Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life

A must read for any one that feels like they want something more or different in their life. Even more important- a guide to finding more connection and meaning.

You know that nagging feeling you have, that you ought to be doing something different, or doing things differently? Laura Gassner Otting’s Limitless tells you what that’s about and what to do about it. It’s short, pointed, helpful, and well worth reading.The full title of this book is Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life. And I have to start by admitting I hate the subtitle. It sounds like every self-serving self-help book already published. But get past that — this is the real deal.What Laura Gassner Otting has done here is to tap into a fundamental misalignment in most of our work and lives. We pursue goals that other people set up for us. We achieve them. Then we feel empty because they were not really our goals. If you want your actual life goals and your work to line up, this book can help you do that.There are five reasons it works.First, the central idea is strong. That idea is “consonance.” To figure out if you have consonance, ask: Is what you do in perfect alignment with what matters to you, what makes you feel fulfilled, what gives you joy?Of course not. But some of us are close, and others are way off. And the ones that are way off are often working their asses off and coming home each night feeling exhausted and wondering why they feel that emptiness in the pit of their souls. If you have even a little of that (and you do, admit it), this book is a good way to figure out what to do.Second, it doesn’t just hit you over the head with that idea again and again — the structure of what follows is clear and actionable. Laura lays out four elements to pursue to gain consonance. These are “calling” — the thing that motivates you; “connection” — how your daily work connects you with the calling and the people who matter; “contribution” — how your work makes it possible for you to live well; and “control” — how much of your daily work you influence, and how much you don’t. Pursuing improvements in these four areas will help you attain the consonance you deserve.Third, it’s full of great stories of people who succeeded (or failed and reset themselves) — diverse people of all types. There’s a bit of Laura’s story, too, but it’s not all about her. (Disclosure: the story of my career at Forrester is in here: p. 118). These stories don’t prove that this method works, but they help you to identify with people going through the same struggles you are.Fourth, it’s well written. Laura is a sparkling writer — her personality comes across, and it’s completely engaging.And finally, it actually includes a plan on what to do. The calling, connection, contribution, and control chapters include some ideas on what to do, the the last three chapters suggest ways to change your career, how you work, and how you define success. If you buy into the plan here, that’s just what you need to make things better.My difficult career decisions would have been much easier if I'd had this book to help me out.

Good morning Laura (LGO) ! Fellow outlier here, I know how busy you are so I’m not sure if you read this stuff or not , I just finished your book,thank you for taking the time to put such inspiration into words .. here is one of my favorites from your book ,” it is your personal motivation ,the purpose behind it all,the reason you jump out of bed in the morning . Your calling allows you to identify how you make an impact and bring value … it’s a constant reminder of what matters … no one gets to vote on what matters but you “I have another one , but I’ll share that with you in person one day !!Cheers Ken Landin

I have been following Laura Gassner Otting for a few years through her blog and social media. I wasn't sure what to expect from Limitless, but I can tell you that it was exactly what I needed that I didn't know I needed. I knew that I wanted to dig deeper into Limitless when I found what might be my favorite sentence in the whole book (also that I want to plaster everywhere so I can see it every day) on page 4, "I encourage you to stop giving votes to the people in your life who shouldn't even have a voice. " Never did I think that a book would cause the significant pivot and perspective shift that it did. I read it after a few soul-sucking weeks at work, where I really began to question if I was in the right place. This gift of a book showed up at just the right time. I changed jobs last year after a long tenure at a job I loved, but was probably a little too comfortable in. After jumping in the deep end, I've found myself having some challenges with organizational structure, how I can best contribute, and what success looks like for me in my current role and beyond. This book provided the kick in the pants I needed. Chapter 3 brought me to my first "Aha" moment, and I was able to work through a messaging issue that I have been working on for months. The anecdotes shared throughout the book spanned a variety of professions, and the author noted at the very beginning that everyone isn't in the position to make sweeping changes in their lives to find that consonance she speaks about. I loved that she addressed this, as it's something that I've always found was missing in a lot of books like this. She makes it relatable to everyone, and gives real, practical steps that can help shift your perspective in whatever part of your life you are seeking to achieve consonance. I loved how this book forced me to pause and take inventory of where I am versus where I want to be. There is something that I draw from this book every day, and it's made me approach all I do with more intention. I highly recommend this book, especially for those, like me, who needed a push in my way of thinking.

