Analyzing Jeannette Gladwell's 'Outliers'

In Outliers, Gladwell’s main argument or claim is that the way people initially see success and intelligence, should not just be the individual itself, but where and how that individual became who they were. Gladwell highlights the fact that “People don’t rise from nothing. We do owe something to parentage and patronage” (19) and that outliers don’t “sprout from the earth” (269) but are made because of various factors such as age, race, where they were born, and the environment they grew up in.

In his book Outliers: the Story of Success, Malcolm Gladwell discusses successful people, and what it is in their lives that make them successful. While many believe that it is one’s intelligence and personality that allows them to succeed, Gladwell argues that it is the environment they live in. The author provides numerous examples that support his argument, including the people of Roseto who rarely die of heart disease, sports players born at a certain time of the year that are highly accomplished, the importance of culture in airplane pilots, and many more. Out of all the various people doing extraordinary things described by Gladwell, a certain individual caused me to stop and think. Christopher Langan is known as the smartest man in America. With an IQ of 195, Langan is a clear example of what is referred to in Gladwell’s book as an outlier. His cognitive abilities are far higher than than that of the average person, who possesses an average IQ of 100. Langan should be a highly successful man, but he isn’t. Chapters 3 and 4 of Outliers explores why Langan, who is possibly the most intelligent person in the world, has accomplished nothing more than what an average person will accomplish in his or her lifetime. This inspired me to further examine people like Langan, and why they weren’t as successful as they were expected to be.

According to Gladwell, there is a 10,000-hour rule which details that if you want to become an expert in something that you would need to practice that skill for at least 10,000 hours. Practice in reality is a primary factor in determining your success: "Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good." (Gladwell 59). If people did not condition themselves to practice for a number of excruciating numbers during the week, would we have people such as Yo-Yo Ma or Beethoven, both

Mistake; to make a wrong judgment, an action or decision that is wrong or produces a result that is not correct or not intended. When we were young our parents always told us, “it takes a big person to admit their mistakes”. Contrary to this popular statement, what if you never actually made a mistake in the first place and fate was at fault for your failure? In his novel “The Outliers”, Gladwell claims that “if you work hard enough and assert yourself, and use your mind and imagination, you can shape the world to your desires” (Gladwell 151). However, I disagree with this statement because success is rare and no matter how hard you work, you may never change the world around you. No matter how hard you work, there will be people that drag you down, circumstances you face, obstacles that stand in your way, and a world that will refuse to change for you.

Like no other before it, Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers gives insight into a world of success only a select few are able to view firsthand. Gladwell portrays date of birth, economic status, and obstacles that are overcome by luck rather than perseverance as the key ingredients for a recipe of triumph. Time and education seem to be the underlying factors while socio-economic status also plays a sizable role in determining who succeeds and who does not. While I do not consider myself an outlier currently, as so many of my peers and schoolmates enjoy what I enjoy, it is very clear that, given the opportunities afforded to me, it may not be long before I am considered an outlier and achieve success, both on a monetary and mental level.

Malcolm Gladwell, the author of Outliers, believes that working at something for 10,000 hours is required to achieve mastery and become a world class expert at anything. While this is a nice way of making it seem like anyone can be successful, it is simply not true. Some people will never achieve proficiency in a domain, no matter how much practice they put into it. There are a variety of factors that play into expertise besides practice and certain domains require much less practice than the magical 10,000 hour threshold that Gladwell established.

This plays a role in the story as the author constantly tries to define how certain individuals are more successful than others. Throughout the outliers, Gladwell attempts to question how success is made from asians having a higher intelligence in math, to the months of successful hockey players, and how certain individuals succeed without studying. By looking at ways

In “Outliers”, Gladwell argues that achievement isn't conceived with anyone and it's just earned by the diverse factors. Gladwell utilized his strategy to demonstrate that achievement takes a considerable measure of training and it additionally relies upon components, for example, age, opportunity and the ideal time. Gladwell exhibits in the text that “basic minimum of ordinary achievement is less about talent and intelligence than about opportunity’ (Psychobabble and Biobunk 10). Gladwell argues that there isn’t much talent required to achieve success but rather the right

The non-fiction work Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell covers the stories of countless successful people upon this earth, deceased or otherwise. In chapter 2 of the book, Gladwell focuses on a theory titled “the 10,000 hour rule,” which hypothesizes that it takes at least ten thousand hours of practice to become proficient in any given field. Within the main topic of the importance of practice, there are two sub-ideas: opportunity and luck. Gladwell supports his ideas with examples of these things at work.

From our readings in Outliers we’ve learned how difficult it is to succeed in life without hard work and savvy. Even geniuses have been known to underachieve if their intelligence fails to match a great work ethic. Other factors come into play as well that help those who have ascended in a field reach their potential” Their success was not just of their own making. It was a product of the world in which they grew up.” (pg. 67 Gladwell) For those of us that lack the hidden advantages afforded to the wealthy, we look to education in order to bridge the gap between, what society deems as success and failure which presents its own interesting challenges. Being smart enough to excel in higher education

In my opinion, you did an excellent job on the summary of the Outliers, Chapter 1, concise and to the point. Most people would agree with Gladwell’s findings that the individuals born in January through March birthdays had more time to develop, it is logical. Do you suspect Gladwell purposely chose this chapter to be first in the book, with the intention that we would find his other writings just as fascinating and be swayed to agree with his assumptions during the rest of the book?

Outliers Outliers is a story about how people become successful through various different theories, practices, and tests. I extremely enjoyed reading this story because it makes you want to change your actions in order to become successful. Outliers explains the various different methods and ways to achieve success. Whether that be the “10,000 hour practice rule” or the luck of a birth date, anyone can strive towards success. The story opens up about “The Matthew Effect” and why hockey players are born in the January, February and March months, while baseball players are born in the June and July Months.

I place my beautiful Howarth XL gently back in its case. In the lights it shines brightly, and if the lights hit it just right, it sparkles and blinds. The Grenadilla wood at first looks flawless and black in color, yet as one peers closer a rich brown color becomes visible and the wood grains show it is real. I close the case, and as I walk from the room I turn off the lights. One hour of practice down, thousands more to go.

I do believe that innate talent is a real and has a factor in determining one’s success in a certain field. Through the study of genetics, innate talents are proven to be real and can be founded in the traits people are born with. For instance, arm length is a remarkable factor in sports like boxing, tennis, and volleyball. However, natural talent alone does not specifically mean success or mastery of a field. Success is determined by the talents an individual has, the amount of preparation and practice done, and the number of opportunities one is presented with.

Gladwell presents a strong argument for “concerted cultivation” in comparison to natural growth in his book Outliers. "The Trouble With Geniuses,” chapter two of Outliers He introduces us to new groups of “Outliers” which fall into the category of genius. In this essay I will define purpose, voice, audience and context used in the chapters describing the troubles related to geniuses.