The Power of Opportunities and Connections

Opportunities, opportunities, opportunities, I've heard it multiple times since I was nine years old. I've known that opportunities can get you far in life, but I didn't know that it was necessary in order to be successful in life until I read this book. I go to a camp that constantly talks about the importance of networking and opportunities and in a way I knew opportunities could be helpful to a successful life but didn't know how helpful it'll be.

While reading the chapter The 10,000-Hour Rule it made me reconsider my life and all the opportunities I have passed up because I was simply too lazy and opportunities I seized because I thought it would greatly benefit me, "These are stories, instead, about people who were given a special opportunity to work really hard and seized it,(67)." People like Bill Gates and Bill Joy didn't just become successful on their own, they got help and received opportunities not taking them for granted. During this summer and school year, I have received numerous opportunities, some in which I didn't take because I didn't see the importance of it, others I put my all into. One opportunity I can recall during the summer was being a Tour Guide for my sleepaway camp. Not only did being a tour guide help me build much needed social skills, it also helped me make connections that will later benefit me in life. Not many people can say that they met Dana Canedy, a Pulitzer prize winner and senior editor for the New York Times and keep in contact with them to this very day. If I decide to pursue my dream in becoming an author, she is a great person to help me since she herself is an author and a pretty good one at that.

When I continued reading this book, I learned that a network of support or connections is important to becoming successful and gaining opportunities. Chris Langan tried to make it on his own and though it gave him an adequate life, it didn't give him a truly successful one, he could have become something big if he wanted to, if he had the help, "He'd had to make his way alone, and no one... ever makes it alone(115)." I thought that being smart enough was going to help me be successful, but I was wrong. Now that I think about it, In The trouble with Geniuses, Part 2 it talked about how there is two type of intelligence, practical and analytical. As I read this part a man we all know popped into my mind, Donald Trump, surely he does not have much analytical intelligence, but he does have a lot of practical intelligence which is why I can now see why he's "successful" today, plus that extraordinary opportunity of getting a small loan of a million dollars from his father of course.

I chose these two chapters because I felt a strong connection to them, it made me question my decisions, and I'm sure it's going to make me question my decisions in the future for the better. With that being said, I'm going to stop taking some opportunities, or talk to some people, instead, I'm taking all the opportunities I can get, and connecting with as many people as humanly possible. I want to be happy and successful and now I know, I can't do that alone.

The 10,000-Hour Rule

In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell illustrates the keys to success that determine whether or not one is successful in life. He starts the book by discussing how the the month in which you are born determines your success, due to cutoff dates. He uses examples to show how cutoff dates affect people and who gets chosen to get lessons which in turn makes them successful athletes. I find it  unfair how the month you are born can affect your dreams and future because you can't choose what month you are born and it is hilarious how this defines the success of future athletes.
He also discusses how success is more than just a talent, it requires hard work and opportunities. He uses examples from different fields such as music and computers to show how success requires about 10,000 hours of time commitment. 10,000 hours is a pretty large number but I understand why it's required in order to be successful. Gladwell refers to Bill Gates and how he is lucky to have the opportunity to reside in Lakeside and take advantage of the computer room in his high school and computer access in the university near his home, which gave him extra time to practice leading to his success(Gladwell, 50-4). I agree with Gladwell and his saying that success requires opportunities because they allow you to get ahead like Bill Gates. This can be seen today as more and more children are exposed to electronics such as iPads or phones. Since technology has advanced so far and is now a common item, more and more children have the opportunities to access a electronic and learn to use it by the time they are 5. Today children have many more opportunities to learn thanks to schools, libraries and electronics. I have a cousin who got an iPad when she was 2 and already knows how to use it so well that she can download stuff by herself and she is only 4 right now, whereas I remember not owning or knowing how to use an iPhone until I was 12. I chose this passage because I agree with Gladwell that opportunities decide your future because if you can seize a chance or access something early on you can use it to your advantage to gain success, and this can especially be related to today since we have so many opportunities due to the internet, school, and our modern economy.

The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 2

In the book Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell analyzes the factors that attribute to success. In Chapter 4, Gladwell examines a study conducted by Annette Lareau of twelve families, with black and white children from wealthy and poor homes. Lareau concluded that there were two parenting styles. Wealthy parents had a strategy of “concerted cultivation,”(104) as their parenting style, while, the poor parents developed the style of “natural growth”(104). Children raised in wealthy homes had parents involved in their lives and placed them into activities and sports. However, children from poor homes had parents who were not involved in their lives, had to make up games and activities and played with neighborhood children and their siblings. Children raised by wealthy parents had a sense of “entitlement,”(105) and were able to “adjust procedures to accommodate their desires”(105). Lower-class children were very different in that they did not speak up for themselves, “and would be quiet and submissive”(107). Gladwell emphasizes the contrast between, wealthy and poor families, in order, to reason that wealthier children have an advantage over the poor children for success in the modern world. Children of wealthy families learn to control and manipulate their environment, in order, to benefit themselves, on the other hand, poor children do not advocate for themselves and do not have the skills that the wealthy children obtain. Through emphasizing the fact that class is one of many factors to success, Gladwell establishes that there must be a change in the future.

I chose this passage because I found it interesting to learn the effect that class has in determining the success one gains in life. Also, I find that I can relate to the lifestyle, of both the wealthy and lower-class child, because when I was a child my parents were not involved immensely in my life, since they were working, so, I had to play with my sisters and neighborhood friends, similar to the lives of lower-class children. However, my parents were strict and exposed me to many experiences like the wealthy children. A question I have is if you personally agree that people born into a wealthier family will be more successful in life?

The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes

In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell discusses about the different factors that lead to one’s success. In the first part of the book, he confirms that there is more to one’s success than their intelligence and hard drive. Rather, he focuses on when and where one is born, the upbringing and occupations of one’s parents, and their own upbringing. In the second part of the book, Gladwell discusses how cultural legacies could impact one’s success. The chapter that I found the most noteworthy of part two was definitely chapter 7, “The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes.” To understand the problem surrounding Korean Air Flight 801 introduced in the beginning of the chapter, Gladwell breaks down the events that led to the crash of Avianca flight 052 seven years prior. He mentions that instead of using the word “emergency” as the captain had told him to do, the first officer of the plane instead says that the plane was “running out of fuel,” which the air traffic controller “just took as a passing comment” (Gladwell 193). It was concluded that perhaps the first officer communicated in that manner because of the way his culture values and respects those in authority. This is called the “Power Distance Index” (PDI). He further connects this to KAL flight 801 as before the airline was reformed, it was implied that, “’the captain is in charge and does what he wants’” (214). This mindset had prevented those in charge of the flight to take action, which in turn lead to disaster. Gladwell compares the two crashes in order to emphasize the idea that one’s principles and the ways of their culture has power over their decisions and the way they go about success. From this section, I understood that this way of thinking can either set us back or set us forward. I chose this section because I found this chapter to be thought-provoking, and it reminded me that when in times of emergency, you may have to defy those in authority and do what is right in order to succeed at what you want or need to do. 

