8-Hour Flight Delay, Good vs. Great Work, etc.
Greetings again from Bangkok, where I’m approaching the end of my latest trip around various parts of the Asia-Pacific side of the world.
Coming out of the Maldives the other night, I got stuck for eight hours. Eight hours! Here’s the lesson from that experience: no eight-hour airport delay is ever announced as being eight hours. It’s always two hours, then one hour, then another hour, and so on—giving you false hope while sitting on hard metal chairs all through the night.
At 5am we finally boarded SQ 451, only to sit on the plane for another 90 minutes due to poor runway conditions. At 7am we took off and they served “dinner.”
Anyway, these things aren’t fun, but they do happen. The best response is to suck it up and move on. In my case, I moved on to Bangkok and the growing contingent of amazing people I know there — more on that in next week’s update.
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In this weekend update I’d like to tell you about a new book called Do More Great Work. It’s really good, and it costs just $8. You should check it out here.
Now that I am quasi-famous in the blogging world, publishers and authors frequently send me packages of various free books they want me to write about. I like free books—but as much as I like them, I can’t really read all the ones that come over, let along write about them for everyone else. Therefore, I tend to write about only one book a month, and whenever I find a really good one, I first go out and buy another copy to give to someone else.
Before I left for Bangkok and beyond, I found one of the few that makes the cut. Michael Bungay Stanier, the author of Do More Great Work, writes about the distinction between different kinds of work. We all know we’re supposed to avoid busywork, but Michael says we should also limit the good work we do. This is because good work hinders the development of great work—the kind of work that builds a legacy and radically changes the world.
There’s more to it, of course, but Michael builds a very persuasive case in his fun, easily readable book. Oh, and the book also includes sections from a few other writers, including yours truly. You can read a sample chapter here.
Remember, the book costs a whopping $8 on Amazon. These days, books are not written to make money but to spread ideas. The ideas in this book are worth spreading! Go check it out.
Free Copy Giveaway
Because I want to support authors, I always go out and buy the books I end up recommending. That means I have two copies of Do More Great Work – so as soon as I get settled back home this week, I’ll post something on the AONC Facebook page and give away my extra copy to a random commentor.
That’s all for now – I’m getting ready to head home via ICN, HKG, and LAX. See you soon with more news on the Empire Building Kit, water for Ethiopia, and so much more.
I hope all is well in your part of the world!
Chris
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Airport Chair Image: CLM
