Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day

A disclaimer is in order. I have been a Todd Henry enthusiast since I read his first book, The Accidental Creative: How to be Brilliant at a Moment's Notice. His regular podcast is on my weekly "must listen to" list. I was thrilled when I heard the title and theme of his second book. I'm what business guru, Ken Blanchard, calls a "raving fan" of Todd's work. Admittedly, I'm biased not just because we share the same first name. Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day is about how we can unleash our best work each day and increase the odds that we won't regret the work we've done when we come to the end of our life. It's about living full so we can die empty. What I like most about Todd's writing is his courage. He doesn't hesitate to call out the fluffy platitudes that we are fed in too many business and career books. He doesn't shy away from saying that success and our best work will require effort and self-discipline. Those two things go against the grain of our comfort driven culture. I was practically cheering out loud when he said, "You cannot pursue comfort and greatness at the same time." One popular fallacy Todd takes on that resonated with me was, "The Passion Fallacy." We are told countless times to just "follow your passion" and the money will follow you. Besides the obvious impracticality of this advice, (How many of us actually do get paid for playing video games all day?) Todd points out that it is a selfish approach to finding meaningful work. Eventually the passion dies down and we are left searching for a different obsession. A better approach is asking, "What value can I add?" instead of "What can I get?" When we pose the question this way, it correctly reminds us that we are not the center of the world. We know that when we are the center of our own world, it's a very small world...after all. Another example of Todd's courage occurs in the chapter titled, "Finding Your Voice," which tackles discovering our unique expression of value through our life's journey. He challenged me when he wrote, "Great work results when you stop doing only what you know you can do and instead begin pursuing what you believe you might be able to do with a little focused effort." In the infamous words of television character Barney Stinson (Played by Neil Patrick Harris on How I Met Your Mother), "Challenge accepted!" Todd's writing tone is one we would find from a buddy who is sitting across the table having coffee with us. It's friend to friend encouraging conversation rather than top down pronouncements. In addition, his stories are nicely balanced with practical applications and probing questions at the end of every chapter. This is the type of book I can see myself rereading on a yearly basis to keep myself on track in fulfilling my life's mission. The message of the book is simply stated: "Don't go to your grave with your best work still inside of you. Choose to die empty." May that be true for us all.

I really wanted to love this book. But I didn’t. I was hoping that it would be more holistic than it was. If you’re very focussed on having your career, or business at the centre of your life, then it’s a great book. Lots of interesting chewy questions to find better ways to get ahead, do better, etc. But in the end, for me, that’s not enough for a beautiful life. And no-one ever died wishing they’d had better conversations with work colleagues or built a better company. In short, I wanted more ‘life’ from this book and it didn’t deliver.

When I first saw the title of this book, I thought....What the heck. I think when many of us read anything that relates to death, we get a bit squeamish, and a title that reads "Die Empty." What is that all about?! The title at first almost turned me off. I am so glad I ended up purchasing the book. As you can see I rated it a well-deserved 5 star rating. The thing that grabbed me was in the beginning about what land was the most valuable land. I guess one can think of varied answers to that, but the one that hits the soul is "The most valuable land is the graveyard. In the graveyard are buried all of the unwritten novels, never-launched businesses, unreconciled relationships, and all of the other things that people thought, ' I'll get around to that tomorrow." One day, however, their tomorrows ran out." That sure hits home. Well, this book helps us toward the clarity we need to have so that we die empty, without anything left needing to be done yet that we really had hoped to accomplish in this life. It is not about getting everything done today either. It is about getting your best work out there, and making progress each day on things that matter. It guides us toward tackling the goals that we really want to tackle. The author of the book helps us separate the goals of what is most important. We are reminded that each of us has a unique contribution to make to the world and no one else can make that contribution but you....and your contribution is NOT about you. Not about you? How can that be? Well, read the book to find out. But, it does give guidance so that you find the truthful and helpful answers to questions like.... Why you feel intimidated? What resonates with you? What complicates your life? How do you clarify your objectives? The book helps you in redefining success (and failure). It puts you on the right track. You know, I cannot state all the benefits you will gain by reading this book. There are just too many to list. Is the book worth purchasing? You bet it is. I highly recommend it. Once you start reading it, you will not want to put it down till the last page. There is a part in the book that reads "Don't Hold Out On Us." Well, don't Hold out on yourself.....find out what "Don't Hold Out On Us" is about.......... and, read the book.

Last summer a good friend of mine passed away and I remember sitting by his bed with him and his fiancee when the Doctors told him there was nothing left that they could do to cure his illness. With the same grace he displayed throughout his life, he accepted the news and when the room cleared leaving only the three of us we talked about the remaining days. We asked him about the things he wanted us to do with him and/or on his behalf with the time he had left (he would be confined to hospice for the remainder). We asked him if there was any "unfinished business" that he might need us to tend to. He had been ill for a while and therefore even more deliberate than usual about how he spent his time, with whom he spent it, and the experiences he accumulated as time dissipated. He had done everything he wanted in his short life, he had tended to the business that would take care of loved ones once he was gone, and he had no regrets and no unfinished business about which to think over what was his last couple of weeks. Though his life was full, as Todd Henry would say, he lived in such a way that he would soon "Die Empty". I loved "The Accidental Creative" (Todd's first book), read Todd's blog regularly, and listen to each of his podcasts...Inspiring! "Die Empty" is different...it's even better!! I aspire to live a life that leads me to feeling the same way my good friend did during his final days. That life requires us to spend a large portion of our time outside of our comfort zone, to reclaim our curiosity, and to stop talking about the "hypothetical value" of our ideas. Life is about action. Life is about doing. Life is about fulfillment and follow through. This book reminds us that passion is about suffering, not just enjoyment. And that if we care enough to "Die Empty", we need to be willing to suffer for the people and things we hold most dear. Reading this book may not be easy and it may make it a little more difficult to look yourself in the mirror today. However, by reading, heeding, and practicing the teachings we will all likely appreciate what we see as we reflect on our actions when our life comes to a close.

