Outliers-The Story of Success, by Malcolm Gladwell

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Outliers-The Story of Success is a sociological, and psychological non-fiction book, which discusses success, and the driving reasons behind why some people are significantly more successful than others. Malcolm Gladwell explains this by dividing the book into two parts, opportunity and legacy. Opportunity discusses how select people are fortunate enough to be born between the months of January through March, and also includes the idea that those who are already successful will have more opportunities to improve and become even more successful. The 10,000-hour rule proves the idea that in order to become successful in a certain skill, one must have practiced that skill for at least 10,000 hours. In addition to the 10,000-hour rule, timing is also a major component that implies being in the right place at the right time, which brings the author to discuss Bill Gates who was born during the time where programming and computer technology was emerging, therefore sparking his interest in computers, later bringing him to create Microsoft. Another point Gladwell brings forth is the notion of one’s upbringing, race, and ethnicity can be a factor behind their success. And lastly, pursuing meaningful work will cause one to continue working with their skill and not give up. Legacy is a collection of examples that support the idea: values are passed down from generation to generation, which may cause a certain group of people to be more persistent in a skill, or occupation. Although the author, Malcolm Gladwell did not major in sociology or psychology in college, his credibility for Outliers comes from his background in journalism. His career in journalism began after he was rejected from every advertising agency he applied for. He finally ... ... middle of paper ... ...ssed with such skills to be successful, there is always time to improve both business and designing skills to become a successful fashion designer. Other than how this book personally encouraged me and discouraged me, it was eye opening to see such a coincidence of birthdates among all-star hockey players and how Bill Gates just happened to be born in the wake of computer technology. It is also very shocking to see the racial demographics behind plane crashes and the relationship between math, rice, and Asian people. I am glad that I was able to read this book because despite the limits it places on success, it provides a better understanding of the possible reasons why some people become outliers while other remain average. Works Cited "Outliers The Story of Success" by Malcolm Gladwell http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/books/18kaku.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

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