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Underachiever's Manifesto: The Guide to Accomplishing Little and Feeling Great
Lower the bar. Turn it down a notch. Get off the Stairmaster. The Underachiever's Manifesto is the playfully persuasive pocket guide to living life to the least and loving it. With sharp humor and genuine wisdom, this welcome little book extols the fabulous benefits of underachievement in our overextended society. A witty introduction makes the case for the right amount of effort a lot less than we've been led to believe. Ten principles of underachievement establish the basics (#8: The tallest blade of grass is the surest to be cut); and practical applications show how mediocrity is the key to happiness at work, in relationships, dieting, exercise, investment, and more. Devilishly enlisting examples from philosophy, economics, science, and good common sense, The Underachiever's Manifesto is a lighthearted, life-changing rallying call for those who dare to do less and enjoy more.
96 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
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1038 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 141 reviews
August 28, 2007
I was going to write a review of this book but that would be too much work. It "changed my life". But not too much.
December 26, 2009
A little bit jest, but chalk full of wisdom such as: good enough is good enough, and the family that underachieves together stays together. Love it! I liked the Pablo Picasso quote: "You must always work not just within, but below your means. If you can handle three elements, handle only two. If you can handle ten, then handle only five. In that way, the ones you do handle, you handle with more ease, more mastery , and you create a feeling of strength in reserve."
August 5, 2007
Pessimistic and silly as it sounds, this book expounds some serious advice. It mirrors principles of Buddhism -- be happy with where you are, what you are, rather than always trying to improve that little bit of yourself that is imperfect. We are all imperfect. Perfection is a myth. An unattainable goal. This isn't to say don't do what you enjoy -- just don't kid yourself about becoming "THE" best.
The best way to compete is not to compete.
I could keep writing, but it defeats the purpose. Go find this book and read it while you're at work.
The best way to compete is not to compete.
I could keep writing, but it defeats the purpose. Go find this book and read it while you're at work.
October 28, 2020
I thought this was going to be strictly humorous, and although it was, it was also very wise and true. In fact, it sounded a lot like me preaching to my overachieving mother. (There are seven billion people in world who are NOT WORRIED about whether or not you swept the front walk today!) I liked this book.
Update 10/2020 Found and reread this while dusting. Remembered that no one REALLY cares if I dusted or not.
Update 10/2020 Found and reread this while dusting. Remembered that no one REALLY cares if I dusted or not.
April 10, 2020
So, why did I read this book?
Two reasons.
One, I am known to be an overachiever (and after reading this book, this is not something to be proud of, really.)
Two, I hate self-help books and I thought it would be funny to read a book that subtly made fun of all of them at once.
Am I going to start being an underachiever? Probably not. But it did give me perspective. Never be too depressed because you didn't achieve as much as you wanted, because, truth is... you'll never stop wanting to achieve more than you already do. It's a bottomless pit! Time to sit back with a cup of coffee and stop caring about being productive all the time.
Good recommended read for those who are tired of trying to be perfect (and those who dislike self-help books, of course. :D)
Two reasons.
One, I am known to be an overachiever (and after reading this book, this is not something to be proud of, really.)
Two, I hate self-help books and I thought it would be funny to read a book that subtly made fun of all of them at once.
Am I going to start being an underachiever? Probably not. But it did give me perspective. Never be too depressed because you didn't achieve as much as you wanted, because, truth is... you'll never stop wanting to achieve more than you already do. It's a bottomless pit! Time to sit back with a cup of coffee and stop caring about being productive all the time.
Good recommended read for those who are tired of trying to be perfect (and those who dislike self-help books, of course. :D)
July 16, 2007
I think this book was maybe supposed to be funny, only it ended up making a hell of a lot of sense.
April 25, 2015
A foundation for simplicity.
