Outliers: The Story of Success: Malcolm Gladwell
Outliers: The Story of Success: Malcolm Gladwell
Outliers: The Story of Success: Malcolm Gladwell
An Executive Summary of
Preface
The
Outliers
is
a
book
that
deals
with
the
enigmatic
mystery
of
why
some
people
succeed
far
more
than
other
people.
In
his
own
thought
provoking
way,
Gladwell
asserts
that
the
reality
of
success
if
quite
different
and
if
people
want
to
really
grasp
the
true
meaning
of
why
people
succeed,
they
should
delve
into
other
areas
of
their
life
that
includes
their
birthplace,
family
and
birthdates.
Gladwell
explains
the
secrets
behind
the
success
of
Bill
Gates,
the
Beatles,
star
athletes
and
other
successful
people
who
have
pushed
the
boundaries
in
their
lives.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
For
instance,
40%
of
the
players
in
the
hockey
league
were
born
between
the
months
of
January
and
March,
30%
between
April
and
June,
20%
between
July
and
September
and
the
remaining
10%
were
born
between
October
and
December.
This
simply
means
that
a
child
born
in
January
has
a
significant
advantage
over
the
other
kids
because
he
is
going
to
be
more
physically
and
mentally
mature
than
the
other
kids.
These
privileged
kids
will
be
selected
to
the
best
teams
receiving
even
better
coaching,
and
train
with
even
better
teammates,
compounding
the
built-‐in
advantage
they
have
over
kids
born
later
that
year.
Gladwell
provides
several
other
examples
in
baseball,
hockey
and
soccer
to
prove
that
children
born
earlier
have
a
certain
advantage.
Further,
he
compares
this
concept
in
the
education
system
and
asserts
that
parents
with
children
born
in
later
months
often
try
to
hold
their
child
back
before
beginning
kindergarten
for
the
same
reason.
As
Gladwell
talks
about
the
advantages,
it
makes
one
wonder
whether
talent
plays
a
role
in
success.
As
an
answer,
Gladwell
agrees
that
it
does
play
a
role;
however,
it
might
not
be
as
highly
important
as
you
may
think.
Not
everyone
who’s
born
in
January
that
plays
hockey
becomes
an
instant
success,
but
there
are
other
factors
that
could
help
a
person
to
become
successful.
A
sociologist
named
Robert
Merton
coined
this
phenomenon
as
the
“Matthew
Effect”,
which
states
that
people
who
receive
special
advantages
during
their
lives
are
more
likely
to
attain
success.
Bill
Joy,
the
co-‐founder
of
Sun
Microsystems,
found
that
he
was
presented
with
a
string
of
opportunities
to
help
him
succeed.
Interestingly,
he
was
able
to
attend
one
of
the
only
universities
that
offered
a
time-‐sharing
system
for
its
computers
and
since
the
computers
had
a
bug,
he
was
able
to
access
them
for
an
unlimited
amount
of
time.
In
an
interview
with
Gladwell,
he
stated
that
it
took
him
10,000
hours
to
practice
and
write
programs
that
are
used
by
millions
of
people
even
today.
Similarly,
Bill
Gates
experienced
numerous
coincidences
as
he
happened
to
attend
the
only
private
school
that
allowed
a
time-‐sharing
system
with
their
computers.
Bill
Gates,
just
like
Bill
Joy,
used
the
opportunity
to
his
advantage
and
the
fact
that
he
lived
close
to
the
University
of
Washington
that
offered
free
computer
hours
helped
him
too.
Upon
taking
a
closer
look
on
the
biography
of
Beatles,
it
is
interesting
to
note
that
they
had
the
opportunity
to
practice
and
master
their
skills
when
they
were
struggling
as
a
high
school
band.
Incredibly,
they
played
about
1200
times
in
night
clubs
between
1960
and
1965,
thus
catapulting
them
towards
success.
Based
on
these
findings,
Gladwell
concludes
that
the
people
born
between
1954
and
1955
had
a
greater
opportunity
to
become
successful
within
the
computer
industry.
