Walking the Tight Rope

I read a great book on the weekend “Walking the Tight Rope” by Dr. Tom Barrett. Although I thought it was great, many people would not get a lot out of it and certainly would not get the same things out of it that I did.

The book is about balancing family and professional life. I did not fully “get” the book as one underlying assumptions of people who talk about balance is that they do not like their work. This is an assumption I cannot accept. I am also of the belief that most truly successful people are not very balanced.

What I did get from the book was the continued importance of being real regardless of ones position. There is a tendency in life as one becomes more successful for everyone to shield them from the bad news. There is a temptation to talk and lose the ability to listen. Part of the key to continued success is to not lose the ability to listen.

The book is targeted towards members of congress. All of the examples and advice is centered around public life. It talks about how the job changes the person (something I believe). The key is to have control over what changes you allow.

One quote used is “too soon old, too late wise”. My quest for wisdom continues.