This is a great primer for making a change to a more relaxed lifestyle. The value of limiting stress and learning to act with consistency not intensity is very refreshing. Underachievers do pursue a kind of excellence, but it isn't measured by material wealth or status symbols. For an underachiever "excellence" is found in moderation. Rather than obsess snd stress themselves over whether or not they are better or worse than others, underachievers find joy in who and what they are. "Success", "perfection", "accomplishment" are all subjective terms, and underachievers understanding the futility and vanity of the never ending quest for "more" opt out. What's the point of achievement if you can't be bothered to take the time to enjoy it? "Slow and steady wins the race." The Underachiever's Manifesto is exactly what you need to get you where you're going. The guide's ultimate lesson is that moderation is an often overlooked, undiscovered abundance all its own.
This is a great primer for making a change to a more relaxed lifestyle. The value of limiting stress and learning to act with consistency not intensity is very refreshing. Underachievers do pursue a kind of excellence, but it isn't measured by material wealth or status symbols. For an underachiever "excellence" is found in moderation. Rather than obsess snd stress themselves over whether or not they are better or worse than others, underachievers find joy in who and what they are. "Success", "perfection", "accomplishment" are all subjective terms, and underachievers understanding the futility and vanity of the never ending quest for "more" opt out. What's the point of achievement if you can't be bothered to take the time to enjoy it? "Slow and steady wins the race." The Underachiever's Manifesto is exactly what you need to get you where you're going. The guide's ultimate lesson is that moderation is an often overlooked, undiscovered abundance all its own.
August 28, 2016
The Underachiever's Manifesto: The Guide to Accomplishing Little and Feeling Great (2006) by Ray Bennett is an amusing and surprisingly wise take on self-help books.
Bennett extols the virtues of not trying to hard, not exercising hard and not expecting too much of yourself at work, at the gym and in live and instead making sure to relax and spend time with people who are important to you. The book manages this and makes you laugh which is always great.
Bennett is a doctor which does mean somehow he's been achieving and he also finished this book which is well, an achievement. But even with these slight problems of not living down to the standards it still fun. The book nicely has some lists which patched in numbers and a cleverly half-done quiz. And as the book says, live life to minimum.
Bennett extols the virtues of not trying to hard, not exercising hard and not expecting too much of yourself at work, at the gym and in live and instead making sure to relax and spend time with people who are important to you. The book manages this and makes you laugh which is always great.
Bennett is a doctor which does mean somehow he's been achieving and he also finished this book which is well, an achievement. But even with these slight problems of not living down to the standards it still fun. The book nicely has some lists which patched in numbers and a cleverly half-done quiz. And as the book says, live life to minimum.
May 6, 2019
would write a review about how much i enjoyed it, but too tired and frankly the effort of putting this into goodreads was good enough... ;)
Read
April 23, 2021Een echte eye-opener in een maatschappij waar we constant moeten streven naar perfectie
January 16, 2025
“Remember, underachievement isn’t about doing absolutely nothing. It’s about the right effort at the right time, in the right place. And not one bit more.”
A very short read that felt like a long blog post, but somewhat interesting. Not that life-changing, but it has some good thought-provoking ideas. The book started strong with some good insights in its first half, challenging people to rethink the idea of constant striving for success. However, it seems to run out of fresh ideas, lose focus, and make less sense in the second half.
While it felt like a funny parody on self-improvement, this book reminded me that sometimes achievements do not always mean happiness or success. There is always a hidden cost for overachievement. It is fine not to try to overachieve, and underachiever doesn't mean failure. It is okay not to take life so seriously. We all have the option to live life to a bare minimum, just relax, and take it slow.
The cover is actually a clever design for an underachiever book. The designer, being a underachiever, was probably just too lazy to adjust the font size to fit words on the book cover aesthetically.
Actual rating: 3.5
My Kindle notes/highlights can be found here.
A very short read that felt like a long blog post, but somewhat interesting. Not that life-changing, but it has some good thought-provoking ideas. The book started strong with some good insights in its first half, challenging people to rethink the idea of constant striving for success. However, it seems to run out of fresh ideas, lose focus, and make less sense in the second half.