Asians' Cultural Advantage

One aspect of Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers that I can relate to is Chapter 8, Rice Patties and Math Tests. In this chapter, Gladwell explores the differences between Eastern and Western cultures and the effects. The staple food crop of Asian and European society had influenced the work ethics of both peoples: Asians have embraced the concept that hard work breeds great reward (Gladwell 238) while many Western students concede after a minute or two of struggling (245). I can relate with this chapter because my own parents are also adamant believers of this idea. They came to America and made a relatively stable living for me and my sisters. Since we were young, our parents inculcated us into accepting this mindset, and in my opinion, it served me well.

A connection I can make with this chapter and the earlier stated 10,000 hour rule. Asians are perceived as better at math, due to their tenacity, and so they are more motivated and encouraged to advance their skills, allowing them to achieve the 10,000 hours before their peers.

One question I have, however, is whether this also translates to American society; after all, Americans are well-versed in the same idea (named the American Dream) that Gladwell claims Asians have embed in their culture. So shouldn't Americans also be more willing to work harder?

The Mathew Effect

In Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers, he discusses the different points of views of success and how it can have different meanings based on the person, their experience, and their ability to succeed. In Chapter 1, The Matthew Effect, Gladwell talks about how birthdays and opportunity are related to success by using the prime example of hockey players and how many of the players have birthdays around a specific time period. Gladwell presented us with the roster of the 2007 Medicine Hat Tigers where Canadian psychologist, Roger Barnsley, noticed that most of the teammates had birthdays between January-March. However, there is an explanation for why the birthdates are so close and related to success. In Canada, it is known that join age-class hockey you have to sign up by January 1st and you have to be 10 years old by that time. This relates to success because this is a method of selecting and hindering other children from succeeding just as much as those who are selected to be on the hockey team. By only accepting those that were born between January-March, although unconsciously, leaves out the kids who were born outside of that range and have to join the worst teams, and not get the best training from the best hockey coaches. However, those who were chosen to join the age-class hockey and go on to be a part of the Major Junior League A which is the most prestigious league in Canada and determines who makes it to the National League or even the Olympics. In the chapter, Gladwell refers this example of success to the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament, “For unto everyone that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance. But from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath” (Gladwell 30), which translates to: people who are successful in life have better opportunities than those who are not. This also relates to education and how everyone deserves the best system of education and the same one. I chose this short story because even if you are gifted or not, young children should not be sought out and categorized by who’s the best and who sucks, they deserve more than that.

Age Is Taken Into Consideration

In the novel Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, Gladwell states the important factors that were taken into account of people’s lives. In the beginning of the novel, I was very intrigued with the facts Gladwell was pointing out. One of which was the age of successful people such as Steve Jobs, or Bill Gates. Gladwell explains that age is an important factor to people’s success because of how old they are when introduced to technology and things that interest them. For example, Bill Gates was born in 1955, and because of his birthday, he was not too old or too young when he was introduced to computers. Gladwell states: “The perfect age to be in 1975.. Is old enough to be part of the coming revolution but not so old that you missed it”. (65). This fact opened my mind a lot because I didn’t realize how important age was, and still is. Referring back to the first chapter when Gladwell spoke about hockey players and their birthdays, it is very important when people are born because it ultimately determines their success. I find it very interesting and unfair that most people’s success is determined by their age, for example education takes age into consideration. Gladwell stated that due to student’s birthdays, they are not given the same opportunities as others if they’re too young. I’ve witnessed this in many instances, for example people whose birthdays are towards the end of the year had to be held back a year which prohibited them from being as intelligent or experienced as their generation. I don’t believe that age should be what determines someone’s success, it should ultimately be determined by their skills and their hard work that they put in. I found it very interesting that successful people that we know of were all born in the same year, and it’s fascinating to see how those people are successful because of their age.

Two parenting "philosophies"

In chapter 4, The book Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell, gives a reference to the different types of parenting along class lines. Annette Lareau, the sociologist who conducted this study group, states that parents of the lower classes tend to think that it's "their responsibility to care for their children but to let them grow and develop on their own" (Gladwell 104). I agree with the fact that parents of the lower-class tend to let their child be responsible for their future, but of course they would always be by there side for love, care and support. However, further on she mentions that the middle class children learn a sense of "entitlement", learn to interact with adults, learn about teamwork, and learn to speak up when they need to and that things like these "simply doesn't happen with lower class children" (Gladwell 107). I beg to disagree because even though many lower-class families might not be open to the type of "parenting" or experiences the middle class does, lower-class families do learn a sense of entitlement, which is the fact of having a right to something, and they do learn how to speak up especially when being deprived from their rights to something. The lower-class children might not be exposed to "concerted cultivation" but they do learn to grow up to be strong and independent and to work hard for what they want since they are not given the many advantages that the middle class get. Therefore, her conclusion that middle class children will succeed in the modern world might be true to the Oppenheimer and Langan's situation, however I believe it isn't entirely true and isn't backed up from what Malcolm states earlier of the 10,000- hour rule, which claims that if one works hard, then they would inevitably become successful in the long run. I chose this section of the novel because I believe that people arent more likely to being successful because of their family wealth or power, but because many are suitable to succeeding because of their hard work and talents.

Need more than an IQ

Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers, discusses his interpretation of how a person becomes successful, without focusing on a person's intelligence or "born-talent." Instead, Malcolm Gladwell looks at different areas of a successful's persons life that help contribute to their success, such as the time they were born, the hours they spent on mastering their talent, and most especially, their upbringing. In both parts of "Trouble with Geniuses" intrigued me the most because I have a really close connection with my family and this section discusses the impact a family can have. Gladwell compares the lives of Chris Langan, who has an IQ of 195, incredibly higher than Einstein with 150, and the life of Robert Oppenheimer. Langan grew up moving around a lot during his childhood, he grew up with different step-dads that were killed or killed themselves, and then came Jack Langan a failed journalists that didn't help the family often. Oppenheimer on the other hand, was wealthier, he was a son of "an artists and a successful garment manufacturer" (108). Oppenheimer was given various amount of opportunities and was encouraged to handle challenges head on, for example when he was asked to speak about his rock collection to the New York Mineralogical Club.
But when Chris Langan went to college and wanted to change his schedule from morning classes to afternoon classes, they denied it. Langan only has a year and a half of experience of college. Oppenheimer had a tutor, Patrick Blackett, he tried to poison with different chemicals, but was put on probation and still managed to work in the Manhattan Project. Both of these men were smart enough to do whatever they wanted, but because of where they grew up only one of them grew up with an attitude that can conquer the world. This can also be see in the interaction a doctor has with a 9-year-old with a upper-middle class, who ask questions and interrupts when he feels necessary and with other 9-year-olds that are rather shy when it comes to talking to an "authority figure." I found this section really interesting because we often overlook this detail, and it is really helpful to look at every aspect of a successful person to help others improve.

