Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

🚀 The Book in 3 Sentences

1. Outliers defines the ways in which certain successful people throughout history had opportunities that helped push them to the top of their field.
2. The advantages that we usually think of, like high IQ, are often not the advantages that really make a difference.
3. Our culture’s legacy can dictate how effectively we capitalise on the advantages we are given.

🎨 Impressions

Malcolm Gladwell is pretty widely-known for writing books of high quality, like Outliers. This book certainly did not disappoint.

While nothing in the book seemed counter-intuitive, it certainly was not something I had thought of before. Even though we may put the same amount of effort everyday to move towards success, so many other factors play significant roles. I think we forget about that sometimes.

Understanding how we might be able to seize the advantages that we are given because of our upbringing and luck can help propel us towards success. I think it also demystifies a lot of the great success stories of history. These people were not necessarily super-geniuses or inherently amazing, but instead a combination of opportunities that allowed them to succeed.

Upon further research, I found that some of the claims that Gladwell makes in Outliers are disputed or have later been proven false, but I think the overall concept still stands.

How I Discovered It 

I first heard about Outliers in high school when I was learning about the American Dream and success. A couple months later, I bought the book but for the past two years it has sat on my shelf waiting to be read. I finally read it and it did not disappoint.

Who Should Read It? 

I once heard someone say this book is one “the rich doesn’t want you to read”. Take that as you will, but I think this book is suitable for anyone.

☘️ How the Book Changed Me 

• This book has really made me consider how my childhood fit into these models and studies and how I might have gained advantages due to my upbringing I hadn’t even realised. For instance, books were always available for me, which allowed me to prevent some summer “brain drain” when I was younger.
• If I want to succeed, I realise I now need to take a look at the advantages I was given and seize the opportunities that come. Otherwise, purely working hard may not pay off quite as well. The cliche “work smart, not hard” seems apt.

✍️ My Top 3 Quotes

• Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good.
• Hard work is a prison sentence only if it does not have meaning. Once it does, it become the kind of thing that makes you grab your wife around the waist and dance a jig.
• Success is a function of persistence and doggedness and the willingness to work hard for twenty-two minutes to make sense of something that most people would give up on after thirty seconds.

📒 Summary + Notes

Introduction: The Roseto Mystery

Outlier: noun

1: something that is situated away from or classed differently from a main or related body

2: a statistical observation that is markedly different in value from the others of the sample

Chapter 1: The Matthew Effect

Sometimes things as simple as when we are born can have massive influences on our opportunities. For example, children born earlier in the year score on average much higher on standardised testing than their younger classmates. By “ability-grouping” kids early, the children who are older and score better are then deemed gifted and given more advanced classes to learn better skills. Over time, the gifted kids grow exponentially. Thus, “it is those who are successful, in other words, who are most likely to be given the kinds of special opportunities that lead to further success”.

As a result, the “accumulative advantage” certain people get leads to success. But, it is also the systems that we set up that determine who gets ahead, and these systems are not very efficient. The students who may be just behind in age don’t get the same opportunities, and their inherent talent may be squandered. If we change how the systems are arranged concerning age cutoffs in sports and education, we could capitalise on a lot more talent than we do currently.

Chapter 2: The 10,000-Hour Rule

Is there such a thing as talent? In short, yes. However, talent isn’t everything. In a study of amateur and professional musicians, the main difference between the skill level was the number of hours practiced. The best musicians had practiced for thousands of hours whereas the amateurs had practiced for much less. In study after study, the people at the top of their disciplines, whether artistic, academics, or athletes, all of them have practiced for thousands of hours to achieve mastery. The estimate for how long this will take: 10,000 hours.

The stories of tech icons such as Bill Gates and Bill Joy and musical legends like The Beatles all had amazing opportunities that allowed them to accumulate their 10,000 hours rapidly. When the computer industry was first developing, Gates and Joy had already been programming for thousands of hours because of a series of fortunate events that allowed them to work on early computers. The Beatles had the opportunity of playing for hours and days and months on end in clubs and bars in Hamburg before taking the rest of the world by storm. Thus, when combining certain advantages with hard work and dedication, mastery is achievable with the lucky number of hours: 10,000.

Chapter 3: The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 1

Does IQ matter in life? Yes, and no. Lewis Terman, Stanford graduate and the inventor of the IQ test, believed the way to create the geniuses that will lead the country in the future was to nurture kids that had high intelligence when they were young. After an extensive study set over many years, it turns out that the kids that had genius-level IQ’s when young did not all end up at the top of society. Instead, there was an equal spread of them across all social classes. Why did they not all become part of the elite?

