The Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Reading the book 'The Outliers' by Malcolm Gladwell. Very easy to read and uplifting as he processises the occurrence of success - being at the right place at the right time and hard work (ten thousand hours of practice). Malcomn brings home the importance of practical intelligence, which is the ability of a person to know what to say, when to say it and how to say it for maximum effect. It is about knowing how to do something without necessarily knowing why you know and be able to explain it. The presence of general intelligence(IQ) does not imply the presence of practical intelligence. This kind of intelligence may come from genes or "concentrated cultivation" where parents actively attempt to foster and access a child's talents, opinions and skills. Such concerted cultivation has enormous advantages. The heavily schedules child is exposed to a constantly shifting set of experiences. She learns team work and how to cope in highly structured settings. She is taught how to interact with adults, and to speak up when she needs to. Such children learn a sense of "entitlement".

Everyone is a function of where they are from, i.e each one carries a legacy. How their parents, grand-parents were and the kind of values and ideology that they followed and passed on. 'Each of us has his or her own distinct personality. But overlaid on top of that are tendencies and assumptions and reflexes handed down to us by the history of the community we grew up in, and those differences are extraordinarily specific'. Some examples Malcolm gives are of the "Culture of Honor" from the Appalachia, where a man's reputation is at the center of his livelihood and self-worth. The lack of English communication skills in South Korean pilots causing plane clashes. The persistence and doggedness and the willingness to work hard by the east Asians which conditions them to put in the necessary effort to succeed at Math. The KIPP program in New York which gives disadvantaged kids a head start by making them work extra hours which they would have otherwise wasted.

To conclude as per Malcolm 'Success is not a random act. It arises out of a predictable and powerful set of circumstances and opportunities. If you can work hard enough and assert yourself, and use your mind and imagination, you can shape the world to your desires.'