While it felt like a funny parody on self-improvement, this book reminded me that sometimes achievements do not always mean happiness or success. There is always a hidden cost for overachievement. It is fine not to try to overachieve, and underachiever doesn't mean failure. It is okay not to take life so seriously. We all have the option to live life to a bare minimum, just relax, and take it slow.
The cover is actually a clever design for an underachiever book. The designer, being a underachiever, was probably just too lazy to adjust the font size to fit words on the book cover aesthetically.
Actual rating: 3.5
My Kindle notes/highlights can be found here.
May 17, 2019
Put a smile on my face in some places. I think the author was going for a part tongue-in-cheek, part dead serious approach, and it worked. Some of the advice was funny and perhaps to be taken with a pinch of salt, but mostly a lot of what was said did make sense and, while sometimes laughable, could (and would?) actually work. Definitely worth a read, if just for the amusement factor.
August 23, 2013
Even as short as this book was, it felt overdrawn. I identify with the general sentiment, which is why I bought the book (as well as to test out my kindle), but having read its insights, I sort of feel like I know less about the subject, in spite of the fact that's not really a relevant consideration. Bottom line is, this was a little bit depressing. It preaches doing little because nothing is worth anything, basically, instead of (or with insufficient emphasis on the idea of) not wasting your time and energy on bullshit because you can "achieve" much more important things in its stead. One annoying piece of advice I can recall is that freeing yourself up from excessive career-preoccupation will allow you to develop hobbies that will make you more attractive and interesting to current and potential friends. Reformed overachiever my butt, this guy still is incapable of relaxing, but I guess at least he's trying. Unfortunately, he's not funny nearly as often as he thinks he is, and the tone gets a little annoying. In closing, meh.
Read
December 13, 2020"So relax, read this book, and put your potential back in the lockbox. Turn everything down a notch. Lower the bar. Discover the laziness that has so far eluded you. No matter who you are there's something you're trying too hard at." :D :D :D
Jautra lasāmviela :D
Jautra lasāmviela :D
July 13, 2008
"Remember, underachievement isn't about doing absolutely nothing. It's about the right effort at the right time, in the right place. And not one bit more."
February 9, 2021
I loved it! Such simple advice yet profound.
January 1, 2022
Started as a joke and honestly, it’s pretty good. Let us all be underachievers in 2022
May 2, 2020
First self-help book worth reading. Concise and to the point - just as this review.
December 6, 2020
This little book is filled with wisdom. I read it in one sitting but will think about what was said for a long time. Excellent.
October 17, 2021
Although I don’t completely agree with everything said, it’s definitely a good quick pill for anxiety. Brings smells to my face as I read. Sometimes mediocrity is the key to a happier life. Let’s just all chill for a bit.
Some quotes:
Constant comparison with people who are smarter, more successful, and more beautiful than we are breeds frus tration and jealousy. Striving is suffering.
To seek perfection is to be cursed to find fault in the perfectly adequate, enjoyable, or even just plain good.
With perfection in mind, it's frighteningly easy and almost inevitable to push things past good to the neurotically overworked, the belabored, and the endlessly second guessed. If something is worth doing at all, sometimes it's worth doing it half-assed.
9. Accomplishment is in the eye of the beholder. There's nothing more satisfying than seeing some arrogant jerk boast about his accomplishments in some activity about which his audience neither knows nor cares a whit. Ask yourself, Who really cares?
10. The 4 Percent Value-Added Principle.
It is now an established scientific fact that human beings are, genetically speaking, 96 percent identical to chimpanzees. How does that make you feel? Think of it: The most successful individuals in the world, as well as the most hopelessly underaccomplished ones, are, biologically speaking, all pretty close to apes. If anything puts the lie to the old saw about giving 110 percent, this is it. In fact, biologically speaking, even bacteria are extremely "successful," and they don't seem to work that hard at it. This point may be a case of science misapplied, but it seems to fit. Close enough. Being alive at all is by far your greatest achievement.
