A pay-it-forward experiment
Take a book.
Or gift one to a friend.
Both of my books are free for you if you want them. Or pay to send a customized copy to someone who could use it right now.
I love sharing my books. When I first launched The Pathless Path, I hoped people would read and be committed to gifting it to anyone who wanted to read it. Over the past 4+ years, I've gifted thousands of the digital version and over a thousand print copies around the world.
Many people grab the book because it's free and never open it. But many others receive it as a gift and participate in a magical dance of giving and receiving. When I gift a book, I don't expect to receive anything back, but sometimes cool things do come back my way. My favorite thing is hearing how many people decide to gift this to friends or loved ones who are going through a transition in their lives.
Unlock more gifted books. I’ll add five additional gifts to give away anytime someone pays to gift a book or leaves a tip.
Receive a copy (PDF + EPUB)
Includes a snazzy ebook reader with text-to-speech aligned with the text.
Gift to a friend (Paid)
Includes a custom dedication inserted into the file.
About The Pathless Path
It takes a few wrong turns to find the right way.
Paul Millerd thought he was on his way. From small-town Connecticut kid to the most prestigious consulting firm in the world, brushing shoulders with CEOs and with the resume to match.
The Pathless Path is about finding yourself in the wrong life, and the real work of figuring out how to live. Through painstaking experiments, living in different countries and the goodwill of people from around the world, Paul Millerd pieces together a set of ideas and principles that guide him from unfulfilled and burned out to the good life and all of the existential crises in between.
This book is a personal journey of awakening and is an ideal companion for people considering leaving their jobs, embarking on a new path, dealing with the uncertainty of an unconventional path, or searching for better models for thinking about work in a fast-changing world.
Organized into two parts:
Part 1: The Default Path — Exploring the history of work through my own aggressive pursuit of a prestigious and impressive career.
Part 2: The Pathless Path — Embracing a different kind of journey, one focused on coming alive, embracing uncertainty, experimenting, and being open to possibility.
About Good Work
What if work isn't just something you do, but a portal to a life where you can feel fully alive?
In Good Work, Paul Millerd invites us to question everything we thought we knew about work. Paul traces his winding path through candid personal stories: from chasing elusive "good jobs," to desperately seeking escape from worldly responsibilities, to an unexpected discovery that changed everything. Sitting at a table halfway around the world, a profound question emerged: What if work doesn't have to suck? What if it can be the center of a life well-lived?
This isn't a book about climbing the corporate ladder or "crushing it" as a creator or entrepreneur. It's an exploration of what happens when you dare to question everything you've been told about work and its role in our life. Millerd shares his journey of opening himself up to questions like:
- What truly constitutes "good work" beyond a job?
- How might embracing uncertainty lead to fulfillment?
- What lies beyond "losing your edge"? Is there a new source of motivation?
- Can you prioritize family without sacrificing opportunity?
- What is the most ambitious life path? Is it external or internal?
What began as an escape attempt became a mission to redefine work. Good Work challenges conventional wisdom, offering not a step-by-step guide, but a companion for those brave enough to question the status quo and seek a more ambitious life path.
I want to read more about this whole gifting thing
I've been doing gift economy experiments since 2018. Read more here.
Ideas for paying it forward
I genuinely don't need or want anything back but love when people continue to engage in a broader gift economy. How can you do that?
- Root for someone on their creative journey
- Buy a creator's work and share it
- Gift something that makes you a bit uncomfortable
- Credit someone for a good idea or piece of writing in public
If you must find a way to pay me back, please only do so after finishing and enjoying any of my books. A few simple things you can do:
- Subscribe to my newsletter
- Purchase a print version of my book or the fancy hardcover edition (or even better, gift this to someone else).