Summary: Author and speaker Dan Pink discusses his new book and career lessons that every young professional should be aware of. To download this podcast, click here After studying manga, a type of Japanese comic, Dan Pink decided to deliver business wisdom to America in the manga format for a new twist on the typical business advice book. Dan discusses career planning, one of six main topics in his book. He says that although students expect their career to follow a linear path, this is rarely the case. Dan outlines two reasons we make a decision: instrumental reasons (you do something because you think it will lead to something else) and fundamental reasons (you do something because you want to do it). The people who really flourish make decisions for fundamental reasons, even though this can be very difficult. For example, if you choose a major in school thinking it will lead to one specific career choice, then you are limiting yourself. Dan asks listeners to find someone who is doing something really interesting and worthwhile and ask them how they got there, and nine times out of ten, they will not have followed a set, planned path. Dan thinks the secret to success is to use your strengths, instead of focusing on repairing your weaknesses. Career centers can play a huge role in helping people discover their strengths. Next, Dan discusses another of his theories: persistence trumps talent. A moderately talented, extremely persistent person will outperform an extremely talented person who is not very persistent. Dan’s final advice is to make excellent mistakes, meaning mistakes that come from high aspirations that provide a learning experience. Daniel Pink is the author, most recently, of THE ADVENTURES OF JOHNNY BUNKO: The Last Career Guide You’ll Ever Need, the first American business book in the Japanese comic format known as manga. His previous book was A WHOLE NEW MIND: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future, a long-running New York Times and BusinessWeek bestseller that has been translated into 18 languages. Dan lives in Washington, DC, with his wife and their three children. www.danpink.com Like this podcast, why not share it?