The main conclusion is that after a certain level (around 130), a higher IQ is negligible. In large part, once we grow up, the IQ we have as a kid isn’t the most useful thing in a lot of situations. Instead, what becomes more important is something psychologist Robert Sternberg calls “practical intelligence”.

Chapter 4: The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 2

Take two men. Both are incredibly intelligent, but both have made big mistakes. One is expelled from his college; the other is given probation and therapy as punishment for wrongdoing. The first is unable to keep a job; the second is able to manoeuvre his way into leading the Manhattan Project, which is arguably the most important science development of the twentieth century. What set the two men apart?

It was their practical intelligence, their ability to “know what to say to whom, knowing when to say it, and knowing how to say it with maximum effect”. General intelligence (IQ) and practical intelligence are “orthogonal”, meaning they’re not related. You can have a lot of both, a lot of one and not of the other, or neither. The second man from the scenario had a lot of both, while the first only had a lot of IQ.

Where does practical intelligence come from? Unlike IQ, which is somewhat genetic, practical intelligence develops based on our social standing as we grow up. Growing up in a lower income house, the child is expected to be more independent and creative with their own time. Kids that grow up in middle and upper class families receive “concerted cultivation” from the parents, where they learn to interact with adults and are placed in a variety of activities, making them learn skills like teamwork and organisation. Later on in life, it’s the kids that were better off that interact better with authority, with an inner sense of entitlement, that they can get something if they try. On the other hand, the kids that grew up in poorer homes are more distant and distrustful of authority and aid, opting to be more independent. Essentially, it’s the culture we grow up in that can more heavily decide our abilities later in life.

When Terman was examining the results of his childhood genius study, he found that their success later on in life was largely based on their social standing as a kid. Those that had grown up in upper and middle class homes ended up in the upper tiers of society while those that had grown up in lower class homes remained in the same place.

Chapter 5: The Three Lessons of Joe Flom

Joe Flom was a partner at one of the largest law firms in the world, but his beginnings were very humble. There’s three main reasons why he was able to rise to the top of his profession and it’s not the classic “work hard and you’ll make it” cliche.

Lesson 1: The Importance of Being Jewish

Being Jewish in the mid-twentieth century meant that Flom was never hired at any of the big firms after finishing law school. The big firms all turned him down in favour of more “Nordic” men instead of someone of “immigrant antecedents” like him. So, Flom was forced to start his own small practice with other Jewish friends from law school, taking on any case that came their way. This meant they handled a lot of litigation, which the big firms would not touch. As a result, Flom got a lot of practice handling litigation cases during the 1950’s and 1960’s. Then, when corporate litigation became very profitable in the 1970’s, Flom’s firm had years of experience to take advantage of the boom.

Because of his heritage, which would have hindered his success as a lawyer, he was positioned to become one of the most successful lawyers of the twentieth century. “What started out as adversity ended up being opportunity”.

Lesson 2: Demographic Luck

The year in which you are born might make all the difference. Due to the Great Depression and Second World War, millions fewer kids were born in the 1930’s. This meant that the number of children enrolling in school was smaller and there were more opportunities for more people when they got to college. Therefore, those who normally wouldn’t have the opportunity were able to get into prestigious schools, and then move on to better jobs that paid more. Purely because of the luck of being born in a specific period of time, an opportunity may arise to get ahead and succeed.

Lesson 3: The Garment Industry and Meaningful Work

In the twentieth century, Jewish immigrants to New York City had experience in the clothing trade. This experience allowed some to quickly work their way towards the top of a massive industry. The job was very entrepreneurial, requiring them to navigate the complexities of the city and was very hard work to get off the ground. But, the reward of the hard work matched the effort.

These three things: autonomy, complexity, and a connection between effort and reward, are what Gladwell defines as the requirements for meaningful work. Moreover, being a child in a house in which your parents both have meaningful work that pushes them towards success teaches you that anything is possible with determination. A study showed that the children and grandchildren of Jewish immigrants that became entrepreneurs in the early twentieth century overwhelmingly became lawyers, doctors, and other highly-paid professionals. Growing up witnessing meaningful work and success created generations of success later on.

