Malcolm Gladwell: Outliers | Once Over Review

Well didn’t I just think it was time to review a book! And who better than the great Malcolm Gladwell, known for such best sellers as ‘The Tipping Point’, ‘Blink’ and his latest, ‘What the Dog Saw’. But today, we are going to be looking at his last big hit...

Outliers!!

Outliers is such a great book for this blog because it so brilliantly encompasses the sort of thing I want to be reviewing. Something that you’ve probably heard a lot about, but have maybe never been convinced enough to invest in reading. Well, I did the ground work for you and will tell you if it's worth your time/money. And if you’ve read it, see what you think about my review. Am I out to Lunch? Or did I hit the nail on the head.

And if you haven’t read the book watching the clip up there will help give you the idea of what the book is about.

So, whats the deal with this book? Well, I’ve gotta say, Gladwell actually kind of let me down to be honest. I’ve read Blink and The Tipping Point and will probably read his newest book, But Outliers left me feeling kind of ripped off for three main reasons.

1. Maybe you’ve heard that this books talks a lot about the 10,000 Hours thing. Basically is says (chapter after chapter) that if you spend 10,000 hours doing something you’ll be a pro....



Which, you know, was shocking to me because I’m, uh... mentally retarded! Ya Gladwell, practice makes perfect, we get it. Is that really that ground breaking? Did we really need to read this book to know that? No. In fact, if you didn’t already know, you just read it a couple sentences ago. Now I just saved you about $30 on a sub-par book. 


2. The other main premise of the book is that people themselves have very little to do with whether they are successful or not. Rather, it's where and when you were born that will determine your success. Which A: is just a kick to the pants because I don’t know about you, but my parents last names aren’t ‘Gates’ or ‘Hilton’, so I guess I might as well not work that hard cause I’m destined to be middle class at best. But also B: Why am I reading this book then? Where the hell are my '10 Easy Steps to Success'? Because if you’re essentially telling me I’m SOL when it comes to success, again, you don’t need to tell me, I know. But thanks for taking my money. I’m was bound to get swindled one way or another. 


3. Finally, are we really so shallow of a society that we solely gauge success of financial gain??



Yes. 



But that kinda sucks doesn’t it? The truth is that I will never have a private jet, or own an island, but I don’t believe that means I wont be successful. I have a beautiful wife I love, a great job, and amazing friends and family. How is that not success?

Overall, I give Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers a 4/10, and I don’t think you need to read it. His other stuff is good, but this books is not really going to benefit you in any way. It does have a few entertaining stories, but not enough to make it worth while.

Cheers