——UA At Work——
Underachievers are the best, most dependable workers.
The underachiever will also find, ironically, that she is able to accomplish so much more than those who consistently strive for perfection. Work twice as hard, burn out twice as fast. Going the extra mile only leads to exhaustion.
One of the more toxic effects of great accomplishment is the unseemly eagerness with which people scramble to take credit for at least a part of it, especially when they feel compelled to in the pressurized atmosphere of overachievement. Another is the adversarial position the overachiever must then adopt toward coworkers to either defend his turf or share the credit but feel robbed. In either case, the result is bitterness and frustration.
——UA In Love——
it is fool ish to believe that there is only one perfect person in the world that you are supposed to meet. If you accept this terrifying and deeply depressing notion, you must also accept that you have better odds-much, much, better odds-of winning the longest odds lottery than finding the singular person. When you surrender the neurotic (and weirdly competitive) drive to seek only the best relationship, you can ease into having a pretty good one, which in life is about as good as it gets.
Playing hard-to-get is a popular sport, but that takes too much work. Trying too hard is usually a sign of desperation.
In the underachiever's relationship, a mutual respect develops as each person goes about their business without extreme dependence on the other. And if things don't work out, the breakup can be handled so much more easily. But odds are that if you're not constantly looking around for the fantasy you construct in your mind, you'll be more content with the real rela tionship you have. Once in a relationship, underachievers recognize that demanding perfection in a partner is a lot like living next to a mental hospital: it's a short walk to insanity. Turn the tables here. Do you want to be expected to be perfect? No. No, you don't.
——UA Diet——
What distinguishes the underachieving dieter is his complete lack of guilt at consuming the occasional doughnut. A snack is only a failure if you measure success by the stress-inducing standard of total deprivation.
———-
SPARK JOY IN MODERATION
———-
You must always work not just within, but below your means. If you can handle three elements, handle only two. If you can handle ten, then handle only five. In that way, the ones you do handle, you handle with more ease, more mastery, and you create a feeling of strength in reserve.
-Pablo Picasso
Some quotes:
Constant comparison with people who are smarter, more successful, and more beautiful than we are breeds frus tration and jealousy. Striving is suffering.
To seek perfection is to be cursed to find fault in the perfectly adequate, enjoyable, or even just plain good.
With perfection in mind, it's frighteningly easy and almost inevitable to push things past good to the neurotically overworked, the belabored, and the endlessly second guessed. If something is worth doing at all, sometimes it's worth doing it half-assed.
9. Accomplishment is in the eye of the beholder. There's nothing more satisfying than seeing some arrogant jerk boast about his accomplishments in some activity about which his audience neither knows nor cares a whit. Ask yourself, Who really cares?
10. The 4 Percent Value-Added Principle.
It is now an established scientific fact that human beings are, genetically speaking, 96 percent identical to chimpanzees. How does that make you feel? Think of it: The most successful individuals in the world, as well as the most hopelessly underaccomplished ones, are, biologically speaking, all pretty close to apes. If anything puts the lie to the old saw about giving 110 percent, this is it. In fact, biologically speaking, even bacteria are extremely "successful," and they don't seem to work that hard at it. This point may be a case of science misapplied, but it seems to fit. Close enough. Being alive at all is by far your greatest achievement.
——UA At Work——
Underachievers are the best, most dependable workers.
The underachiever will also find, ironically, that she is able to accomplish so much more than those who consistently strive for perfection. Work twice as hard, burn out twice as fast. Going the extra mile only leads to exhaustion.
One of the more toxic effects of great accomplishment is the unseemly eagerness with which people scramble to take credit for at least a part of it, especially when they feel compelled to in the pressurized atmosphere of overachievement. Another is the adversarial position the overachiever must then adopt toward coworkers to either defend his turf or share the credit but feel robbed. In either case, the result is bitterness and frustration.
