The Highlight Reel is a blog series where I share passages that I’ve highlighted on my Kindle during my commute to and from work each day. The selections are mostly from self-help and work/marketing-related books.
I’m sharing them because I don’t believe we get enough good advice about how to relax, stop worrying about the small things, and look at the bigger picture.
Stand Out: How to Find Your Breakthrough Idea and Build a Following Around It
“There’s a huge amount of fear and uncertainty about how to respond to our changing circumstances, so if you can provide others with sound, intelligent, actionable advice, your work will be noticed—and appreciated.”
“[D]eveloping a Big Idea doesn’t require genius. What’s required are skills that many professionals already have—the ability to ask good questions, to challenge assumptions, and to listen to your gut instinct that alerts you when the rest of the world is overlooking something.”
“Your expertise doesn’t have to include the most prestigious diplomas or accolades; sometimes you just have to know how to do something different in a given context, and do it well.”
“Too often, we don’t bring our full selves to work—and that’s a mistake. The things that make you a fantastic employee or entrepreneur are frequently what you learned in off-hours, whether it’s the time management skills of being a parent, the adaptability and curiosity that comes from backpacking around the world, or the focus that comes from gaining mastery at a hobby, whether it’s tennis or chess or poetry or computer programming.”
“If you want to develop breakthrough ideas, something outside the norm, you need to be willing to live outside the norm.”
Brian Burns 