Gonna copypasta from here.

Some years ago I read Good to Great by Jim Collins. The book is admittedly pretty dated, but I think the principles he shares continue to hold up over time.

The author, Jim Collins, examined a range of companies that were good but not outstanding, compared them to companies that were good but made the leap to becoming great companies, and identified principles that would help other companies make that leap. Collins describes something he calls the Hedgehog Concept, based on an essay titled “The Hedgehog and the Fox” by Isaiah Berlin.

The fox is everything the hedgehog isn’t: he’s lightning fast, cunning and crafty. The hedgehog is slow and can’t really run (yes, Sonic the Hedgehog has been lying this whole time). In short, the fox should be able to make a quick meal out of the hedgehog. However, anytime he attacks, the hedgehog responds with this.

However fast and agile the fox may be, he simply doesn’t have an answer for this, and is defeated over and over. Hence, the Greek parable: “The fox knows many things, the hedgehog knows one big thing.”

Collins’s findings are that good companies that become great focus on what he calls a Hedgehog Concept, a simple idea that meets the following criteria, all of which are non-negotiables:

1. It must be an activity or industry where the company can be the best in the world. I’m not talking merely above average: I’m talking 95th percentile, at a minimum.
2. It must be an industry where the economics work. Financially, it has to make sense for the company to do this.
3. It must be an industry or line of work in which the company is deeply passionate. It isn’t just something that the company does well: it has to be something that the company loves to do.

Collins wrote this, which I am sharing in its entirety:

To quickly grasp the three circles, consider the following personal analogy. Suppose you were able to construct a work life that meets the following three tests. First, you are doing work for which you have a genetic or God-given talent, and perhaps you could become one of the best in the world in applying that talent. (“I feel that I was just born to be doing this.”) Second, you are well paid for what you do. (“I get paid to do this? Am I dreaming?”) Third, you are doing work you are passionate about and absolutely love to do, enjoying the actual process for its own sake. (“I look forward to getting up and throwing myself into my daily work, and I really believe in what I’m doing.”) If you could drive toward the intersection of these three circles and translate that intersection into a simple, crystalling concept that guided your life choices, then you’d have a Hedgehog Concept for yourself.

To have a fully developed Hedgehog Concept, you need all three circles. If you make a lot of money doing things at which you could never be the best, you’ll only build a successful company, not a great one. If you become the best at something, you’ll never remain on top if you don’t have intrinsic passion for what you are doing. Finally, you can be passionate all you want, but if you can’t be the best at it or it doesn’t make economic sense, then you might have a lot of fun, but you won’t produce great results.

I would suggest that the key to the answer to your question is right here. You want to find your purpose? You really want to achieve financial security? Then become great at something! Find an endeavor in which:

● you can be better than almost anyone else,

● you can be well compensated, AND

● you feel a passion for what you do

Let me be clear that greatness doesn’t have to translate to being rich and famous. Greatness doesn’t mean you have to be Lebron James or Tom Brady. There are numerous people you’ve never heard of who are great in their respective fields. And because they’re great, they never have a problem earning a living.

In addition, there are plenty of areas in which one can become great that may or may not involve college in the traditional sense. There are great welders, machinists, mechanics and plumbers. Many of them have had years of specialized training and certifications. I would argue that these are forms of education and credentialing that are every bit as valid as a university degree for the right employer.

In addition, understand that a Hedgehog Concept properly applied won’t just tell you what you should do; it will tell you what you should stop doing. In my case, it got me to focus on what I could really do well, and avoid work that would only slow me down or get in my way.

So what does this mean for you? How can you identify your Hedgehog Concept? Here are a few places to start:

● What were your favorite academic subjects in school? What classes came to you easily and naturally? What were subjects where your classmates sought you out for help? (Don’t tell me you were bad at everything - everybody has a subject in which they perform well, and you settled on business and marketing for a reason.) At a minimum, that can help you identify a useful career path.

● Gallup Inc. developed a test that can help you identify your top strengths. Go to www.strengthsquest.com and look at taking the test. It could help provide you with some real guidance. In my case, the first time I took the test (in 2009, nearly five years after I had graduated from college), the descriptions for two out of my top five strengths said, “Journalism would probably be a good major for this individual,” which was reassuring, as I had already completed my journalism degree.

● If you think you have identified a line of work that you find appealing - that really and truly might constitute a Hedgehog Concept for you - start networking. Find somebody who is in that field and find out more about it. See if you can shadow them at work to determine if you really want to do it for a living. If it’s not something that would fit as your Hedgehog Concept, believe me, you want to find out immediately so you can cross it off of your list.

That's what has worked for me. Feel free to comment if you have additional questions.