Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell (2008, Unabridged, Compact Disc)

This book might appear obvious and even questionable to many people, but it contains several reminders and eye-openers that all of us often keep forgetting every day: true success and notoriety are for few - the environment, time and cultural heritage which one was born and raised are, putting them all together with hard work, persistence and a certain level of intelligence, decisive factors which set one individual or another apart from the others.

If one takes the time to think about the core message, it will certainly draw the conclusion that it all makes perfect sense. The world is full of intelligent, brilliant and hard working people and only if there were enough chances for each and everyone of them to show and develop the correct abilities at the right place, by the right time and to the right people, chances are that he/she might become an outlier on his/her field of expertise. The point is that nobody chooses whether or not to be an outlier, it just happens.

The author points meaningful considerations about the how the educational system and other purely cultural aspects may affect the ability of an individual or a group of them to develop hard work and constant practicing, which is absolutely relevant for creating the conditions for more and more people to be a potential "Outlier". And here is where the book starts to function as a provider of a powerful message, rather than a simple shortened biography of some outstanding people - you don't have to be an outlier, but you can be somebody which can make the whole difference.

Good book, entertaining and inspiring from start to finish.

Malcolm Gladwell has become an influential public educator by examining the obvious. In Outliers- successful people who stand out from the rest of the crowd- he posits that where a person comes from matters, whether you are Bill Gates or the Beatles. His gift as a writer is to look for answers in the wisdom and research of experts, academics, kooks- ouliers all.

The lesson of Outliers is this: Successful people are not successful by accident. They are the product of will and determination, and of forces beyond their control: ancestry, parenting, community and....dumb luck. He argues that practice is an important part of success- a minimum of 10,000 hours, no matter what the specialty.

Gladwell's broader assertion is that there are no real outliers. Successes, he writes, "are products of history and community, of opportunity and legacy. Their success is not exceptional or mysterious. It is grounded in a web of advantages and disadvantages, some deserved, some not, some earned, some just plain lucky- but all critical to making them who they are." In other words, if it's not something, it's another. Life is a crapshoot. Each person is special.

Gladwell manages to make these pedestian observations interesting, somehow, and anyone who has read his previous books will find this one just as instructive.

This book sheds new light on what we call success. It shows that personal success is not attributed solely to self-will as believed in our world. True, many hours of hard work go into being successful and in being an "Outlier", but Malcom Gladwell clearly shows how our ancestry, timing of our birth and other elements play a huge part in our ultimate success. GREAT BOOK! I was so impressed by this book that I have also purchased his book entitled "Blink."

This is among the most interesting books on CD that I've ever listened to. Not only do I think it's worth listening to, I think it should be mandatory for everyone to listen to. I'm a boyscout leader and on a recent trip to the beach, I made two scouts listen to the CD despite our normal "no electronics" rule ... it's just that educational.

You'll not only be able to explain why many people succeed, you'll also get ideas on what it takes to be successful. You'll also learn what's 'not up to you' in terms of critical success factors.

You'll learn what the 1800's, 1955, and 10,000 hours have in common. I'll give you a hint: Bill Gates was born in 1955 (I, unfortunately, didn't go into computers and was born in 1957 ... I sell real estate in Charlotte at RLSTATE.COM LLC). Refer someone to me who buys a Charlotte area home and I'll be happy to send you "Outliers" on me, Bill Martin, Realtor/Broker/MBA - Accredited Buyers Representative.

I can't help but compare to his previous books "Tipping Point" and "Blink" both of which were much shorter. The concepts and observations in this book are very interesting and definitely worthy of consideration but could have been presented more concisely. An abridged version would not leave a reader any less informed.
I look forward to more of his brilliant insights.