The Ten Thousand Hour Rule And Success

In his novel, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell redefines our understanding of success and how one can become successful. One of the most thought provoking concepts that I found interesting was the 10,000 hour rule. It is a customary and conventional belief that if one works hard, then in the long run, they will inevitably become successful. Gladwell uses this popular belief to change how we define success. We often interpret success as hard work, but Gladwell’s main objective in this book is to debunk our preconception that success is derived from hard work and talent. This novel in general, made me reevaluate my decisions and my background to better accommodate my life so that I can be successful in the long run despite what society already has planned for me. Throughout our lives we often take note of the local prodigies and how they are deemed successful by the media, their parents and even ourselves. Gladwell helps us understand these outliers and exactly how they become one, not because of their talent nor their hard work but because of “hidden advantages” that they are given. In Chapter 2 of Outliers, Gladwell takes into account the lives of Bill Gates, owner of Microsoft, and the Beatles. Before he even begins, he juxtaposes these two outliers and their success in the future to show us that there is not a distinct person who becomes an outlier and that an outlier can be anyone, from any background. Bill Gates, for instance, had a tremendous amount of opportunities given to him by his parents, his local school, and even where he lived. Gladwell uses the lives of Bill Gates and the Beatles to reveal these “hidden advantages” that they had yet, we as a society only take into account their immediate actions that led them to their successful and luxurious lives. I chose this section of the novel because it stood out to me the most of how I define success. Throughout our lives as teenagers, we are often seen as incapable of ever reaching the standards of success that society sets out for us yet, Gladwell changes that. Outliers, in general, makes us think and evaluate these hidden advantages that we possess that can help us become successful in the future.

The 10,000-Hour Rule Explained

To start out I would like to point out that I found this book to be amazingly well written, and truly made me think about the different perspectives of success and how to achieve it. Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell, talks about success, a very intriguing topic in my opinion. Out of all the perspectives Gladwell depicts of how to achieve success, “The 10,000-Hour Rule” is seemingly my favorite. In this chapter, Gladwell points that "The emerging picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert-in anything"(Gladwell 40). With this, he also provides examples that Mozart and the Beatles practiced for 10,000 and more which is equivalent to years. Although bringing up these examples may result in the reader being well surprised, this fact, I believe was implemented by Gladwell to show that success is not always something that happens overnight or that happens in a year, sometimes the most successful take years to achieve that success, but what it truly takes at the end of the day is commitment and dedication. I personally believe that success is something one achieves by putting their mind to it, if one commits and puts all their effort into completing a goal, they will achieve it no matter how long it may take. This is the idea Gladwell is trying to convey in “The 10,000-Hour Rule” and I completely agree.  

My American Dream Speech

For my speech I chose to do a podcast. I chose to do a podcast because I thought that it would be easier to do and it would make people pay more attention to what I was saying instead of what would have been shown in a video. Like I said, I thought a podcast would be easy, but it wasn't. I struggled a lot trying to sync my music with my voice on the podcast. Besides actually creating my podcast it was hard for me to actually write about myself. I don't like sharing my family life to people unless we're close, so it was hard for me to think about what I actually wanted to share and what didn't want to share. Overall, I was content with my podcast and with what I chose to share with you guys.

My Speech

American Dream speech

I chose the podcast as my medium because I thought "This can't be too bad," but I was wrong. Writing and recording this speech was difficult for me to be honest. When I first recorded the first few times, I wondered why my voice sounded muffled and I was frustrated, but in class I was told that it was because my mic was too close so it sounded like that. This was really rough the first few times, using Audacity wasn't that hard, but recording made me exhausted. I'm not good with getting my emotions across at times, and listening to the podcast made me realize that, I also can't fully pronounce some words, so I was just frustrated until the end. Finishing lifted the weight off of my shoulders, and to be honest, if I had a chance to do this again I probably would, but next time I should be more prepared.

Here's my speech.

American Dream Speech -

Here is my American Dream Speech

Original Video:

https://youtu.be/Uk6hmPraoyY

Revised Video:

https://youtu.be/g-NZWxFm2KI

I chose to use a video for my speech because I thought it would keep the audience more engaged as well as emphasize what I was saying. Personally, I feel like podcasts can lead to the audience being distracted from what is being said since they are just sitting there and can easily get distracted by whatever catches their eye. The pictures allow for the audience to really understand what I am saying; if they weren't sure of something they could be reassured by the video. The major struggle I encountered with creating my speech was finding the right pictures. I knew what I wanted it to look like, knew what pictures I wanted to convey my ideas but then having to find them online was very time-consuming and the pictures didn't all turn out exactly as planned. There was a lot of plan changes throughout the whole putting together of the video. Overall, I feel okay with the finished project. I do, however, believe I could have done a much better job given more time. 

My American Dream Speech

    I did not record or made a video, but this is my American Dream speech. Originally I wanted to give my speech in person but I was not able to because of timing issues. This speech obtains my reason of living. This is the meaning to my life. My whole journey from where it started where I was born to where I am right now. I am very satisfied with my speech as a whole. I feel as it represents what my life is all about and where I get my motivation from. This topic is very special to me and it means the whole world to me because my American Dream wouldn't be without my parents sacrifice.