People
who
experienced
a
raging
success
included
Bill
Gates,
Paul
Allen,
Steve
Blamer,
Steve
Jobs,
Eric
Schmidt,
Vinod
Khosla
and
many
others.
The
reason
was
that
they
had
the
right
age
and
opportunities
to
put
in
the
hours
and
become
skilled
before
the
computer
boom.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
Chapter
3:
The
Trouble
with
Geniuses,
Part
1
In
this
section,
Gladwell
talks
about
how
people
are
awed
by
geniuses
with
higher
IQ
levels.
He
notes
that
Christopher
Langan,
a
genius,
has
gained
celebrity
status
as
an
outlier.
With
his
IQ
over
195,
a
number
that
was
more
than
Albert
Einstein’s
IQ
of
150,
he’s
considered
by
many
people
as
the
smartest
man
in
America.
Gladwell
also
talks
about
Lewis
Terman,
a
professor
in
the
Stanford
University
who
decided
to
test
the
IQ
of
a
boy
named
Henry
Cowell.
Cowell’s
IQ,
which
was
at
140
points,
stunned
Terman
because
that
was
very
close
to
the
genius
level.
Commonly,
people
think
that
these
men
are
destined
to
achieve
greater
things
because
they
are
so
smart.
Terman
created
a
group
of
highly
intelligent
children
who
were
selected
after
various
IQ
tests.
For
years,
Terman
kept
track
of
‘Termites’,
a
name
given
to
the
geniuses
in
his
group.
However
after
years
passed,
Terman,
who
expected
his
Termites
to
become
great
leaders
in
the
society,
was
disappointed
to
discover
that
achievement
and
intellect
weren’t
connected.
Gladwell
explains
this
concept
further
by
asserting
that
an
individual’s
IQ
or
intelligence
does
matter;
however,
it
must
reach
or
go
beyond
a
certain
threshold.
It’s
very
similar
to
basketball
where
a
player
surely
gains
an
advantage
due
to
his
height,
but
the
height,
just
like
intelligence,
has
a
threshold
too.
Simply
put,
if
one
has
an
IQ
of
about
120,
additional
IQ
may
not
really
help
him.
It
is
other
factors
outside
of
raw
intelligence
that
determines
how
successful
you
will
become.
On
the
other
hand,
Robert
Oppenheimer,
who
gained
immense
popularity
as
a
physicist
during
the
World
War
II,
was
born
in
a
rich
family
to
a
successful
businessman.
He
had
the
opportunity
to
attend
the
best
colleges
when
he
was
very
young
and
although
his
thought
process
was
similar
to
Langan’s
thinking,
he
had
the
ability
to
carve
out
a
way
for
himself
in
the
worst
of
the
situations.
Gladwell
states
that
Oppenheimer’s
practical
intelligence
was
definitely
a
major
factor
in
his
success.
To
emphasize
his
point,
Gladwell
presents
the
findings
of
a
study
conducted
by
Annette
Lareau.
The
study
delved
deep
into
the
parenting
styles
of
rich
families
in
comparison
with
poorer
families.
Incredibly,
Lareau
discovered
that
children
who
grew
up
in
a
sophisticated
environment
were
able
to
better
communicate
with
others
including
questioning
authorities,
while
children
who
grew
up
in
poorer
families
usually
avoided
such
situations.
Since
Langan
was
born
in
a
poor
family,
he
wasn’t
able
to
function
like
Oppenheimer
and
there
was
nothing
he
could
do
about
it.
Similarly,
Terman’s
‘Termites’
met
the
same
fate
as
none
of
the
kids
who
were
from
a
poorer
background
were
able
to
make
a
name
for
themselves.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
to
apply
everything
that’s
been
explained
in
the
first
four
chapters
and
understand
that
success
doesn’t
pop
up
out
of
nowhere.
Successful
people
don’t
really
achieve
it
all
by
themselves
and
their
background
clearly
matters.
Alexander
Bickel,
a
man
who
tried
to
get
a
job
in
Mudge
Rose,
was
one
of
Flom’s
classmates
from
the
Harvard
University.