——UA In Love——
it is fool ish to believe that there is only one perfect person in the world that you are supposed to meet. If you accept this terrifying and deeply depressing notion, you must also accept that you have better odds-much, much, better odds-of winning the longest odds lottery than finding the singular person. When you surrender the neurotic (and weirdly competitive) drive to seek only the best relationship, you can ease into having a pretty good one, which in life is about as good as it gets.
Playing hard-to-get is a popular sport, but that takes too much work. Trying too hard is usually a sign of desperation.
In the underachiever's relationship, a mutual respect develops as each person goes about their business without extreme dependence on the other. And if things don't work out, the breakup can be handled so much more easily. But odds are that if you're not constantly looking around for the fantasy you construct in your mind, you'll be more content with the real rela tionship you have. Once in a relationship, underachievers recognize that demanding perfection in a partner is a lot like living next to a mental hospital: it's a short walk to insanity. Turn the tables here. Do you want to be expected to be perfect? No. No, you don't.
——UA Diet——
What distinguishes the underachieving dieter is his complete lack of guilt at consuming the occasional doughnut. A snack is only a failure if you measure success by the stress-inducing standard of total deprivation.
———-
SPARK JOY IN MODERATION
———-
You must always work not just within, but below your means. If you can handle three elements, handle only two. If you can handle ten, then handle only five. In that way, the ones you do handle, you handle with more ease, more mastery, and you create a feeling of strength in reserve.
-Pablo Picasso
March 15, 2020
I greatly enjoyed this book's philosophy but I found some issues with the philosophy. It's depressive stance that "nothing really matters because we're all going to die" could erode at all the other principles. His passage on exercising and dieting are hilariously shortsighted.
The choice of wording for underachiever seems ill-fitted. At times Bennett teeters on this philosophy on literally underachieving and at the end he clarifies that the underachiever seeks moderation. A better choice of word would have been 'moderation'.
The formatting of the philosophy feels conflicting. I believe the 'overachiever' can find peace with not achieving his goals but not fall down to the pits of the underachiever, as described in this book. Bennett ignores the good that can come from overachieving and constantly cites the destructiveness. I believe it really depends on the person in the manner that they handle their ambitiousness. Of course Bennett had to create this extremist view but a more moderate path can be achieved of checking oneself and bearing everything in mind to follow a middle path.
Rating Update 28 May 2019
Four stars to three stars. I know for certain that I couldn't have read the entire book with feelings that the entire content was rated at four stars.
August 25, 2019
Update
With the adoption of my new rating system, a three star rating is befitting. The original review and rating update conform to the new rating system. Adding to them, another reason behind the three star rating is that the criticisms that the manifesto is too extremist at times and flawed in certain sections (the original review goes in-depth on this). I still appreciated this manifesto, to the extent of a four star-rating at times, but the book's rating is dropped to three stars because of the previously mentioned drawbacks.
March 15, 2020
Update
I have chosen 3CCCC as the rating type for this book. From what I have understood in the previous updates and the original review, this book reaches the heights of a four star-rating, as said in the original review: "I greatly [greatly sounding like a four star-rated word] enjoyed this book's philosophy". However, my criticisms lower the rating to three stars.
The color of the rating remains as yellow with a grey outline because my memory and the original review does not adequately asses the entirety of the book and because, though I agree with the three star-rating, I am somewhat hesitant about it.
The choice of wording for underachiever seems ill-fitted. At times Bennett teeters on this philosophy on literally underachieving and at the end he clarifies that the underachiever seeks moderation. A better choice of word would have been 'moderation'.
The formatting of the philosophy feels conflicting. I believe the 'overachiever' can find peace with not achieving his goals but not fall down to the pits of the underachiever, as described in this book. Bennett ignores the good that can come from overachieving and constantly cites the destructiveness. I believe it really depends on the person in the manner that they handle their ambitiousness. Of course Bennett had to create this extremist view but a more moderate path can be achieved of checking oneself and bearing everything in mind to follow a middle path.