    The American Dream is very special to me. To me the American Dream is being able to have the opportunity to succeed in what I want to achieve and live happily with whatever I want to do in life but also repay my parents for what they have done for me and my brothers.
    My journey to achieve my American dream began  family and I immigrated to the United States in January 2004 in order for me and my brothers get better opportunities and make a better future for ourselves. These are opportunities I was unable to obtain in my place of origin, Guayaquil, Ecuador. My parents lived in Ecuador for more than 30 years so they had family and friends over there. My dad always tells me that over there we were never going to grow up in poverty because my dad's family has set up a foundation for the whole family that we would have support. However, one thing that he saw different in America was the opportunity for his children to experience a different lifestyle. My aunt told my father once about the many opportunities that are presented to students plus the education levels which are better in America. My father’s plan, since we were all born, was to travel to America so that we would not end up like the many children in Ecuador. The one other big reason why we came to the United States was that the education system is free rather in Ecuador in where we would have to pay since schools are private. My dad also wanted us to earn more money that we would have earned in Ecuador. Ecuador is not a place which is economically stable like the United States. My dad did not have to work as hard as my mom did since in his country he was rich. My mom came from the countryside where she lived with her family on a farm. She went to school with all her brothers and sisters but had to drop out at the middle of her high school year in order to help my grandparents with the farm and the products. Even though she doesn't really know as much as my father she wants for me and my brothers to not go through what she went through living in Ecuador.
    My parents sacrificed their comfortable and fulfilling life in order to let us live a better life. Life here in America is not so easy for them as it is for me and my brothers since, it is hard for them to learn English. Most of their lives was revolved Spanish. My parents do struggle here in the U.S. as of right now till this day, but i know that their struggle is worth. They know that the pain and heartache that they experience will be worth at the end of the day. They see success in me and brother since my   oldest brother is attending Cornell Universtiy, my older brother is attending Stony Brooke University and soon I will too .They are living their American Dream through me and my brothers’ success. My parents may struggle but I know that through it all they do not regret it one bit at all. Truly their dream now is to see me and brothers succeed before their times comes to leave.
    I have lived in the Unites States for about 12 years now and there are so many different opportunities that I have seen and have taken a part of. Like for instance right now I am part of this program called Sponsors for Educational opportunity Scholars( SEO Scholars)  which allows me to gain assistance in areas that I am struggling in like for instance writing and grammar. This program also allows me to get assistance for when I get to college and they provide me with different enrichment programs for during the summer. For instance, last summer I was able to go to SUNY-ESF to do some science studies for nature in Syracuse. I would have not been able to experience the college dorming life and the college food life without the help of SEO. Of course one of the biggest opportunities is the free education system. This opportunity has let me discovery Peer Group Connection(PGC) which allows me to work with incoming freshman and help them with their transition from middle school to high school. It also allows me to practice and develop leadership skills. I have gained confidence in myself through PGC.  Throught these different opportunities I have been able to obtain knowledge that will help me in school and I have been able to find who I am as a person. These opportunities are helping me achieve my American Dream. The American Dream to me is not a dream but a reality that I can achieve through my hardwork.
   

I chose to do a podcast for the American Dream Speech because I didn't think of a creative way of putting it into video. I also believe in the idea of simplicity so I just went with the flow on this one. The first barrier in this assignment is that I thought I could do it in one take. I could not for the life of me, get it in one take. Overtime my voice went from enthusiastic and excited to very melancholy and robotic like so I apologize beforehand. I kept getting frustrated with myself to a point where I thought I was gonna give up. I obviously didn't and I'm proud of myself for that reason only. My sister being in the room while recording wasn't the best either since she was busy watching her show and snickering to herself. There was also no other place in the apartment where I could record without my mother's telenovelas blaring on the TV. I don't like my voice in the finished product or how I sound very robotic. I'm proud of the music choice and how I managed to edit it with my voice. I'm also proud that I learned how to edit nicely enough to fit the speech in less than 3 minutes. I feel that it was alright for my first project on audacity.

Here is my: Speech

My Podcast

Reflection
I chose podcast as my medium because I was not comfortable with doing a video. Some struggles I encountered was recording really. Not only was this week hectic with my extracurricular activities (I was getting home extremely late), we had two mock AP exams, and it's just been so stressful! After getting over how terrible my voice sounds, recording was just as bad. I kept messing up, loud background noises would happen, and it was just frustrating. Planes kept flying by and my siblings who are both autistic kept being loud, but I'm not mad at them, it's a regular thing in our house. Editing wasn't as bad, I actually had a lot of fun and learned a lot. I'm obviously not a pro and I accidentally merged the two tracks together by saving, so I feel really disappointed that I couldn't edit it anymore. I'm content with what I have, but I still feel like it's terrible, I could have done better. My breathing might be irregular in this track so I'm sorry I always get nervous during recordings.

Again I'm okay with the product, I'm satisfied with my speech, I just feel like it could have been better but it's too late. Like I feel satisfied and frustrated at the same time.

I just hope everyone likes it and my voice doesn't sound disgusting.

 Speech: Ends officially at 4:03

Terms To Know:
-Agender:  As someone who identifies as agender, to me it means not identifying with gender at all. Meaning I don't identify as male or female, which can also be called "non binary".

- Aromantic: As someone who identifies as aromantic, to me it means not feeling any romantic attraction towards anyone.

-Asexual: Same idea as aromantic, but this to me means not feeling any sexual attraction towards anyone.

*I defined them personally because not every agender, aromantic, or asexual person you meet will be exactly like me, it's a whole spectrum regarding gender and sexuality.*

The American Dream is about self fulfilment,  everyone dreams of becoming more, earning more, or even getting more. It’s fame for you, a house for others, for me it’s happiness. My American Dream, though it may shock you, is just wanting to feel content with my life because I’m currently not.  

“Why aren't you grateful for what you have?”  I’m sure you’d ask, and it’s not like I’m ungrateful for the opportunities I’ve been given such as OppNet, I am grateful. OppNet has taught me more about professionalism and college prep than I’d ever know if I prepped myself, but even with these opportunities I feel limited to show my potential. There’s not much going for us art students in the professional world, hence the term “starving artist”. Our industrial society craves art and creativity yet shames the youth for pursuing such a passion. It’s all about earning the big buck by being a lawyer, doctor or engineer today, once you pick up a guitar you’re automatically a failure. A person that someone can look at and say “I’m glad I’m not her”.

I’m also queer. Being aromantic, asexual, and agender isn’t easy. I’m not the “normal female” people want me to be. It’s always the same dialogue every time, “you reproduce asexually?”, “I’m sure you just haven’t found the right guy yet”, “it’s just a phase”.

Clearly I don’t fit the mold, I’m not the ideal Indian girl my conservative family wants. I’m not the entrepreneur, I'm the starving artist, the idealist, the outcast, maybe one could even describe me as being everything nobody wants.

You think being queer and an artist was enough right? (short pause) I’m also mentally ill.

Have you ever heard someone talk positively about a mentally ill queer artist? Because I haven’t.

It’s hard to open up about having depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Stigma on mental illness is everywhere, from the scoffs, to the eye rolling, to the “are you really depressed? I bet you’re just seeking for attention”.

Maybe I am seeking for attention because it sure is lonely being isolated for illnesses you have no control over.

To others I’m the alarm clock constantly buzzing that nobody wants to hear, I’m the flame for rumors,, I’m the “downer” friend, I’m the bird with clipped wings. It’s interesting how inhumane one can feel for just being human.

“So you aren’t happy?”, you ask.  I guess not, and that’s why feeling content with my life is my dream. Yeah being mentally ill makes me lose motivation, and yeah being queer can get me killed, and maybe I’ll always be the“Don’t be like her when you grow up” to little kids when their parents speak of me, but that doesn’t make my dream less attainable. One day I’ll be surrounded by people that love me. One day my life won’t always be looking forward to the weekend. One day I’m going to feel happy, and it won’t be temporary. The American Dream is attainable but first I need to find a place where I belong.