Bickel’s
background
was
similar
to
Flom’s
because
he
too
was
the
son
of
a
Jewish
immigrant
couple,
and
he,
just
like
Flom,
went
to
a
school
in
New
York
before
attending
the
City
College.
However,
he
was
denied
a
job
in
Mudge
Rose
since
the
senior
partner
felt
that
their
firm
would
face
limited
possibilities
of
growth
if
they
were
to
hire
a
boy
of
his
antecedents.
Therefore,
Flom
and
Bickel
found
jobs
at
other
undesirable
firms
with
less
work.
However,
with
a
twist
in
fate,
these
jobs,
including
litigations
and
hostile
takeovers,
suddenly
became
amazing
opportunities
when
the
industry
experienced
a
major
boom
in
mergers
and
acquisitions.
The
best
part
was
that
their
undesirable
jobs
were
suddenly
something
everyone
wanted
to
do
and
so,
Bickel,
Flom
and
others
were
in
a
perfect
position
to
exploit
the
situation
to
their
advantage.
Gladwell
talks
about
the
interesting
story
of
Maurice
Janklow,
a
son
of
a
Jewish
immigrant
couple.
He
attended
the
Brooklyn
Law
School
way
back
in
1919
and
bought
a
writing-‐paper
firm
and
it
appeared
like
he
was
about
to
make
it
big.
However,
the
business
failed
and
Maurice
struggled,
but
his
son
Mort
Janklow
went
on
to
amass
a
fortune
when
he
conducted
business
with
Cox
Broadcasting.
Gladwell
compares
the
stories
of
both
the
father
and
son
and
states
that
the
timing
of
their
birth
played
a
key
role
in
their
success.
While
Maurice
bought
the
business
when
the
US
was
almost
on
the
verge
of
the
Great
Depression,
Mort
who
was
born
in
the
1930s
was
perfectly
poised
to
take
up
good
education
and
become
a
successful
lawyer.
Gladwell
declares
that
the
1930s
was
perfect
for
aspiring
lawyers,
just
like
it
was
for
the
software
programmers
who
were
born
in
1955.
In
this
section
Gladwell
explains
how
Jews
were
unlike
any
other
immigrants.
He
talks
about
Louis
Borgeicht,
an
immigrant
from
Poland
and
Regina
Borgeicht,
an
immigrant
from
Hungary.
Once
the
couple
realized
that
there
was
a
solid
demand
for
clothes
in
New
York,
Louis
began
manufacturing
aprons
at
home
while
Regina
assisted
in
selling
them
on
the
streets.
The
couple
couldn’t
own
their
own
land
in
Europe,
but
they
were
experienced
and
knew
how
to
live
in
big
cities.
Moreover,
they
had
specific
skills
in
making
clothing
and
a
great
boom
in
the
garment
industry
opened
several
doors
for
them.
An
entrepreneur
working
in
the
garment
industry
found
that
it
was
meaningful
work
since
it
was
linked
with
complexity,
autonomy,
and
a
perfect
connection
between
hard
work
and
reward.
Upon
inspecting
the
family
trees
of
Jewish
immigrants
created
by
Louise
Farkas,
a
sociology
student,
Gladwell
points
out
that
there
are
definite
similarities
between
how
they
began
working
and
while
the
second
generation
usually
consisted
of
garment
manufacturers,
the
children
born
to
them
went
on
to
become
successful,
educated
professionals.
Though
the
Jews
faced
disadvantages
as
immigrants,
they
ultimately
proved
to
be
incredible
opportunities.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
Chapter
6:
Harlan,
Kentucky
In
this
section,
Gladwell
emphasizes
how
cultural
legacies
operate
like
powerful
forces,
spreading
to
several
generations
one
after
the
other.
Although
we
see
numerous
alterations
in
our
economical,
demographical
and
social
conditions,
our
cultural
legacies
play
an
important
role
in
directing
our
behavior.
To
explain
his
point
further,
Gladwell
th
discusses
several
unexplainable
events
that
occurred
in
the
19
century
in
Harlan,
Kentucky.
The
Harlan
County,
situated
on
the
Cumberland
Plateau,
was
founded
by
about
eight
families
that
existed
in
the
British
Isles.
