Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World
Ratings31
Average rating3.8
15
Ratings31
Average rating3.8
WINNER of the Chartered Management Institute's (CMI's) Mangement Book of the Year Awards 2017, JP Morgan's Best Summer Read 2018, and a #1 New York Times Bestseller! ‘Extraordinary’ JJ Abrams ‘Fascinating’ Arianna Huffington ‘Inspire creativity and change’ Richard Branson ‘One of my favourite thinkers’ Malcolm Gladwell ‘Masterful’ Peter Thiel ‘One of the great social scientists of our time’ Susan Cain, bestselling author of Quiet ‘Fresh research, counter-intuitive insights, lively writing, practical calls to action’ The Financial Times The New York Times bestselling author examines how people can drive creative, moral, and organisational progress—and how leaders can encourage originality in their organisations. How can we originate new ideas, policies and practices without risking it all? Adam Grant shows how to improve the world by championing novel ideas and values that go against the grain, battling conformity, and bucking outdated traditions. Using surprising studies and stories spanning business, politics, sports, and entertainment, Grant explores how to recognize a good idea, speak up without getting silenced, build a coalition of allies, choose the right time to act, and manage fear and doubt. Parents will learn how to nurture originality in children, and leaders will discover how to fight groupthink to build cultures that welcome dissent. Told through dazzling case studies of people going against the grain, you’ll encounter an entrepreneur who pitches the reasons not to invest, a woman at Apple who challenged Steve Jobs from three levels below, an analyst who challenged secrecy at the CIA, a billionaire financial wizard who fires employees who don’t criticize him, and the TV executive who saved Seinfeld from the cutting room floor. Originals will give you groundbreaking insights about rejecting conformity and how to change the world.
Reviews with the most likes.
I really expected a lot more out of this book... it was interesting, but not compelling. Almost like a Malcolm Gladwell book, but without being as clever or even entertaining. There were some interesting anecdotes, to be sure, but it was not on the same level as “Give and Take” (which I highly recommend).
Interesting points from Dr. Grant. In particular, the sections on raising “original” children were notable and I expect to reference these in the future if I ever have a child of my own!
The book includes actionable advice and directly referenced research to support claims. Or course, Edwin Land of Polaroid makes an appearance (a favorite in pop psych / management / leadership books). More original references (pun intended) also included.
I didn't finish reading this book. Not sure who the audience for it is and what message or value it is trying to deliver to this audience. Either way I didn't feel like it had anything original to offer me.
I felt like I'd already read all the stories and scientists and bits of advice in their respective books, so it felt like a compilation of a lot of the best research around... decision making? At the end of the day, I'm a bit lost on how the theme of originality pulls through all the seemingly unrelated stories. It felt more like a book about ‘unconventional wisdom based on the latest research.' But only unconventional if you don't read a massive quantity of books in this category.
All that being said, I took notes and could have taken more, so I definitely learned quite a few practical strategies. While I enjoyed reading this, I was constantly tempted to start a different unread book from the 15 waiting on my bookshelf.