Maybe you’ll never accept me for who I am, and I’ve come to realize that’s okay. Because I’m still an artist, I’m still queer, and I’m still mentally ill at the end of the day whether you like it or not. This is my dream, not yours, and letting myself be happy is how I’m going to make my life feel complete.

How far do you think a bird with clipped wings can go? I bet you think not that far, but I think it can go as far as it wants

Speech Response

Original Speech
Revised Speech
I decided to do a podcast because I felt like they're very inspirational. You don't see videos of Martin Luther King Jr speaking, right? It's usually just old recordings. Also it was a new challenge for me since I feel like I've made many videos before. My BIGGEST struggles wee trying to pronounce words right and trying not to talk to low. I don;t know why, but simple words weren't coming out right maybe because I was trying to hard. I had to repeat things multiple times and cut out any background noise or long breathes and such. Ultimately, I am proud of my work. I know that it's not the best and that there could be some audio and pronunciation mistakes but every word I included in my speech came from the heart and it withholds things that most people never really knew about me...

The Outliers: The Story of Success Review

*I thought we were all going to use one thread, not make separate posts but whatever.

I really like this book. It was all based off of logical thinking and research and these are two things that I really appreciate. Gladwell was able to convey some really good points throughout the whole book. One point that I felt like many of the smaller points was based off of and that he actually kept repeating is that without opportunity there can be no success. When I first began to read this book on page 19 Gladwell says "People don't rise from nothing" and I put a note that states, Jay-Z and Oprah did. But now that I am reflecting on the book I realize what he actually meant by that line and I hold this to be self-evident based on the numerous examples he gave in the first half of the book. Furthermore another point that really caught my attention was the threshold of intelligence point, which is discussed in chapters 3 and 4. In these chapters Gladwell's main point is that up to a certain point a person's intelligence does not matter , therefore one must only be smart enough to able to achieve success. I really like the way he compared this point to being tall enough in basketball. Anyway, the way he was able to prove this was just basically looking at real world evidence, Gladwell compares the lives of Lewis Terman's termites and two people who where rejected from the program. It turned out that the two who were rejected from the program won Nobel prizes and none of Terman's termites won Nobel prizes, this made me giggle when I read it. Overall the book was actually really good, thought provoking and it made me consider all the factors of success that my idols needed and that I will need to achieve the goals that are set. 

Chapter 1: The Matthew Effect

Overall, I felt that Gladwell's Outliers provided a much needed alternative perspective on success and how society sees it. My favorite part of the novel was chapter 1, where Gladwell begins with a seemingly unrelated story about a Canadian hockey player's rise to fame. At first, the story seems pretty simple: a man from Canada who has been playing hockey since he was a child gained notoriety from his hard work and pure talent. But then Gladwell presents a question: Is the success only from hard work and perseverance? When he continues on to present data from psychologist Roger Barnesly on how most professional hockey players are born in January because they miss the junior league cutoff age and gain an extra year of hockey training, I discovered that things can much more complicated than they seem. Because these kids earn one more year of hockey training due to them being born after the cutoff date on January 1, they get more time to get better at hockey than other kids born before January 1. These better trained kids supplied with "hidden advantages" get scouted and turn into professional players.

When I read this I realized that because of a simple issue like a cutoff date, so many kids are being cheated out of becoming something great, no matter how hard they work. Competing against kids a year older with one more year of training is not fair to the kids who had the unfortunate complication of being born before January 1. The younger kids could try the hardest they could but would probably not succeed in hockey. I believe this chapter efficiently set the tone for the whole novel. We needing to stop "clinging to the idea that success is a simple function of individual merit." While it is unfair that one doesn't reach success based only on their own virtue, I recognize that other events do play a part in our accomplishments.

The Trouble with Geniuses Part 2

My favorite part of the book is when Gladwell analyzes the children and their intelligence, whether it be practical, analytical, or both.  Malcolm Gladwell speaks largely about children and how and where they were raised. What I find very interesting is when Gladwell mentions the study sociologist Annette Lareau made where she visited the twelve families. Whichever of the two parenting “philosophies” parents use depends on their social class. The higher, wealthy parents interacted more with their children and always kept them busy in classes, making the children grow up to learn to speak up and become more independent. The poor parents did not question authority and for the most part, did not let their children reason and negotiate with them. It is clear why, statistically speaking, wealthy children become more successful. The way these rich children are shown how to deal with others stick with them for the rest of their lives, meaning they will always have the characteristics of a leader, whereas the poor children were never even exposed to these traits.

This part of the novel was truly eye opening, due to the fact that most people, including myself, do not believe that there is a huge difference in parenting when in regard of social status. This novel taught me that money does matter, but that does not mean it has to. I think that parents are not aware of how different children are brought up because of money differences. I think that this part of the book stood out to me because one day I will become a parent and I will have the freedom of raising my children the way I want. Even if my family has a lower income than most, I will be able to raise my children the way wealthy parents raise their family. Generating a low income does not mean that you have to raise your children with the same mentality. I believe that this cycle should end. Middle Class parents need to teach their children to be more assertive and how to receive respect from authority. If this cycle is not broken, these middle class families will always only be middle class families. I also realized how big of an impact parents have on children. Most parents believe that their own lifestyle choices do not affect their children, but they do. With this in mind, parents need to be careful in how they bring up their children. What a person learns early on affects how successful they will be in the real word.

The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 2

I wanted to start off by saying how eye-opening this novel truly is to the boundaries of success and the depth of the actual journey. The Roseto Mystery was an intriguing chapter that gave me a new perspective to look at life from - pertaining to how prosperity is the remedy to a long, healthy life. From that point on, I was already hooked at the book's open-mindedness and couldn't put the book down.
     The chapter that resonated with me the most had to be "The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 2." Malcolm Gladwell brought up some great points as to how "practical intelligence" impacts one's life greatly and it starts from their youth. As he began to elaborate on this, I realized that parents have a significant role in their child's practical intelligence growth. He then used the example of Annette Lareau's study of black and white children from different economic levels, to compare their actual practical intelligence. While reading this I realized her study holds true because an economic level does decide how much time a parent can have in their child's life. Most wealthy parents do not have to work as much as middle class or poverty level parents, meaning they have plenty of time to guide their child or expose them to new activities that their money can pay for. As Lareau explained how the lives of the poor children differed because of their parents' perspective on their children's hobbies as seeking attention instead of viewing it as an interest, it hit me. The middle class students resonated with me most significantly because I fit that exact description. My family expected me to ask questions regardless of the authority figure because that was precisely how you receive the answers you desire. When she employed the scenario of the poor parent at a parent teacher conference it held incredible truth because most poor parents didn't see the need nor duty they obtain in getting involved in their child's education. Now without such a support system or engaged involvement from parents, it makes it extremely difficult for children to prosper intellectually and to gain this power of practical intelligence. I had seen all three of her studies in real life with myself, friends of my own or family members. It made me realize how significant a parent's impact is in their child's life and most importantly their success.