After
a
period
of
time,
two
families
fought
with
each
other
and
what
had
started
as
a
small
fight
in
poker
turned
out
so
violent
that
people
were
killed
in
the
dozens
after
several
brutal
attacks.
Interestingly,
this
was
only
one
among
several
other
feuds
that
were
occurring
all
over
Kentucky
at
the
same
time.
So,
how
do
you
explain
this
phenomenon?
As
an
answer,
sociologists
addressed
that
several
original
inhabitants
from
England,
Scotland
and
Northern
Ireland
believed
in
the
“Culture
of
Honor”,
which
stated
that
they
had
to
prove
themselves
to
be
strong
and
valiant.
In
other
words,
their
honor
and
reputation
was
most
important
for
the
herdsmen.
In
another
study
conducted
by
Richard
Nisbett
and
Doy
Cohen
at
the
University
of
Michigan,
several
students
who
were
about
18
to
20
years
old
were
subjected
to
a
myriad
of
insults
before
they
returned
back
to
their
classrooms.
The
reactions
displayed
by
the
students
were
measured
by
taking
a
closer
look
at
their
facial
expressions,
hormone
levels
in
saliva,
handshakes
and
other
factors.
Astonishingly,
the
results
displayed
that
the
students
hailing
from
the
southern
states
were
absolutely
furious
and
researchers
attributed
this
to
their
cultural
legacy.
In
addition,
there
were
evident
differences
in
the
reactions
of
these
students
when
compared
to
others
from
different
regions.
There
are
several
factors
involved
in
a
plane
crash
and
though
it’s
not
a
result
of
any
specific
error,
it’s
a
combination
of
several
errors
that
often
lead
to
disastrous
outcomes.
Captain
Laureano
Caviedes,
the
pilot
of
Avianca
052,
wasn’t
drunk
or
drugged;
in
fact,
he
was
exhausted
after
being
held
up
for
about
77
minutes
by
the
Air
Traffic
Controller
(ATC).
Finally,
he
was
granted
clearance
to
land,
but
since
the
headwind
plummeted
substantially,
the
plane
couldn’t
land.
Unfortunately,
the
autopilot
wasn’t
even
working
and
though
the
pilot
tried
to
save
the
plane
by
circling
around
with
the
intention
of
landing
again,
the
engines
died
resulting
in
a
huge
crash
that
claimed
158
lives.
He
had
simply
run
out
of
gas.
This
information
makes
one
question
as
to
why
the
plane
crashed
even
when
both
the
pilot
and
first
officer
were
aware
of
the
fuel
shortage.
At
this
point,
Gladwell
presents
a
transcript
of
the
conversation
that
was
retrieved
from
the
black
box
and
it’s
quite
obvious
that
the
primal
reason
for
the
crash
was
the
first
officer’s
inability
to
communicate
effectively
in
such
a
catastrophic
situation.
Upon
further
investigation,
it
was
found
that
Klotz,
the
man
supposed
to
communicate
with
ATC
had
engaged
in
“mitigated
speech”,
a
term
used
by
linguists
to
describe
people
who
have
a
tendency
to
cover
up
or
sugarcoat
things.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
In
the
airline
industry,
pilots
receive
a
lot
of
respect
and
have
the
ability
to
command
others
in
undesirable
situations,
but
Klotz
who
was
a
first
officer,
had
problems
communicating
the
exact
message
when
the
plane
was
about
to
crash.
You
would
expect
frantic
activity
in
the
cockpit
in
such
frantic
situations,
but
incredibly
there
was
a
lot
of
silence
in
this
event
and
Klotz
never
told
the
ATC
that
they
would
crash
if
they
weren’t
given
immediate
attention.
Since
Klotz
hailed
from
a
country
that
had
a
different
cultural
legacy,
he
wasn’t
able
to
get
his
point
across
when
the
situation
called
for
it.
To
explain
his
findings
further,
Gladwell
discusses
a
study
that
showed
that
people
from
low
PDI
countries
(Power
Distance
Index)
usually
tend
to
downplay
authority
while
people
from
high
PDI
countries
abide
with
respect
for
authority.
