Essay On Outliers By Malcolm Gladwell

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Success is a quality everyone wants to achieve. In the United Sates people are very familiar and hopeful of the American dream. This is a concept which promotes that hard work and dedication creates endless possibilities. However in the book Outliers: The Story of Success, author Malcolm Gladwell allows us to question whether or not those factors are solely responsible for one to achieve success. According to Gladwell opportunity and legacy are the most important factors of contingency or luck. If success is dependent on luck then no one is worthy of its attainment. As stated above, Gladwell proposes the idea that different opportunities are contributing factors to a persons success. These opportunities correspond with timing, training, economic …show more content…

Malcolm Gladwell introduces the reader to a man named Chris Langan. Langan came from a rather poor family that never experienced higher education. Ironically, this man is known for having an extremely high IQ. Surprisingly, he has an IQ score that is greater than the brilliant Albert Einstein. For some we might think that because of this Langan ultimately has the main ingredient for success. However, one will find themselves surprised to discover that unfortunately he never completed college. Some may question, “How is it possible for someone this smart to end up with such an average lifestyle?” Gladwell also introduces another intellectual man by the name of Robert Oppenheimer in the chapter. He was a famous physicist who in World War II, helped America develop the nuclear bomb. On the surface the stories of these two men seem quite similar at first. Langan and Oppenheimer are both intelligent men who happen to face a major obstacle that could potentially end their educational career. Chris desperately needs to change his classes so that he can have transportation to get to school. Robert has to face the possible consequences for trying to poison his teacher. The end result of these situations is what contrasts these two men from one another. Langan’s request eventually gets denied which causes him to drop out. Oppenheimer on the other hand gets counseling and continues on with his academic studies. This …show more content…

For example the crash of Korean Air flight 801 had many difficulties that resulted in its tragic ending. One of the major problems was due to poor communication. Korea’s cultural legacy is one that is not familiar with giving someone with a higher raking than their own commands. Even when the first officer does offer a suggestion, it is done with what Gladwell calls mitigated speech. Mitigated speech is a kind of communication that is not direct but instead sugarcoated in a way. Crashes kept occurring with this airline and at one point it seemed impossible to save Korean Air’s reputation. Yet, when Korean Air accepted the help from the United States one of the things they were taught was how to successfully communicate with other pilots. Mitigated speech was ver soon eliminated and the airline became a qualifying member of the SkyTeam

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