The book insists that its message is more than just "live like there's no tomorrow" but the reality is that the message isn't all that much deeper than that. Maybe it's a little deeper than "live like there's no tomorrow" but not by much. I can see this being useful to those stuck in a rut at work or in their life. It's geared more toward those looking to find fulfillment in their work. I was looking for something that would apply to creative endeavors (which this book claims it does and many recommend it for that) but I found the advice contained within to be generic. It was actually pretty hard to get through because of how generic it felt. This book boils down to: do your best work, you don't know when you're going to die, don't you want to die without regrets? And that can be useful to some people but it just wasn't for me. It ignores the realities of daily life. It attempts to address those realities but does not do a good job of it. Sometimes in life you just have to slog through something unfulfilling and get your fulfillment elsewhere. If you hate your job, change careers. If you can't, try to make peace with that and get your happiness from something else. It all boils down to "try this or that". Okay, great. We all try. I think the state of the world right now is really bringing to light the problems with advice like the kind contained in this book. There was a time when we could all ignore or set aside these issues and delude ourselves into this way of thinking that promotes the idea that living to work is fine and you can be happy doing that if you find a way to make your work fulfilling. Now many are seeing that working to live is a better option and maybe we should focus less on work and more on what makes us happy outside of that. And again, this book says it isn't an excuse to extract maximum productivity out of workers while getting them to smile about it but in the end it's exactly that. The book focuses so much on work that by the end I felt worse than when I started reading it. I give it three stars because it's written decently (albeit not very compellingly) and I know there are people who would find the content useful. That said, even those who do find it useful may be better served by focusing less on work and more on other pursuits that fulfill them.

Favorite Quote: There’s nothing wrong with experiencing comfort as a by-product of your labor, but you can’t make it your chief goal. Greatness emerges when you consistently choose to do what’s right, even when it’s uncomfortable. Story Synopsis: COVID-19 brought many issues around work to the forefront of our minds. More people want to discuss how, where, when, and why we work in a changing society. Die Empty highlights our collective desire to do great work, explains what frequently gets in our way, and how to change it. Now, more than ever, people want meaning, and Die Empty can help you find and deliver it. Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day is a lovely, much-needed non-fiction book about how to deliver your best work every day. I particularly liked it because of the title: Die Empty. Sure, it sounds a bit morbid, but the truth is we all die. Remembering you have a finite amount of time helps maximize the time you have. Thoughts & Feelings: I loved the length of this book: not too long, not too short, just right. Too often, self-development topics don’t have quite enough to be a book, so the content is padded with tangential facts, barely related anecdotes, and common-sense moments described as life-altering epiphanies. I found the tactics Henry describes as most beneficial. I enjoyed how Henry outlines different aspects of our work – mapping, meshing, and making – and how different combinations of dominant and non-dominant work styles affect your output. Also, Henry addresses adjusting your habits and expectations and when to ask for help when you are stuck.

Die Empty is a good motivating read for the working professional. If you are not in a creative occupation then you have to stretch to fit much of his advice to your life but there is still a lot of good motivating advice in this book. As with all motivational books pick the pieces that work and inspire you. I gave it 4 stars because it was really aimed at the creative professional. If you are not one then it isn't as useful for you, but you still should consider giving it a shot because there is a lot of good stuff you can take away from it, just don't be afraid to skip the parts you don't feel apply to you.

Define your battles and circle your wagons! Unleash your best work! I'm delighted to review Die Empty by Todd Henry. Maybe you feel aimless and need to take bold steps toward your destiny. Toddy Henry is an author, speaker, and thought leader. He is also the author of Accidental Creative, Herding Tigers, and Louder than Words. He wants us to Die Empty of passion, curiosity, and regret. This book is part motivation and part roadmap. Todd has a knack for inspirational content. He wants us to redirect our compass and take a stand. Stoke the claims of curiosity. He's also a pragmatist. There are questions at the end of each chapter. I found Todd Henry on Grant Baldwin's podcast, The Speaker Lab. I think of his statements as darts of poignant calls to action. He gives theory and practical suggestions. Mapping + Making + Meshing = Developer. That's translated into Mapping (Planning or Strategizing) + Making (Doing the work) + Meshing (Analyzing what you've done) = Developer (Successful Person). We often miss one or two elements. We could be drifting (no planning). We could be dreaming (not doing). Thank you, Todd!

Definitely worth reading. Good book to add your library and imbibe it in our lives.

Excellent book

Bin über ähnliche Bücher zu diesem hier gekommen. War of Art und Turning Pro sind aber wesentlich besser und behandeln fast das gleiche Thema.

If you need to uplift your soul and go an extra mile in life, this is for you!

A must read book!!