We are living an earned life when the choices, risks, and effort we make in each moment align with an overarching purpose in our lives, regardless of the eventual outcome. In his most personal and powerful work to date, world-renowned leadership coach Marshall Goldsmith offers a better way to approach fulfillment that goes against everything we're taught about achievement. Taking inspiration from Buddhism, Goldsmith reveals that the key to living the earned life, unbound by regret, requires connecting the habit of earning rewards to something greater than our personal successes. Goldsmith implores readers to avoid the Great Western Disease of "I'll be happy when...." He offers practical advice and exercises aimed at helping us shed the obstacles that prevent us from creating fulfilling lives. From learning to privilege your future over your present, knowing how to weigh up opportunity and risk accurately, honing your 'one-trick genius' and needing to earn credibility twice, the book is packed with transformative insights and tools that will help readers close the gap between what they plan to achieve and what they actually get done-and avoid the trap of existential regret, the kind that reroutes destinies and persecutes our memories. Full of illuminating stories from Goldsmith's legendary career as a coach to some of the world's highest-achieving leaders and reflections on his own life, The Earned Life is a roadmap for ambitious people seeking a higher purpose.