about themselves that informed their actions and transformed their lives. Even though we never mention it in our teaching, they discovered their highest goal -- the secret that would sustain them, come what may. As one participant put it years after taking the course, `This is transformation that works and lasts.'...[Students] learned -- most early in life but many much later -- through a crisis or through experiencing love and a connection to something higher that if they live for this connection, they keep growing closer to what is right for them. They are open to life and view it as an adventure." Only by tapping their inner resources can they make their lives a creative work of art, fulfilling themselves in service to others. On several occasions as I read Ray's book, I was reminded of this passage from Lao-tzu's Tao Te Ching: Learn from the people Plan with the people Begin with what they have Build on what they know Of the best leaders When the task is accomplished The people will remark We have done it ourselves. For me, this passage is directly relevant to the core process of "live-with heuristics" which can guide and inform those who aspire to lead others. Each life is a journey from one moment to the next, from one experience to the next. What we learn is revealed within a sequence of discoveries. (The word "heuristics" is derived from the Greek infinitive "heuriskein," to find.) If reading this book is viewed as a journey, there is indeed much of value to discover from what it shares. With all due respect to Ray and his book, however, the discoveries of greatest value to me were re-discoveries of what I already knew (or thought I did). In Appendix A, Continue the Journey, Ray acknowledges that there will be obstacles to overcome, albeit ones "that can be enriching." He suggests several ways by which to face those obstacles and convert them into learning experiences. Of special relevance to me is this passage: "Many of us pack too much when we travel, and one thing you don't want to take with you on your journey to the highest goal is the VOJ, the Voice of Judgment. So write or draw the aspects of the VOJ or secret fears that you really don't want to take with you. Make them intense, because these are the remaining aspects of the VOJ that continue to trouble you." They do indeed. Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out the aforementioned Tao Te Ching as well as James O'Toole's Creating the Good Life: Applying Aristotle's Wisdom to Find Meaning and Happiness, Alan Watts's The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are, and David Whyte's The Heart Aroused: Poetry and the Preservation of the Soul in Corporate America. Rating: - A practical, spiritual guide to creativity in life Favorite quote: "Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor the served. But all other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service that is rendered in the spirit of joy." -Mahatma Gandhi This is quite simply the best book I have ever read on the 'how to' of living a meaningful life. While I had never heard of Professor Michael Ray, he is far from a newcomer to the field, having created and taught the 'Personal Creativity in Business' course at Stanford for the past 25 years. This grounding in real-world business skills lifts Ray's spiritual approach to life and work above its new-age touchy-feely roots, and lends a sharp, practical edge to the world of spiritual practice. At the core of the book are a series of heuristics - what Ray calls 'Live-withs'. As he explains it: "Live-withs are not affirmations. They are not prescriptions that tell you exactly what to do. Rather they call you to new ways of behaving that bring out your best." Among my favorite live-withs (drawn mostly from his live courses): *If at first you don't succeed, surrender *Destroy judgement, create curiosity *Ask dumb questions *Do only what is easy, effortless, and enjoyable *Everything in life is either a yes or a no and of course, *Amplify positive deviance... :-) An extraordinary (and extraordinary useful) read. Rating:  - Reads like an eastern sect literatureIf the author was not a Stanford University lecturer, I would surely think he is a leader of some obscure eastern religious sect. And like most such leaders, the author is great at saying things without substance, but somehow makes it sound substantial. For example, in the paragraph that starts with "what is the highest goal?", I have noticed that the author never directly answers this question. Instead, he wavers with few meaningless dialogue such as "philosophical traditions tell us that we have within us amazing potentiality, including that of the whole universe...power of many nuclear reactions is present in even a cubic cenitmeter of empty space..The highest goal is simply to be in this experience of connection or truth all the time." That sounds awfully like what some bald headed Krishna dude try to sell me during my college years. To be sure, I felt the book does try to enlighten your spirit. Certain passages does open your eyes to new possibilities towards spiritual enlightment. If you are into such stuff, I suppose it is best to get it from a famous Stanford Lecturer\Yogi. Rating: - Are You Ready to "Live With" Your Highest Goal?This book is based on the author's acclaimed Personal Creativity in Business class, which he taught at Stanford University for 25 years to the likes eBay entrepreneur Jeff Skoll and Good to Great bestselling author Jim Collins. But it's not another business management book, or even a book on how to tap your creativity. Instead, Ray reveals the secret that all the successful people he taught ultimately attributed their success to - living their life connected and committed to their "highest goal." Essentially, your highest goal is the aspiration that gives meaning to your life, motivates and sustains you. Aligning your efforts with it will help you accomplish your dreams and find fulfillment. Ray suggests exercises to to identify it, then helps you better integrate it into your life based on your key challenges. His "live-withs" are simple but powerful tools for shifting your thinking and actions so you can benefit from living with your highest goal every day. What you should know....to some, the title and cover photo may imply a very "new age-y" type book. While there is a little of that, the book overall takes a very practical approach to the subject.
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