The 10,000-Hour Rule

I found this book to be intterguing and interesting. It captured my attention right away from the start. It talks about success and it's a topic that I am very interested. Gladwell points that "The emerging picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert-in anything"(Gladwell 40). He revels the the amount of hours that Mozart and the Beatles which is 10,000 hours that is equalievent to 10 years. This was very surprising and I was amazed by this discovery. Now I know that many legends become successful within years and more specially 10 years. It shows that commitment is needed for success in everything. Many people should learn from this chapter that anything they want to succeed is based on the commitment that they show. Now from me personally learning this I am going to be more patient on  my success because it comes within years of commitment. Gladwell illustrates clearly that doing what one wants to be successful in is not the same as showing the commitment towards what one is doing. Commitment is a key to success and I have lost over the years and now that it has been pointed out I have found it again.

Mamadou Diallo
Sunday, January 31

Sources Discussed: The 10,000 Hour Rule and The Problem With Geniuses 

          Due to the fact that we are high school juniors in the midst of our college process, this is currently the most opportune time for us to contemplate the message conveyed in these pages. Gladwell has transformed my previous outlook on the correlation between innate intellect and academic success. He cleverly proves that past a certain border, this correlation ceases to exist and success begins to depend on other complementary characteristics.
          In Chapter 2, Gladwell uses prominent billionaires, sports stars, and musicians to push his claim that, egardless of a person's innate talent, people seldom achieve success without exerting a considerable amount of hard work; at least 10,000 hours. Gladwell's examples are sufficient enough to convince me of this claim and they incited me to notice some more common examples. Today, the socioeconomic body that performs the best on standardized tests and gains the most admission to prestigious educational institutions are rich, white kids. This comes as no surprise since their wealth grants them access to individualized test prep and better schooling. In the end, the kids in this group get more hours of efficient test prep and consequently, they are more prepared for their SAT and for the rigor of college courses. Rich, White kids aren't inherently smarter than us minorities. Rather, all students are created equal but, as a result of experiences and the lack of, they develop differently.
       Similar to his contest of the concept of innate talent, Gladwell goes on to debase the fantasies and misconceptions that surround geniuses, or people of abnormal intellectual abilities. Though Gladwell acknowledges that a person of high intellectual capacity possesses a higher chance of success in life, he argues that after a certain intellectual threshold, intellect ceases to yield apparent benefits. This latter concept completely makes sense and is relevant to the college process. All colleges judge their applicants on a holistic agenda;they consider every part of a student's application. For this reason, it is irrational to believe that the only way to gain admission to a prestigious university is by acing the SAT and attaining an A+ GPA. Indeed, as Gladwell points out, Harvard regularly rejects these types of students. If one can attain  grades that are high enough to prove their intelligence and academic capability, standardized tests and GPA will become less important in the eyes of admissions officers and they will begin to look at other aspects; extracurriculars,  teacher recommendations, personal statement, etc.
     

The Truth About Geniuses, Part 2

       Malcolm Gladwell ends the idea that success is only determined by your IQ. In the beginning of the chapter Gladwell starts to go in to detail about Chris Langan's background. Chris Langan is genius with an IQ of 195. He goes on to explain how Langan was offered two scholarships, one to Reed College in Oregon and another to the University of Chicago. He chose Reed but he later believed it was a huge mistake. Chris Langan ended up losing the scholarship because of his mother forgot to fill out the financial statements. He dropped out of college and found himself working factory jobs and minor civil service positions. Reading this made me a little mad because why would a college simply take away a scholarship from someone without contacting them? Further on in the chapter, Gladwell tells us a story about another genius, Robert Oppenheimer. He went to Harvard and then to Cambridge University to pursue a doctorate physics. He had a tutor named, Patrick Blackett, was forcing him to attend "the minutiae of experimental physics, which [Oppenheimer] hated," (98). Oppenheimer was struggling with depression his entire life and he became even more emotionally unstable. One day he took chemicals from the lab and attempted to poison his tutor. The university was informed and put him on probation. Now when I read this I honestly thought this was a little funny but I was also confused. Why would they put him on probation? He obviously attempted to kill another human being. At first I wasn't seeing the connection between Oppenheimer and Langan until we reached part 3 of the chapter. Gladwell begins to address the difference between "practical knowledge" and "analytical knowledge". The difference between the two is that Robert Oppenheimer "possessed the savvy that allowed him to get what he wanted from the world," (100) where as Chris Langan did not. Although he did try to kill someone, he was able to get people to listen to his ideas.
      I became even more interested when Gladwell brought up the that practical intelligence comes from out families. The experiment presented in the chapter was conducted by a sociologist named Annette Lareau. She picked 12 different families that were both black and white, also from both rich and poor families. She saw that the children from wealthier parents were more engaged in their children's time. The children would have many activities they were involved in and their parents would always ask them about their teachers and coaches. The poor children didn't have the same intensive scheduling. The wealthier parents intervened on their children behalf and taught their kids to speak up. This shows the difference between the Oppenheimer and Langan. Although both are geniuses, one possessed the skill that allowed him to negotiate to get his way. From his childhood Chris Langan learned "distrust, authority and be independent" (110). He didn't learn how to speak up to gain what he wanted , which caused him to be unable to put his talent up to its full potential. This chapter was very though provoking because it made me think about how something so small as what type of family your born into can determine your future. The skills you learn as a child will determine whether you will actually be successful or not. Robert Oppenheimer and Chris Langan both had really high IQ's but one has the possessed the practical knowledge that allowed him to navigate the world with his control.

Outliers: The Trouble With Geniuses, Part 2

I think it is a common misconception that having a higher IQ lead to success but, the Outliers breaks the misconception by revealing that having a high IQ doesn’t guarantee a successful life. The chapter, The Trouble With Geniuses, Part 2 the author, Malcolm Gladwell, addresses an important factor of success known as, ‘practical intelligence’ (Gladwell 101). It bewildered me that Chris Langan got his scholarship taken away because, he wasn’t able to reach the deadline for his financial aid. On the other hand, Oppenheimer's was sent to a psychiatrist because, he tried poisoning his tutor. Langan and Oppenheimer might have been geniuses but, what really distinguished a successful guy like Oppenheimer who later lead the atomic bomb effort was that, Oppenheimer got others to listen to what he had to say. This revealed that having a higher IQ didn't mean you were automatically guaranteed a successful life because, it didn’t guarantee an authoritative presence.

