I knew Simon Sinek's name but not who he was, until I heard a YouTube video where he spoke about AI, and what will distinguish humans in the coming work culture. He was so articulate and compelling that I looked him up, found this book, and bought it.

The premise is that our culture is largely focused upon discrete accomplishments, looking to check boxes, and to "win the game," whatever the game may be--hence the title. But winning inherently implies that the game is finite, and at the end of a determined period of time, whoever is ahead will win the game. The infinite game, by contrast, has no beginning or end. It's not inherently zero-sum, where if one person has all the chips, then everybody else has none. It's the concept that "life is about the journey, not the destination." This book applies that concept primarily to business, and argues that businesses that are playing the infinite game not only end up doing better in business over the long haul, but they also attract loyal customers and employees, because their goal is in some capacity to make the world a better place--not just to make more money. It's the most interesting way to reframe the concept of integrity, and purpose, that I think I've ever heard.

It's also a great life reframe, and a good reminder for high achievers everywhere. At the end of our lives, the goals that we all believe matter most have no "end point," no moment where we can check that box and say we've achieved being a good friend, good spouse, good child, good parent, and now we can move on to something else. It's an infinite game.