Outliers: The Story of Success

published

2011-02-05

rating

4

The first half of Outliers is a collection of interesting stories that illustrate how success is a combination of lengthy practice and socio-economic circumstances rather than intrinsic ability or sheer will. He tells the stories of Bill Gates (founder of Microsoft), Christopher Langan (highest recorded IQ), The Beatles, J. Robert Oppenheimer (leader of the Manhattan Project), and many others. In each case he shows how their success was a product of very special circumstances and 10,000 hours of practice. The second half of the book argues that our cultural legacy has a very significant impact on our lives. From feuding families to Korean airline crashes to the connection between rice agriculture and math skills, Gladwell again finds some very interesting case studies to support his thesis.