My initial reaction to “Life Is What You Make It”, by Peter Buffett, was two-fold. On one hand, I couldn’t help but wonder what I could possibly learn from the son of the mega rich Warren Buffett. Secondly, I was stoked! Finally, after a year of trying to figure out what in the world I wanted to major in, somebody was going to give me some answers. With the cover’s promise that I would find my path to fulfillment within the pages of the book, I could not wait to begin reading Buffett’s story.
Before going any further, I must say this: For any tragically undecided collegiettes™, this book will not give you and easy answers or quick solutions. In fact, upon completing the book, I found myself with even more tough questions on my plate. If you’re looking for somebody to spell-out what your future career should be based on the kind of money you want to make, or what your parents tell you is the best option, then think twice. Instead, Buffett provides thoughtful questions to help you find your life’s purpose…which does not necessarily mean a career.
“Life is What You Make It” offers collegiettes™ a chance to search deep within themselves to ask some BIG questions…you know, the kind that signal adulthood has begun. In twelve chapters, inspirational quotes, and personal anecdotes, Buffett establishes why we should take advice from him in the first place (he actually grew-up rather normally), how he followed his own life advice (if you think he’s working on Wall Street right now, you’d be wrong), and what you have to look forward to once you figure out where your life is headed (a pretty sweet adventure).
Like with any self-help book, some chapters in “Life Is What You Make It” offer more of a chance for self-reflection than others. One of my personal favorites was titled “Normal is what you’re used to”. So much of what is wrong with our generation stems from the fact that we are a culture obsessed with ourselves. Buffett reminds his readers that normal is only normal in the context of your own world. Once you realize this, suddenly a whole new array of careers and life paths open up outside of our views of “normal”.
Similarly, Buffett’s chapter “No one deserves anything” also hit home for me. Especially as a college student, it’s so easy to fall into the idea that we get what we deserve, and to naturally assume that you deserve more than everyone else (e.g. I deserve to be at a well-known college. I deserve to have the best internships. I deserve to get the highest paying job possible). But Buffett is quick to remind readers that nobody deserves anything. You can’t control the hand you were dealt in life…but you can control how you play it.
With that being said, Buffett definitely seems to be targeting a privileged sort of audience with his book. And while he is quick to note that “privileged” doesn’t necessarily mean coming from a wealthy family, it could mean having loving and supportive people in your life, it seemed to me that money was his primary yardstick for privilege. Regardless, Buffett spends a great deal of time explaining (and making a good case for) why it’s imperative to first examine where you come from before you can really find where you want to go.
Overall,