So Good They Can't Ignore You

In this extraordinary eye-opening account, University professor Dr. Newport debunks the long-held traditional notion that 'following your passion' is good career advice. Skill and ability trump passion. Inspired by Jobs' famous Stanford University commencement speech in which Jobs urges idealistic grads to chase their dreams, Newport takes issue with that advice, claiming that not only is this advice Pollyannish, but that Jobs himself never followed his own advice. Newport presents compelling scientific and contemporary case study evidence that the key to one's career success is to find out what you do well, where you have built up your career capital.

Cal Newport, Ph.D., lives in Washington, D.C., where he is a writer and an assistant professor of computer science at Georgetown University. He also runs the popular website Study Hacks: Decoding Patterns of Success. Deep Work is his fifth book.