Great article from JA Adande on Gladwell's book outliers. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=outliers-090318
I've read it and I know Kevin has. If you guys haven't checked it out then you definitely should. It talks about all the things that lead to successful people- Bill Gates, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, Ford... they were as much a product of people/events helping them along the way as they were incredibly talented.
I thought this was very interesting from the article:
This all started on Christmas Day, at the Celtics-Lakers game, when I walked into the visitors' locker room at Staples Center and asked Boston's Ray Allen what he'd been reading lately. (In 17 years of covering the NBA, that's the first time I've asked such a question; then again, Allen is the only player I've ever seen reading books before games.) Allen reached into his backpack and lifted up his copy of "Outliers." I promised him I'd read it by the time the Celtics returned to Los Angeles in February.
The next time he came around, I asked him whether he had recognized any of qualities of the Celtics' championship season in the book. Yes, as it turned out. Only for Allen, it's not just the Boston players who are exemplary.
"Everybody in this league is successful," Allen said. "Everybody in this league has made it to this level where they're a flagship in their society and their community where they grew up. People look up to them. They're outliers in their world.
Check out the article and definitely read the book if you haven't yet. I think Scharnell has my copy but when I get it back I can send it around.
Thanks for bringing this up...I am almost finished with "Loose Balls" right now (about the history of the ABA) and have been looking for a new book. I'll definitely check it out.
ReplyDeleteGood catch Jan. Why did you tag it as "greatness?"
ReplyDeleteIt's good Shiff, def worth a read, you can get a lot out of it. But like most of Gladwell's books, I think it's a better essay than book, you can read it in a few hours (or at least get the gist from a few chapters). I think both Jan and I read it in just a few sittings.
Shiff, I'd like to get Loose Balls from you. I'll send over your Mavs hat, if you'll send it back to me once you are done.
Absolutely
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