I choose to write about this because, I’m taking a Speech course for college which I think shows how important communicating effectively with others is. Children whose parents are wealthier tend to be successful not because of racial preference but, because they are taught how to question those who are seen as authoritative figures like doctors instead of being submissive. This kind of reminds me of Donald Trump who although I believe doesn't have the highest IQ, his success really comes from how he is able to assert an authoritative presence that captivate others to pay attention to him.

The Outliers: The Book of Success

 At first when I looked at the book I believed that these book is going to talk about a student in highschool who is described as an outlier where they don't have anyone to talk to and does not fit in that school. Then when I read the first page it was an introduction about how to be successful and I was thinking I need this book because I definitely want to be successful, I mean who wouldn't. Later on, Gladwell defines an outlier as a person out of the ordinary “who doesn't fit into our normal understanding of achievement.” According to Gladwell, great men and women are beneficiaries of specialization, collaboration, time, place, and culture. An outlier’s recipe for success is not personal mythos but the synthesis of opportunity and time on task. I thought that maybe in other words he was saying that hard work equals success, but I kinda argued that because there other people that haven't worked hard and receives opportunities other people don't get and receive money easier than other people. For example if you have a rich family your father is a billionaire and your mother is a millionaire they would give their child everything and then didn't work hard to get what he needs. I might be wrong, but I digress. Framed around the biblical parable of the talents, or “The Matthew Effect,” Part One examines opportunity as a function of timing. Canadian hockey players born closer to the magic birthday of January 1 reap advantages that compound over time. Likewise, computer programmers Bill Joy and Bill Gates, both born in the 1950s, have taken advantage of the relative-age effect to become industry giants in the 1980s. Gladwell not only debunks the romantic mystique of self-determinism, but also the myth that genius is born, not made. He claims that Mozart and The Beatles are not so much innate musical prodigies but grinders who thrived only after 10,000 hours of practice. The more hours you work on something the more you're good at it which in the future if you continue doing what you love you will be good at it and become successful. It's just like going to school the more work you put into your classes the more points you gain in that class and if you continue doing hard work you’ll graduate and get a diploma. Part Two of Outliers focuses on cultural legacies, which Gladwell says “persist, generation after generation, virtually intact...and they play such a role in directing attitudes and behavior that we cannot make sense of our world without them." Gladwell is more eclectic here, and he examines both success and failure. He deftly moves from the dooming “culture of honor” in Appalachia to the rice paddy cultivation in China that fosters patient problem solving. Gladwell is at his best when he illustrates how a cultural legacy of failure can be transformed into one of success. Korean airlines, once very likely to crash their planes because of rigid power structures among pilots, have since fostered collaboration in the cockpit and, therefore, attained high safety ratings. Overall, this book is  a great book for people who want to know how to gain success and how much effort must a person put to achieve his goal. I believe everyone should be able to read this book and understand how to reach success and thanks Ms. Brannon for the book.

The Matthew Effect

First off, what a great way to start the book. It was immediately intriguing, thought provoking, and it opened my eyes to many new ideas and facts I don't think I would have ever tried to find out on my own time. I am really glad that we got to read Outliers for the break, and I would love to have anyone recommend more books like this.

"The Matthew Effect" talks about how success is perceived and achieved. Most people think of success as commitment like the "10,000 Hour Rule" in the following chapter, blood and toil, and obviously some sort of skill or talent in that work. Gladwell reveals a different side to success that many people ignore, which is "the beneficiaries of hidden advantages and extraordinary opportunities and cultural legacies" that different people experience.

The study of Canadian hockey players and how they were singled out by age surprised me because it was so logical yet illogical at the same time. Players who have physically matured more have a higher chance at being picked because they have more strength and the better physique to play in a higher league, pushing down players who are born at the later months of the year. It makes sense and it produces a better output of skilled players, but is a very unfair method. This age advantage is applied in an academic setting as well, which made me sad as a September child, but I can not use that as an excuse because there are no "handouts" for success. I agree with the idea of "accumulative advantage" because those who cannot receive these privileges are almost always guaranteed to lag behind those who do. Not always, and not permanently, but that lag plays a profound effect on the entirety of a career.

So on this hand, someone's success is attributed the luxury of advantage and privilege they have like birth year, age, race, sex, etc. On the other, people who have little privilege build their success on that blood and toil we are familiar with. This doesn't mean that everyone who has privilege has never sweat in their life, it is just the ones who have received "a small loan of a million dollars" who are not exactly qualified to talk about success to disadvantaged people. There is a clear difference between the journeys to success between someone who came from very little and someone who came from an abundance of opportunity.

The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 1

I want to start off by saying that I really enjoyed Outliers. I feel like it's accurate in every point it makes and the way it makes those points is great. One thing that really stood out to me was in chapter 3, "The Trouble With Geniuses Part 1," where it talks about Lewis Terman's study. Gladwell states that what Terman saw as a way of figuring out who could or would be successful was the same view that most everyone shared. It then goes on to explain how these views and methods are not exactly accurate. The chapter, and the chapters after it, elaborate on how being classified a “Genius” by a test does not mean you are going to be successful, it just means that you just so happen to be more intellectual than others.

Gladwell gives some examples of how we classify who is a genius or who is most likely to succeed. He cites classes for “gifted students,” IQ tests, and tests that measure one's cognitive abilities as common ways. What stands out the most to me is when he states that “Elite universities often require that students take an intelligence test (such as the American Scholastic Aptitude Test) for admission,” that exam is most commonly known to us as the SAT. The SAT which we are taking in a little over a month from now. The test that will play a huge role in whether or not we get accepted to the colleges we favor. When you think about it, if you do poorly on the test then there is a possibility that as a result you don’t get accepted to a good college and you may likely turn out to not be successful. Is that fair? I think not.

From what I gathered from Outliers, the SAT just tests one part of my skills and perhaps those are not my greatest skills, I will be penalized anyway. As Gladwell makes clear, just because you’re book smart does not mean you’re going to be successful, there are many other things that contribute to someone becoming successful. Savvy people. Outspoken people. Charismatic people. Experienced people. Those are the people who typically succeed. Colleges should look at more than just SAT scores, maybe they should look for more than just people with strong cognitive skills.

The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes

This chapter has a lot of information to sink in since there's a lot of facts about multiple pane crashes. I was intrigued by the fact that your culture can differ with your capabilities of communication and dealing with authority. It's not like where you're from prohibits you from getting something done, it mostly has to do with how we view things and act upon certain situations. In this chapter there's the instance of Ratwatte having good communication skills which allowed him to successfully land a plane when there was a crisis. This instance is compared to how in other incidents, the pilots would lack precision when communicating information and sometimes feared speaking up against authority. The way someone says something isn't only important as a pilot but in life in general and the situations vary depending on where you're from (Not always but in the cases that Gladwell includes).  While reading I thought to myself whether or not I fear overpowering authority or sometimes sugar coat what I am trying to get across and then I realized that many people have different opinions on what's seen as appropriate or not. I think I shouldn't become a pilot because I am not sure if the way I was raised will allow me to handle the pressures of landing a plane while it's running out of fuel.......

