MALCOLM GLADWELL WROTE A VARIED COLLECTION OF STORIES when he was a reporter on staff at The New Yorker Magazine. Each study is separate and complete unto itself, on random topics such as marketing, profiling, categorizing traits and identifying mentalities, in order to analyze situations and challenges.
As each story unfolds, Gladwell takes us along on his voyage through mazes of the mind and shows the dead ends and pitfalls we encounter when we mislead ourselves. What ties these chapters together is not their sameness, or even sequence; it is how each challenge requires a different approach to be analyzed and evaluated properly. It is often counter-intuitive just what kind of investigation to apply to best advantage. He often illustrates by offering two contrasting concepts, a dichotomy of opposing ideas, then goes on to demonstrate with vivid examples in story form. Think of this book as a tutorial on how to be more insightful and effective in meeting our own challenges day-to-day.
Here are thumbnail sketches of some of his stories to pique your interest.
The ultimate seduction is that Gladwell manages to get people, maybe even busy Realtors®, to read a 400+ page book – twenty light, distracting pages at a time. Entertain your brain with “What the Dog Saw.”
THE PITCHMAN
This is the story of some remarkable hybrid inventor/salesmen and a study of marketing in America that stands out in the history of innovative invention. Gladwell demonstrates that it takes real talent to not only keep the audience entertained, but to motivate them to buy something they never knew they needed in the first place. You could almost say that the gadget was worth the price of admission.
BLOWING UP
This is a fascinating look at probability, gambling and investing. Two opposing methods of investing are presented as conservative and extreme, but upon closer inspection of details, we end up surprised by the long-term results. This analysis is thought provoking enough to force us to build a whole new case on risk management.
TRUE COLORS
The ingenious marketing of hair color exploded the market by creating a psychological need in women who had never considered dying their hair. The ruse involved use of advertising slogans that implied that the conspicuous adornment of hair dye, especially blond, was a symbol of self-realization and personal choice. It is a case of shrewd marketing that led to unprecedented enormous gain in market share and huge profit in record time.
JOHN ROCK’S ERROR
In this story, Gladwell shared a study of how the birth control pill effects regulation of a woman’s hormones and its potential for use in preventing some types of cancer. This segment is also a vignette of the person who was the main inventor of the birth control pill, the irony that he was Catholic, and the personal sacrifices he made to pursue his altruism, all for the benefit of women’s health.
WHAT THE DOG SAW
The dog whisperer presents himself to dogs in a way that makes them feel comfortable and reassured. Dogs respond in turn by letting the whisperer set behavior limits. Most importantly, the whisperer trains dog owners how to relax their own stance and their faces, enabling them to take charge and discipline their dogs themselves. Gladwell also shares a parallel rendition featuring a therapist who helps a child with autism.
MILLION DOLLAR MURRAY
The underlying concept of remedying a problem in society through a pervasive public policy is most comfortable to understand. It appeals to our sense of fairness for all to be treated alike. However, Gladwell explains that in certain situations, subjecting everyone to uniform regimentation, without cause, is neither cost effective nor preventive.
CONNECTING THE DOTS
Here we have the juxtaposition of intelligence analysis vs. law enforcement. Gladwell discusses whether the two methods have worked best in tandem. He suggests that hindsight tends to alter our thinking so much that we later imagine that we predicted the outcome, when we originally guessed wrong.
THE ART OF FAILURE
There are two distinctly different ways of performing badly: choking and panicking. Panicking comes from too little expertise and experience, and choking is the result of losing the grace or ease to perform expertly. Gladwell’s examples illustrate beautifully the differences, and show us how we might use this information to try to help ourselves and others perform well and more consistently.
BLOWUP
There are two categories of accidents: normal accidents and real accidents. A normal accident is the result of several minor flukes that work in combination to create disaster. By themselves they would be inconsequential, and therefore go unnoticed. A real disaster is caused by one faulty error, Gladwell says. Preventing future accidents requires correct identification of their nature.
MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED
Gladwell explores the evaluation of job candidates. Prospective teachers typically must meet certain criteria such as a degree and years of experience. Careers involving high finance, however, are subject to a more targeted system, sifting through thousands of candidates to find the ones who perform best due to the high cost of the process.
THE TALENT MYTH
There are two schools of thought regarding intelligence: it is innate vs. it can be improved. Gladwell says research shows a distinct advantage to the belief that you can cultivate and increase your capacity for intelligence by learning more.
THE NEW-BOY NETWORK
Interviews often produce predictable answers that can be anticipated and rehearsed. Sometimes – puzzles are given to candidates, when puzzle solving is irrelevant to the job tasks. Gladwell explains how there is a science of a more insightful approach to discovering the mentality of a candidate.
TROUBLE MAKERS
This is a thoughtful analysis of the stereotyping of pit bulls and their image as violent dogs. Gladwell demonstrates that research on the statistics of human death by dog breed do not hold up the theory. He shows that what actually determines the dog’s violence quotient is data on the owner’s history of violence and behavior towards the dog.
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Candyce Hollingsworth is associate broker for Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Fairfax.