"Once you see yourself doing something new, you can't unsee it."That's what Laura Gassner Otting (LGO) learned in her 20+ years as CEO of a professional recruiting firm: she was in the business of showing people possibility.What she found, and what she shares here is that you don't have to change jobs to experience limitlessness, but you do need to follow a formula: calling (goal larger than self), connection (how your everyday work connects to that goal), contribution (how the work supports who you want to be) and control (the degree to which you can influence the other three).She put those pieces in place for herself. Now she will show you how.There's a reason this was a Washington Post bestseller –– Laura Gassner Otting's Limitless is confident and persuasive.

There's Something about Laura...I'm one of those individuals where the pandemic has been a great thing. Spiritually, I've been taken off life support, I'm grateful to God, Mother Nature, and I've never been more productive. Limitless will give any person the practical ammunition to begin or continue their own hero's journey right now.There are a lot of books about grit, resilience, leaning in, and the like, and I've read most of them and they are all very good. But then they are forgettable and books you wouldn't give as gifts. A book that is a gift is something a little more special. This is it. Laura is like having a Navy Seal type of coach, whispering at your side, as you work through the lost and found of hell that is a part of life, and she provides a solid basis for faith that would make anyone believe that they can rise from the ashes too. It feels possible with this book and the examples that Laura excavates.She's been there, she gets it, and she gets you. She's intuned with people and the pulse of the self-made soul... Her intuition is off the charts. Right from the beginning, I felt the impact. Imagine Rhonda Rousey's book title, 'My Fight, your Fight' as a visual for guidance. Every chapter, it is Laura who is knocking sense into me, the reader. Common sense that she has drawn from her own and diverse examples. You find out that Laura has been in the trenches, and has made a career studying them. In such a short book, I felt I got to know a powerful instrument of nature whose insights knocked out the canonical echo-chamber of self-help gurus who work/live in silos, and are disconnected from the silent majority of Americans and the everyday experiences of humanity in general. 'Thought leaders' without a heart but preach empathy. Fast-food wellness without compassion. There is a lot of real empathy and compassion in Laura's book for me.Previous to this book, I read Laura Huang's book Edge and loved it also but in a different way. (Check review).Both of these books Limitless and Edge will make a great gift pack for my mom, my brother who likes driving for Uber but may be looking for a career change, my colleagues, my students and hopefully I will develop a Limitless Edge every day, within myself, as I strive to be a better person by bringing out the best in other people. Bringing out my full self, not a fake self. Laura's overarching focus on consonance is the soft power that differentiates this book into an experience that you will treasure forever.There's Something about Laura...

Great book. Clearly written and easy to follow. A must read gif anyone trying to find their calling.

The title gives away 90% of the content and depth to this book. I heard her speak on a podcast, and think she could have put more in the book. In a rush to publish?

A really insightful read for anyone evaluating and exploring their future direction. Laura introduces, through great stories, the idea that we all need consonance in our life, which is a mix of four ingredients that need to be in balance in a way that uniquely delivers meaning for us. I really like the way she clarified that pursuing your calling does not mean you have to sacrifice material goals that make a contribution to the way you want to live your life. Laura’s four Cs give a great tool anyone can use to assess the level of consonance in their life and explore where a rebalance may be needed. A great read indeed!

I almost only remember all the talk about politic from this book, and it probably should have gotten a one, that being said, if you edited out the politics which I still lack to understand why is in the book, you would have a way better book….