Outliers: The Trouble With Geniuses Part 1

I found it interesting to hear that our educational system was indeed unfair. Students are conditioned to have skills in fields superior to others and this conditioning sprouts from their birth. The birth of an athlete or student, according to Gladwell, determines just how far a student will go. Getting into a specialized program is determined by age and maturity instead of work ethic and personal worth. It is also determined by innate talent that the individual has. Of course, by the time the student is a professional soccer player or college genius their innate talent has already been molded and played with to unleash an individual's full potential. So what happens to those who didn't have this opportunity? Well, they are all but left behind.
     It's sad to see, honestly, that our educational system is based on age rather than individual worth and effort. I think about birthdays now and what month someone was born, after reading this book it really is appalling to see that education really is this flawed. Because of cutoff dates and the like, not everyone is getting the equal opportunity they rightfully deserve. Only a select few people are privileged and that is based on their age and maturity. Maybe it is also based on intelligence, that's not untrue, but after reading all that Gladwell has to say then individual intelligence is not all that determines if someone will get into a specialized program.
     Furthermore, Gladwell makes us think about a very important question early on: what does IQ really mean? What does it measure? CNN says that IQ tests measure critical thinking and reasoning skills and that is our "smartness" and "brains." But then again, Gladwell proves just how IQ really is not either of those things. If IQ is not smartness or brains, then what is it? How can we measure intelligence if the very tests that do are not right either?

The Trouble With Geniuses, Part 1

What really interested me about Outliers was the idea of the current education system we have basically faulting and not being as reliable as we thought. I’m sure that students have surely felt this way, but in Outliers the idea was definitely solidified and broadened in such a way that goes beyond our high school years, and extends to the rest of our lives. By the end of The Trouble With Geniuses Part 1, I was seriously confused as to what IQ actually measures. According to CNN, an IQ score measures your critical thinking and reasoning skills. Gladwell’s ability to challenge the ideas of our society  without making it seem like an attack and outright condemnation of the beliefs we have been presented with allows us to critically re-imagine the way we look at things and determine whether they are ‘right.’ Gladwell makes is clear that IQ isn’t everything. If IQ measures critical thinking and reasoning skills, which translates as ‘smartness’ or brains, but isn’t actually either of those things, then what does it mean to be smart and how do we calculate it?

After reading this chapter I was feeling philosophical (to say the least) and this chapter got me thinking. Such a large part of our lives is focused on education, shown when Gladwell points out the way we categorize students early on, but I think the big message from this chapter was that we actually have no idea what being smart means. We have tried in numerous ways to calculate it, through IQ, the ‘experiment’ that Terman did with the prospective students, and they all have failed to an extent. This says more about our society and what we as a whole consider ‘smart,’ but really, what does it mean to be smart?   

I find this book extremely interesting! I feel like this book answers a lot of questions that we may have about success and how it can be obtained. It makes me think that becoming successful is not just about ambition and hard work, the way we normally think about success. Becoming successful is up to the opportunities that are available to you as well as the hard work and practice that you put in. Success is mostly about advantages that you have that, when combined with ambition and determination, will get you somewhere. I was amazed at how hockey players and soccer players who were born in the beginning of the year have a certain advantage because they are the older kids. Because they are older, they are open to more opportunities and receive better training whereas those that are born in the other half of the year "have all been discouraged, or overlooked, or pushed out of the sport" (page 31). Not everyone has a fair chance. I especially agree with Gladwell's statement that "Because we so profoundly personalize success, we miss opportunities to lift others onto the top rung. We make rules that frustrate achievement. We prematurely write off people as failures" (Page 32). I chose this part because to me, it was very interesting to learn that success is mostly about advantages that you have. In order to be successful, you have to have some type of advantage to help you out because people do in fact, as Gladwell said, personalize success. Not everyone has a fair chance at becoming successful because not everyone has those certain advantages. For example, hockey players and soccer players that are born later on in the year are barely payed attention to because coaches focus more on those who are older and who were born earlier. They don't give the younger kids a chance to prove themselves and they immediately categorize them as failures. This really surprised me because I never really thought about things that way. I always thought that being successful is all up to how determined you are to make it and how hard you try. Overall, this book is makes me view success in a different way.

The 10,000-Hour Rule

"The emerging picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert-in anything"(pg.40)

      In this chapter Gladwell takes the phrase "practice makes perfect" to a whole new meaning. He uncovers the secrets behind the success of people like Mozart and the Beatles. Oddly enough they each had  10,000 hours of practice, if not more, to become the legends they are now. I was just amazed when reading this chapter. The break down of how people usually achieve the 10,000 hours all come down to commitment. Its also important to have the support of family behind you because at some point practice is the only thing in your life. Knowing this rule now, I am trying to test the difficulty by adopting a new hobby to see how many hours I can get in before I quit completely.
            I chose this point because our generation today look at legends and wonder how they became who the are. The one part we always neglect is there commitment and practice. It is just amazing to see how a matter of hours determine your greatness in just about anything.

Comment: Overall, I find Malcolm Gladwell's book to be very intriguing. With every page I read, I fall in love with his writing. The simplicity of his words help me understand every secret he uncovers. From the first chapter I read about the Roseto Mystery, I knew this book would be compelling. I hope to read more of his books.

Question: Did you guys come to any realizations when reading this chapter? Are you more willing or less likely to try something new?

Age and Success

I found this book to be really interesting. The very first topic discussed in the book caught my immediate attention so I decided to write about it. I am referring to when the author Malcolm Gladwell links together when a person is born with success. I never really thought about how one's birth month can drastically affect their lives. Being born in the early months of the year means that in most activities where there are others born in the same year, that person will be the eldest. That's what many people know. What others, including myself, never thought of before is that because those people are older, they had more time to mature and develop themselves. A few months difference doesn't seem like a lot, but when putting it into an educational context, when one is born is extremely important. People who are born early in the year tend to do better than those born in the end of the year because they stand out. That only makes sense because those born in lets say January are almost a year older than those born in December. That's almost one year of extra learning that the January kid had in comparison to the December kid. I don't think its fair that people who are older are able to have more opportunities because of the underlying factor of age. Like the book says on page 33, “Elementary and Middle schools could put the January through April- born students in one class, the May through August in another class, and those born in September through December in a third class”. This sounds like a great idea. By having kids be in a class where there are others on the same level of development, it allows all children to have a fair shot at becoming advanced. I think all schools should adopt this idea and give all their students an equal shot at being successful.