Rating Update 28 May 2019
Four stars to three stars. I know for certain that I couldn't have read the entire book with feelings that the entire content was rated at four stars.
August 25, 2019
Update
With the adoption of my new rating system, a three star rating is befitting. The original review and rating update conform to the new rating system. Adding to them, another reason behind the three star rating is that the criticisms that the manifesto is too extremist at times and flawed in certain sections (the original review goes in-depth on this). I still appreciated this manifesto, to the extent of a four star-rating at times, but the book's rating is dropped to three stars because of the previously mentioned drawbacks.
March 15, 2020
Update
I have chosen 3CCCC as the rating type for this book. From what I have understood in the previous updates and the original review, this book reaches the heights of a four star-rating, as said in the original review: "I greatly [greatly sounding like a four star-rated word] enjoyed this book's philosophy". However, my criticisms lower the rating to three stars.
The color of the rating remains as yellow with a grey outline because my memory and the original review does not adequately asses the entirety of the book and because, though I agree with the three star-rating, I am somewhat hesitant about it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 9, 2014
I wish everyone could feel this laidback about constantly striving for more success
after reading this book I realized that I didn't have to get my poetry published to love my poems. I get to send them to people who enjoy them and go to
coffee houses and do the open mike thing. I'm exploring the idea of going back to work after having been disabled for quite awhile. I was a department secretary and later an office manager. Whoo the stress. I have decided to reenter the business world as an office clerk. I don't have to worry about where I work because even though I might lose my social.security check for a couple years, I'll keep my retirement check and great state insurance. it will even be more money than I had as an office manager who constantly was supposed to make miracles happen. I sure am glad I'm not the great deity. anyway the book was good medicine. thanx
after reading this book I realized that I didn't have to get my poetry published to love my poems. I get to send them to people who enjoy them and go to
coffee houses and do the open mike thing. I'm exploring the idea of going back to work after having been disabled for quite awhile. I was a department secretary and later an office manager. Whoo the stress. I have decided to reenter the business world as an office clerk. I don't have to worry about where I work because even though I might lose my social.security check for a couple years, I'll keep my retirement check and great state insurance. it will even be more money than I had as an office manager who constantly was supposed to make miracles happen. I sure am glad I'm not the great deity. anyway the book was good medicine. thanx
October 30, 2016
Short read, but packed full of snappy sound bites. Came at a good time, just as I was struggling with whether I was setting excessively low standards for myself regarding academia. Seems like when life tells you that it's time to do work, sometimes you gotta tell life NO.
____
Expectations lead to misery. Great expectations lead to great misery.
The tighter the script and higher the stakes, the more likely it is something won't go as planned.
To seek perfection is to be cursed to find fault in the perfectly adequate, enjoyable, or even just plain good.
Once in a relationship, underachievers recognise that demanding perfection in a partner is a lot like living next to a mental hospital, insanity is a short walk away.
By avoiding the temptation of huge gains, you'll enjoy the safety that comes from avoiding huge losses.
The difference between a happy and unhappy childhood is the difference between encouragement and pressure.
____
Expectations lead to misery. Great expectations lead to great misery.
The tighter the script and higher the stakes, the more likely it is something won't go as planned.
To seek perfection is to be cursed to find fault in the perfectly adequate, enjoyable, or even just plain good.
Once in a relationship, underachievers recognise that demanding perfection in a partner is a lot like living next to a mental hospital, insanity is a short walk away.
By avoiding the temptation of huge gains, you'll enjoy the safety that comes from avoiding huge losses.
The difference between a happy and unhappy childhood is the difference between encouragement and pressure.
March 9, 2021
If you are 'underachieving in matching your yearly read book target, this is for you...
A concise 'book'; would have not to look good for the author's thesis if he wrote a longer one as an underachiever.
I like the main thesis, and it goes in line with a sort of Buddhist philosophy of finding sense and satisfaction in the current circumstances and accept whatever comes to you.
