In What to Make of a Life: Cliffs, Fog, Fire and the Self-Knowledge Imperative (2026), researcher and author Jim Collins applies his comparative research approach, previously used to study great companies, to the study of remarkable individual lives. This self-knowledge book is based on a 10-year research project examining 34 remarkable individuals in pairs matched at major life “cliffs”—such as astronauts John Glenn and Gordon Cooper—to identify recurring patterns in how they found direction, responded to disruption, and renewed their lives over time. The book addresses universal questions of finding a path, navigating major life disruptions, and sustaining inner fire over a lifetime. It is intended for achievement-oriented readers at any stage of life, whether they are young and searching, navigating a mid-life transition, or seeking renewal in their later years. The Key Takeaways of this guide are: Build Your Life Around a Personal Hedgehog; Discover Your Unique Encodings Through Self-Observation; Navigate Uncertainty by Taking Small, Iterative Steps; Maximize Your Return on Luck; and Renew Your Drive Through “Extend Out/Circle Back.”

This guide refers to the 2026 hardcover edition published by Harper Edge.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of death by suicide, child death, and illness.

Summary

What to Make of a Life identifies a central question that recurs throughout life: how to determine what to make of one’s life through deeper self-knowledge. Periods of confusion (“fog”) and significant life disruptions (“cliffs”) can require people to reconsider their direction and what comes next. The book rejects the idea of a single, pre-destined purpose and instead offers a framework for discovering possible paths that align with one’s innate capacities.

The core practice is to find a “personal hedgehog,” a sustained focus built on three intersecting elements: discovering your unique “encodings” (your intrinsic capacities and ways of operating), focusing your “inner fire” (the intrinsic drive to do the work itself), and “flipping the arrow of money” (90) (using financial resources to support the work one is encoded to do). To navigate periods of uncertainty, including those that can follow life’s cliffs, the book teaches “simplex stepping”—an iterative process of taking manageable next steps without needing to know the final destination. For long-term vitality, the book advocates for choosing responsibilities beyond oneself and creating a cycle of renewal through “Extend Out/Circle Back” (243), where one pushes into new challenges while also returning to earlier experiences and capabilities. Ultimately, the book returns to self-knowledge, encouraging readers to use reflection and meaningful conversation to determine how its findings apply to their own lives.