Introduction Growing up, I'd become accustomed to hearing the voice of reason when it came to making decisions around what to do with my life: ?If you want to succeed, Ryan, find a ?safe? career path, get a ?good job?, work hard, and make money'. It's well-intentioned advice, isn't it? Working hard to become self-sustainable and responsible very often produces financial results. There's no substitute for hard work and many people who work hard, even doing jobs that don't excite them, are able to support themselves financially, and may have money left over for the occasional vacation or luxury. Some might even become immensely wealthy. Once in a while, though, I'd hear those outside, influential voices that we all hear from time to time. These people tell us ?go for the gold? or ?follow your dreams because nothing else matters'. They might tell you to listen to Aristotle, who famously said, ?Know thyself'. They're the ones whose mantra is: you only live once; you might as well enjoy it.

We hear sayings like these from motivational speakers or religious leaders, in commencement speeches, or maybe even read them on bumper stickers or posted onto social media pages. And there's a part of all of us that wants to believe these ideas really badly, since we have this hunger to live a life of happiness. We all want to be one of those people who looks back on their life when they're 90 years old and says, ?I truly lived?, rather than simply, ?I made a living'. We all want to live according to our own rules rather than follow the tired, beaten path that others have set before us. And we all want to make an impact on others and on the world. This certainly applied to me. Especially as I started my career post-college, I wanted to believe these grandiose ideas of living with passion and pursuing happiness. After all, there were people out there who had the audacity to go against the grain, who found genuine happiness and achieved success beyond their craziest dreams.

So while the vast majority of us kill ourselves working extended hours, living a life of stress or constantly questioning the meaning of our lives, a select few have figured it out: They're successful, but they're not constantly stressed out or agitated. They seem to live every day with excitement. Somehow, these people didn't have to sacrifice wealth and success for happiness; they achieved both! I like to call these people ?The 1%'. They're the select few who followed their own path, weren't afraid to go after their dreams, and excelled at life to levels that the other 99% just dream about. Often, such people rise to the top of our society, make immense contributions to the world and to those around them. They may even make an impact that will remain for generations. The big question for me then was: How do I do that in my own life? How do I take these bumper-sticker sayings and apply them? How do I even figure out what my dreams are? What's the key to finding happiness and living to my full potential? Why is it that some people end up finding huge success and achieve so much, but are also enjoying their lives rather than ?putting in their time? or ?doing what they have to? Are they just lucky? Did they all come from entitled, rich families? Are they just the smartest people in society? Early in my career, directly post-college, it became obvious to me that most people have not figured out these answers. They have no idea how to even approach living a life of fulfillment and happiness.

As a result, they live their lives by simply following the daily grind of dragging themselves to a job that they feel pressured to keep for financial security, perform tasks that too often don't motivate or excite them, and pursue goals that are assigned to them by someone else, but that don't truly move them. Most people trying to shape a career and make a comfortable living subscribe to the idea that success requires nothing but sacrifice and hard work. They forget, or at least ignore, the ?life is to be enjoyed? part. In my career in Corporate America, I'd commonly notice during my morning commute to work that very few fellow commuters riding the bus or subway seemed excited to be going there. Most looked stressed or like they were dreading the day ahead. Upon arriving to work, I'd hear co-workers say sarcastically, ?Ugh! Is it Friday yet? (It was only Tuesday.) Too many people are wishing their lives away, just waiting for their next weekend or vacation day, rather than living with passion and excitement every day. Too many of us feel pressured early in our careers to ?do what has to be done? or try to compete with those who earn more money or have more material possessions than we do.

In an endless pursuit of trying to prove ourselves to others, keep up, and meet the expectations of other people, we ignore the most important thing: What do we want to be doing with our lives? What were we put on this earth to accomplish? What is our dream for our life? Our vision for happiness? So many seem to be living according to the belief that you either follow a safe career path and settle for a ?life of complacency? or live the ?life of a dreamer? and risk horrible failure and homelessness. We seem to believe that living a life of happiness is far more risky than living a life of putting bread on the table and being a ?responsible adult'. Certainly, it's admirable to want to earn a livable wage and become a self-sufficient person. But how do we do that, while simultaneously following these optimistic, exciting, bumper-sticker-worthy ideas to pursue our calling, follow our dreams, and enjoy our lives? And what if doing that didn't mean facing terrible risks like bankruptcy, homelessness, or a lackluster career? These questions have bothered me for a long time. I've always believed that life is too short to not enjoy it. A life of checking boxes and doing what's ?normal? is a life of complacency and thereby a missed opportunity. We only get one shot, after all. That's why I've spent the past 10 years studying people who achieved extraordinary success in their lives, but who have done so by pursuing their passions.

I've been desperately seeking to understand what it is that separates the achievers ? those that are truly fulfilled, happy,_ and actively contributing to their own happiness as well as to others and to society ? from those that fall into the trap of complacency and even boredom in their lives. I observed people like past and present-day presidents, Oprah Winfrey, Nelson Mandela, and highly successful corporate executives. But I also learned from everyday local heroes who were making huge impacts on their local communities and found happiness doing what they loved. In studying and interviewing such people, I found those who achieved both success and happiness in life didn't do so through some kind of biological or economic advantage over the rest of us. There wasn't a particular skill, level of support, education or intelligence that gave them the edge over everyone else; what they had was the right approach and mindset. They followed a set of principles that we can all model in our own lives. After working with and studying these people for over 10 years, I'm writing this book to describe these principles to you with the hope that you can take your life in an exciting, ?authentically you? direction, a life where you enjoy every day, live with enthusiasm and passion, while still contributing to society, working hard, and achieving what you desire. Because trust me: It's possible.