Yes, this book starts off with the biblical myth of David and Goliath and that’s because this old story is bang to the point Malcolm Gladwell makes in the book – your weaknesses can be your strengths if you keep an open mind and play smart! We often think of ourselves as little Davids minding our own businesses in a world of Goliaths, and more often than not, we forget the qualities we have, the skills we master, the knowledge we own and the experience we’ve acquired, etc, which, when used wisely, enable and empower us to achieve our goals, to win our battles and to become who we dream to be.
Why read David & Goliath?
If you’re not yet sold on this book, than here’s why this is a must read:
- If you’ve ever told yourself you’re not educated enough or you don’t have the right background and skills to achieve something, Gladwell will prove you wrong.
- Are you a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond? – Gladwell explains how swimming in too big a pond can throw you off course and what to do about it.
- What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger – how this applies to survivors of London bombings during the Second World Warr and how averse situations determine us to strive.
More about the book
The book is structured in nine easy to follow chapters, clustered around three themes; with brilliant stories of ordinary people who encountered exceptional hardship at the beginning of their journeys, only to either overcome all setbacks or find and follow a path where they become valuable assets.
Part one – The advantages of the disadvantages
We are introduced to characters who all have perceived a part of their circumstances as a disadvantage when actually it was an advantage. For all the parents out there, Gladwell and Teresa Debrito, principal at a middle school in rural Washington, Connecticut, argue that a class of around thirty is much more fun and beneficial for the kids, rather than a class of ten kids or under. Why?
Gladwell also looks at correlations between parenting and income, and he says “money makes parenting easier until a certain point – when it stops making much of a difference […] when the income of parents gets high enough, then parenting starts to be harder again.”
Part two – The theory of desirable difficulty
The story about David Boies, one of the most famous trial lawyers in the world, is fascinating. Boies, a dyslexic child who later worked as a construction worker used the skills he needed to acquire in order to ‘beat’ his condition, to not only graduate from high school but to also study Law at Yale and became a top of the ranks lawyer. Having the same difficulty, Gladwell also introduces Gary Cohn, president of Goldman Sachs, and his story.
Part three: – The limits of power
Where Gladwell analyses how the police in Brownsville, one of the most destitute corners of New York, in Brooklyn, tackled high rate of crimes among young people by re-thinking their unsuccessful punishment strategy and replacing it with honest kindness and care, thus earning the trust of local communities and their support in the fight against crime.
These are only a few of the stories Gladwell brings forward, and each and every one of them is captivating and inspiring in its own way.
David & Goliath – Side effects
You’ll have at least two immediate revelations while reading this book:
- You’ll bring into consciousness your own excuses for not achieving what you’ve set to / want to achieve. Your own excuses, limiting beliefs, limiting decisions, whatever reasons you have for choosing to do something different than building the business or career you dreamed, will all come up.
- You’ll become more aware and appreciative of the circumstances, background and experiences you are blessed with, which give you a head start compared to others who lack these benefits AND are more determined to strive.
We are all of us not marely liable to fear, we are also prone to be afraid of being afraid, and the conquering of fear produces exhilaration… The contrast between the previous apprehension and the present relief and feeling of security protes a self-confidence that is the very father and mother of courage. – Malcolm Gladwell
If you’re a bit of a geek…
… you’ll love Gladwell’s style! He combines storytelling, research, and the odd social sciences academic term, creating a combo that won me over and kept me on my toes throughout the book! Want some clues? Read about ‘social deprivation‘, ‘desirable difficulties‘ – or the ‘beautiful and haunting way of understanding how underdogs come to excel’ and the ‘Principal of Legitimacy‘.
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