This leads nicely on to his ‘law of financial viability’ that states that we must offer something that people are willing to pay for. Most people adopt the Passion Mindset, but this chapter argues that the Craftsman Mindset is the foundation for creating work you love. If we work on ourselves continuously and do not set any limits for us, then we can say that we are on the right track to achieve excellence.

Though well-intentioned, Courage Culture dangerously undermines the need to acquire sufficient career capital to support your career goals. This chapter of So Good They Can’t Ignore You “argues that a mission chosen before you have relevant career capital is not likely to be sustainable. Cal Newport was introduced to this concept while watching an interview with Steve Martin on the Charlie Rose show in 2007. As discussed in chapter 6, Mike Jackson is a venture capitalist and he tracks every hour of his day in 15-minute increments on a spreadsheet.

This idea aligns well with the passion mindset, but it fails to show people how dedicating themselves to a craft and producing more value in the world is the best way to find meaningful work.

When you work to make money or seek evidence of value, you can navigate control and provide value, whether in an entrepreneurial venture or a corporate role. Control is one of the most important traits you can pursue in the quest for a happier, more successful, and more meaningful life.When you acquire more control in your work, it benefits you but usually does not benefit your employer, resulting in conflict. Instead, his Channel Island Surfboards factory is located a block from the Santa Barbara beach, where Merrick still regularly spends time surfing. He’s also a frequent contributor to major print publications including the New York Times, WIRED, and Outside. This chapter of So Good They Can’t Ignore You “argues that control over what you do, and how you do it, is one of the most powerful traits you can acquire when creating work you love. Just like pursuing a life of control before you have career capital is destined for failure, so is pursuing a mission before you have the relevant career capital to pursue that mission successfully.

In contrast, following the passion mindset will be ineffective and work against creating the work you love. Spend time to understand the competition in your field and know what they are doing to perform well. Conversely, developing your mission when you are new to a field and lack career capital will probably result in failure. Since 2007, Cal has been writing a weekly essay about the theory and practice of living and working deeply in an increasingly distracted world. In So Good They Can’t Ignore You, Cal Newport tries to answer the following question: “Why do some people end up loving what they do, while so many others fail at this goal?The reality of each of their stories is that both men focused on “becoming so good they can’t ignore you” instead of finding their passion.