Chapter 6: Harlan, Kentucky

Harlan, Kentucky is a town in the highlands of the Appalachian Mountains. Like other mountainous towns, the people of Harlan have a “culture of honor” due to them primarily being herdsmen, since farming is not possible in the steep terrain. The “culture of honor” meant that anyone has to be willing to fight in response to even the slightest challenge to their reputation, such as having their livestock stolen. Their culture of honor came from their ancestral roots in Scotland and Ireland, where life was particularly rough. Many years later, in a study of college students in the 1990’s showed that the same pattern of aggression in response to a personal injustice held true for many of the students for the Appalachians, but was nonexistent in students from other places.

While this might not mean a lot, it shows the importance of cultural legacies and how they shape our present behaviours.

Chapter 7: The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes

In 1999, Korean Air was almost put out of business because of how often their planes were crashing. Then, after 1999, their record was spotless. This was terrible, but it was not entirely the pilots’ fault; it was one specific aspect of their culture that was causing trouble in the cockpit.

Most plane crashes happen after a series of minor mistakes that, if left uncorrected, can cause catastrophe. During stressful flights, such as during bad weather conditions, the pilot’s likelihood of making these minor mistakes increases. However, the rest of the flight crew is usually able to help the pilot and keep the plane running smoothly.

The problem with Korea Air and several other airlines is a cultural one. In certain cultures, “Power Distance Index” (PDI) is a measure of a culture’s attitudes toward hierarchy and how much a culture values and respects authority. With a low PDI, power holders are almost ashamed of their power and will try to put themselves on the same level as those below them. With a high PDI, people without power will have a deep and abiding respect for authority. South Korea was ranked as having the second highest PDI in the world.

As a result, the rest of the flight crew did not make stern demands in order to correct mistakes that stressed, tired pilots were making. So how did Korean Air turn around such a terrible record? They were re-trained by the US’s (a country with a low PDI) Delta Airlines. The Korean pilots were all taught English which gave each pilot a different identity so that they could subvert the traditional Korean hierarchy. Then, they were able to more effectively correct mistakes and technical errors with quick demands.

Chapter 8: Rice Paddies and Math Tests

The first lesson from this chapter is that growing up learning an East Asian language such as Mandarin gives you an advantage in math. Because of the structure of the language, using and manipulating numbers is much more straightforward than in English. This is then translated to ease when doing math that may make them enjoy it more and study harder and for longer, as compared to English-speaking classrooms. Even though some highly-flawed studies tried to link Asian people being good at math to genetics, it seems that it is more connected to their language and culture.

Rice paddy farmers work harder than any other kind of farmer, due to the nature and complexity of cultivating rice. It is hot and difficult work, but the work is meaningful like the garment manufacturers’ (see Chapter 5.3). As a result, the proverb “No one who can rise before dawn three hundred sixty days a year fails to make his family rich” arose. Similar to the other success stories of putting in thousands of hours of work, it is a part of Asian culture to work hard.

Researcher Alan Schoenfeld believes mathematics is more about determination, perseverance, and attitude than talent. In this way, those that are willing to work hard and long at understanding problems will have the most success. Therefore, with a culture of hard work and enjoyment of mathematics, East Asian countries are at or near the top of the list for an international comprehensive math and science test for elementary and junior high students.

Chapter 9: Marita’s Bargain

The American school schedule was originally developed so that all children would get a comprehensive education to learn how to read and write, but not to get “too much schooling”. So, American schools have a long summer vacation for students’ minds to rest after being cultivated. The problem is that summer vacations increase inequality between students’ education.

In a study using testing at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year, it was shown that kids of all socioeconomic statuses improved their test scores by a similar amount during the school year. However, when comparing the tests from the end of one year and the start of the next year (on either side of summer vacation), a gap emerges. Higher and middle class students continue to grow over the summer, whereas the lower class students stagnate. Time away from school has very different results for different kids. Higher and middle class families can afford lots of books and academic camps to keep their children learning during the summer, but the same cannot be said for lower class students. These children are left behind.

One solution is to have more school for students that need it. KIPP, an academy program in New York City, has longer school days and shorter vacations. This way, students can stay in the classroom longer and not fall behind their more affluent peers in other schools. The bargain is that the students will have to sacrifice some of their time outside of school. In return, they get the advantage of much better success at college admissions and a better future.

Outliers are not necessarily the brightest or most talented, but those that have the strength and presence of mind to capitalise on the opportunities they are given.