"I loved this book! It provides significant insights into living a happier, healthier, more rewarding life."
- Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
"Matthew Kelly's The Rhythm of Life is a treasure for all those who dare to believe that there is a best-version-of-themselves...miss it at your peril!"
- Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The One Minute Manager
"In The Rhythm of Life Matthew Kelly shows us how to find lasting happiness in a changing world... and how to fall in love again... with life. His message is both timely and timeless."
- Hal Urban, author of Life's Greatest Lessons
Do you ever feel that if you weren't so busy you would be healthier, happier, more effective, more fulfilled… and maybe even a better person?
In The Rhythm of Life Matthew Kelly exposes the lifestyle challenges and problems that face us in this age obsessed with noise, speed, and perpetual activity. In response, he proposes a lifestyle that promotes genuine well-being by attending to our legitimate needs - physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually.
From amidst an age inordinately preoccupied with doing and having, Kelly's message rings out with a truth that is challenging and unmistakably attractive - "Who you become is infinitely more important than what you do, or what you have." Are you ready to meet the-best-version-of-yourself?
The Rhythm of Life is a brilliant and clear-eyed rejection of the chaotic lifestyle that has captured the world, written with common sense, humor, and extraordinary insight. Victor Hugo once wrote, "There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come." In the present culture, The Rhythm of Life is that idea. This is a book that is destined to change lives!
Once every twenty-five years or so, a book comes along that perfectly identifies our common search and struggle for happiness, and using powerful stories and practical examples teaches us how to find lasting happiness in a changing world. This is that book. Not since M. Scott Peck published The Road Less Traveled have we experienced a voice as refreshing and authentic as Matthew Kelly.
Kelly has a way of thinking and writing that cuts through the stifling clutter of our everyday lives and delivers a clarity that is both refreshing and liberating. Here are just a few of the timeless creeds that he introduces in The Rhythm of Life...
"You were born to become the-best-version-of-yourself. This is your essential purpose. Embrace this one solitary truth and it will change your life more than anything you have ever learned. In every situation, simply ask yourself, which of the options before me will help me become the-best-version-of-myself?"
"Do not let your life be like a shooting star, which lights up the sky for just a brief moment. Let your life be like the sun, which always burns brightly in the heavens, bringing light and warmth to all those on earth. Let your light shine!"
"Everything is a choice. This is life's greatest truth and it's hardest lesson. It is a great truth because it reminds us of our power. Not power over others, but the often untapped power to be ourselves and to live the life we have imagined. It is a hard lesson because it causes us to realize that we have chosen the life we are living right now"
"Stop using all your time, effort, and energy chasing your illegitimate wants… thinking that they their attainment will deliver happiness and fulfillment. They won't. You never can get enough of what you don't really need! Turn your focus to your legitimate needs - physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual."
"The measure of your life will be the measure of your courage."
"You can learn more in a hour of silence than you can in a year from books. Immerse yourself in the classroom of silence for a few moments each day."
"Minimalism is the enemy of excellence."
"Energy is our most valuable resource, not time. The rhythm of life is a way of life that brings our legitimate needs, our deepest desires, and our unique talents into harmony with each other. The result: passion, purpose, and energy."
The Rhythm of Life will help you to bring into focus who you are and why you are here. Through this book Matthew Kelly will help you discover your legitimate needs, deepest desires, and unique talents. He will introduce you to the-best-version-of-yourself and lead you to a life filled with passion and purpose.
Matthew Kelly was born in Sydney, Australia. Over the past ten years two million people have attended his talks and seminars in more than fifty countries. He is the founder of The Matthew Kelly Foundation, which produces programs that help high school and college students to understand their legitimate needs, deepest desires, and unique talents… and become the-best-versions-of-themselves!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART ONE
WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM LIFE?
Everything Is a Choice 3
Do You Really Know What You Want? 5
The Happiness Paradox 13
Too Busy Doing What? 16
Quiet Desperation 18
The Five Questions 23
The Meaning of Life 26
Seven Dreams 31
A New Perspective 35
Live Passionately 39
PART TWO
FINDING YOUR GENIUS
The Gentle Voice Within 45
Understanding Our Legitimate Needs 47
Beyond Our Wants 67
Harnessing the Power of Our Needs and Desires 78
Everybody Is a Genius 80
PART THREE
THE-BEST-VERSION-OF-YOURSELF
Overwhelmed by Experts 89
Choosing Happiness 98
The Enemy of Excellence: Minimalism 104
Are You Free? 109
Follow Your Star 121
Celebrating Your Unique Self 132
PART FOUR
DISCOVERING THE RHYTHM OF LIFE
Why Are We All So Busy? 139
What Can Creation Teach Us About Ourselves? 151
Priorities 155
Timing 162
PART FIVE
IT'S ALL ABOUT ENERGY
Our Most Valuable Resource 169
Creating the Rhythm 171
The Three Instruments 173
Sleep: The Foundation of Energy 175
The First Instrument 179
The Sacred Hour 185
The Second Instrument 189
The Seventh Day 210
The Third Instrument 211
The Art of Slowing Down 218
PART SIX
THE WAY OF EXCELLENCE
A Childhood Lesson 221
What Is Success to You? 227
Why Are They Successful at Everything? 231
1. The Knowledge Principle 233
2. The Dream Principle 239
3. The Vision Principle 244
4. The Life Principle 245
5. The Thought Principle 250
6. The Dedication Principle 253
7. The Belief Principle 254
8. The People Principle 256
9. The Communication Principle 258
10. The Final Principle 260
The Ten Principles of Excellence 263
PART SEVEN
LIVING THE LIFE YOU WERE BORN TO LIVE
Enjoy the Journey 267
Be the Difference That Makes the Difference 271
Leaders, Critics, Dreamers, and the Future 283
How Do You Perceive the World? 290
Can You Hear the Music? 294
The Measure of Your Life Will Be the _Measure of Your Courage 298
Let Your Light Shine! 301
Excerpts from the new edition
Our Most Valuable Resource (p.169-170)