Success In Outliers
“Success is not a random act. It arises out of a predictable and powerful set of circumstances and opportunities” (Gladwell 155). Gladwell is implying that success does not arbitrarily come to a person. It takes many foreseeable factors and circumstances. The claim 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) is valid to a certain extent. However, hard work and the use of one’s mind and imagination alone are not enough to make one prosperous. Many other factors come into play when aiming for success. In Malcolm Gladwell’s novel Outliers: The Story of Success, success comes to those who are given opportunities and to those who are born at the right
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Where a person is born influences how they grow up and what hardships and advantages they are exposed to. In addition to the birthplace of a person, the time period in which they are born also affects whether they will become successful. For example, according to the list of the seventy-five richest people in human history, fourteen of the seventy-five people come from a single generation in a single country (Gladwell 61). The birth years of these people range from 1831 to 1840. Given these points, it can be concluded that birth year plays a major role in achieving success. As said by Gladwell on page sixty-two, “In the 1860s and 1870s, the American economy went through the greatest transformation in its history.” This means that when the transformation occurred, the people on the list were in their early thirties which is an acceptable age to be benefitted from the transformation. The success of these people was partly due to being born in the perfect time period and place. Had they been born a few years before 1831 or a few years after 1840 or had they been born in a different country, this transformation would not have affected them, and it would not have led them to become one of the richest people in human history. Comparatively, children who are born into wealthier families have a higher chance of becoming successful than children who are born into lower class families. The children of upper class families also tend to retain more information during their school breaks than the children born into lower class families. The reason is children of upper class families usually have access to books over the holidays. They continue to improve their academic skills. However, many children of lower class families do not have access to books over their breaks. This causes them to lose the reading and comprehension skills they learned during
Where a person is born influences how they grow up and what hardships and advantages they are exposed to. In addition to the birthplace of a person, the time period in which they are born also affects whether they will become successful. For example, according to the list of the seventy-five richest people in human history, fourteen of the seventy-five people come from a single generation in a single country (Gladwell 61). The birth years of these people range from 1831 to 1840. Given these points, it can be concluded that birth year plays a major role in achieving success. As said by Gladwell on page sixty-two, “In the 1860s and 1870s, the American economy went through the greatest transformation in its history.” This means that when the transformation occurred, the people on the list were in their early thirties which is an acceptable age to be benefitted from the transformation. The success of these people was partly due to being born in the perfect time period and place. Had they been born a few years before 1831 or a few years after 1840 or had they been born in a different country, this transformation would not have affected them, and it would not have led them to become one of the richest people in human history. Comparatively, children who are born into wealthier families have a higher chance of becoming successful than children who are born into lower class families. The children of upper class families also tend to retain more information during their school breaks than the children born into lower class families. The reason is children of upper class families usually have access to books over the holidays. They continue to improve their academic skills. However, many children of lower class families do not have access to books over their breaks. This causes them to lose the reading and comprehension skills they learned during