“Inner Excellence “ by Jim Murphy (2025) was recommended to me by one of the most impressive female leaders I’ve met to-date. She spoke in a panel at recent awards dinner and I have been following her ever since. She was kind enough to let me schedule time with her, and during our call she mentioned this book to me when the subject of personal development content arose. It has just been published in March and she finished it. I quickly downloaded the audio book and feasted.
Overview: The book takes about 10 hours of listening and is structured into 11 chapters. Murphy uses his past as a baseball player and other professional and semi-pro interviews to help readers understand the conscious and subconscious messages each of us tell ourselves that help or hinder our performance. He addresses fear and love in depth and argues that resonance (whole congruence and flow) and Zoe (highest level of Maslow’s hierarchy) are the goal to a joyful life – one that truly lives and is fully present. One that is focused on the process, not the outcome.
Key Message: We are created for glory and you always have two choices – to move in reaction to fear, or to move with courage towards extraordinary experiences. (The Life Diamond Fig. 4.1 in accompanying PDF). He argues there is a difference between your belief and your thoughts – you are not your mind, and you need to know that so you can train it.
Supplemental Information:
Where it Falls Short: I found the book to be long. It took me more than two months to get through. All of his interviewers are saying that it is one of the best books that they’ve ever read but I don’t think the Audiobook was the right vehicle to receive the content. His voice wasn’t compelling and lessened my overall impression of its power.
Overall Assessment & Why: I rate it a 7 out of 10 in terms of a personal development book because of the delivery. I may attempt to read it on Kindle or paperback again to see if the sports and competitive athlete stories become “stickier.”