In
other
words,
Klotz
who
was
from
Columbia,
a
high
PDI
country,
couldn’t
downplay
the
authority
of
the
officer
in
ATC
and
thus
headed
to
a
fatal
crash.
Fortunately,
Korean
Air
realized
where
they
went
wrong
when
their
pilots
were
using
the
same
mitigated
speech
patterns,
thus
failing
to
communicate.
After
they
identified
this
problem,
they
amended
it
and
Korean
Air
is
now
considered
very
safe
to
travel.
One
way
that
this
was
done
was
to
change
the
language
in
the
cockpit
to
English.
Compared
to
Korean
where
you
can
speak
in
four
different
forms
depending
on
the
rank
and
politeness
of
the
person
you
speak
to;
English
is
a
language
with
lower
power
distance.
An
informal
tone
is
crucial
in
emergencies,
where
communication
needs
to
be
quick
and
without
any
misunderstandings.
Gladwell
then
talks
about
how
rice
cultivation
had
a
major
effect
on
the
cultural
legacy
of
China.
As
rice
cultivation
demands
specific
set
of
skills
and
extra
efforts,
it
is
known
that
the
people
who
cultivated
rice
work
more
than
any
other
type
of
farmer.
The
Chinese
believe
in
working
hard
and
shun
laziness.
Gladwell
concludes
that
the
Chinese
legacy
that
believes
immensely
in
hard
work,
cooperation
and
smart
planning
will
definitely
reap
great
results
over
time.
Mathematics
is
not
dependent
on
talent,
but
it
is
dependent
on
the
individual’s
persistency;
therefore,
Asians
are
well
adept
to
it
from
their
cultural
legacy.
A
research
conducted
by
Erling
Boe
states
that
there
is
a
direct
link
between
countries
and
math
rankings
on
the
TIMSS,
a
test
used
to
evaluate
academic
achievements
between
countries.
Countries
that
do
amazingly
well
on
TIMSS
are
Singapore,
China,
Japan,
Hong
Kong
and
South
Korea.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
times
a
year,
corn
and
wheat
fields
of
the
western
culture
follow
a
procedure
of
planting,
harvesting
and
then
resting
a
while.
Interestingly,
this
trend
can
be
seen
even
in
western
educational
systems
where
the
number
of
working
days
in
a
year
is
only
about
180,
which
is
much
lower
than
schools
that
run
for
220
days
in
South
Korea
or
243
days
in
Japan.
Karl
Alexander,
a
sociologist,
noticed
a
fascinating
pattern
among
children
in
Baltimore.
He
noted
that
there
was
a
considerable
gap
between
children
hailing
from
wealthy
families
and
other
kids
who
were
from
poorer
families.
What’s
more
interesting
is
that
he
found
this
gap
in
their
achievements
only
after
the
summer
vacations,
which
meant
that
while
the
rich
kids
ameliorated
their
skills
during
summer,
the
poorer
kids
relapsed.
Gladwell
states
that
the
schools
in
western
countries
should
increase
the
number
of
working
days
just
like
KIPP.
For
instance,
students
in
KIPP
attend
school
right
from
7.25
am
to
7
pm
on
weekdays
and
from
9
am
to
1
pm
on
Saturdays.
During
the
summer
days,
school
was
held
from
8
am
to
2
pm
consistently.
They
follow
the
Asian
structure
where
students
work
hard
from
dusk
to
dawn,
thus
becoming
highly
disciplined.
Needless
to
say,
the
students
also
receive
a
lot
of
attention
from
their
teachers
and
though
at
least
80%
of
poor
children
enroll
into
schools,
students
in
KIPP
get
a
head
start
to
achieve
something
in
their
lives.
Click
here
to
be
a
member
of
our
exclusive
mailing
list
(We
send
free
bi-‐monthly
book
summaries
for
Executives).
Read Reviews for
www.TheInvestorsPodcast.com/Sign-‐Up
Click here to be a member of our exclusive mailing list (We send free bi-‐monthly book summaries for Executives).