I think there are some healthy principles, but the book was written in a very depressing way. It calls underachievers lazy and makes a big crevice between the high achievers and the underachievers. Like there are only two species of humans.
There would have been a fascinating thesis if, instead of black and white, the author would have discussed the nuances. And that it is ok not to try to overachieve, and that underachiever doesn't mean failure.
A concise 'book'; would have not to look good for the author's thesis if he wrote a longer one as an underachiever.
I like the main thesis, and it goes in line with a sort of Buddhist philosophy of finding sense and satisfaction in the current circumstances and accept whatever comes to you.
I think there are some healthy principles, but the book was written in a very depressing way. It calls underachievers lazy and makes a big crevice between the high achievers and the underachievers. Like there are only two species of humans.
There would have been a fascinating thesis if, instead of black and white, the author would have discussed the nuances. And that it is ok not to try to overachieve, and that underachiever doesn't mean failure.
December 31, 2023
The ideas presented in this little book stand in stark contrast the the messages we are getting every day from all angles. With The Underachiever's Manifesto, Ray Bennett is attempting to stand in the stream of western ideals about what life "should be" and let us know that we have other options. The reality is that, in spite of what our parents told us, most of us are not exceptional and maybe that is OK. We don't have to be the best, or to have the best things to live enjoyable lives. Quite often, the quest to be and have the best leaves us too miserable and/or exhausted to enjoy life. What we might benefit from most, is to take a hard look at how we define a good life, and ask ourselves "is this what I really want?"
The core message is that good enough really can be good enough.
The core message is that good enough really can be good enough.
October 5, 2023
Although The Underachiever's Manifesto is primarily a bit of silly fun, it is also a thought-provoking exercise that asks the reader to contemplate adopting an approach to life where "Good enough is good enough." I personally have always tried to live in exactly this way, while also acknowledging that I simply can't get much out of life if I don't sometimes reach a bit higher. I suppose it's the paradox of the self-aware underachiever: the desire to always be satisfied with "good enough", while in reality always grasping for just that little bit more.
May 10, 2021
I borrowed this book as a form of anti-self help for amusement, but I didn't find this book cynical at all. To be honest, I wouldn't go as far as to encourage underachievement and mediocrity, but I have to admit that this short book is full of wisdom off the beaten path such as (1) more is not always better and good enough is good enough, (2) If what you want is modest, then what you have is greater in comparison and (3) being alive at all is by far your greatest achievement. Highly recommended to all my overextended and burned out loved ones.
May 8, 2012
Olen alisuorittaja ja ylpeä siitä! Tavallaan olen kai vaistonnut sen aina, mutta tämä pikku kirjanen vahvisti tunteen ytimekkäällä tavallaan. Alisuorittaminenhan ei ole tekemisen välttelyä, vaan panostamista itselle oikeasti tärkeisiin asioihin oikean määrän, oikeaan aikaan. Vai haluatko muka kulkea läpi elämäsi yrittäen saavuttaa epämääräistä menestystä, kun sen joku muu kuitenkin tekee sinua paremmin? Todellisena alisuorittajana luin tietysti helpoimman kautta suomeksi.
February 13, 2008
This is a good book for perspective.
Don't try to be the best, being good enough is good enough. The effort needed to get from good to great exceeds the reward. Spend more time with your family and more time relaxing. There are billions of people on the planet and 99% of them don't care how much money you make or what kind of house you live in.
Don't try to be the best, being good enough is good enough. The effort needed to get from good to great exceeds the reward. Spend more time with your family and more time relaxing. There are billions of people on the planet and 99% of them don't care how much money you make or what kind of house you live in.
September 30, 2018
This is actually a fairly well thought out explanation of why we shouldn't try so damn hard. Which I probably should take to heart and probably won't. As it should be, given the topic, it's surprisingly short because unlike most self-help books, it skips the padding. He says what he needs to say and goes off to do other things, just as he recommends.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 141 reviews