The Outliers

I completed Malcolm’s Outliers this week. (Didn’t feel very complete as I failed to solve the IQ Quiz on Page 78 even after I dreamt about it, but I have to move on)

In summary, the book stresses the importance of hard work. The famous people; the outliers; are really the creation of hard work + opportunities. My two favorite’s takeaways are the 10,000 hours rule and the birth theory.

The 10,000-hours rule defined the minimum hours to be spent by anyone to be an expert, regardless of the profession. In the examples, he quoted how Bill Gates steals computing time from University of Michigan, how Mozart composed his masterpiece only after more than 10 years in music world, and how Beatles use to perform the whole night – everyday – for almost 3 years. Hard work. This is one of the two parts of success.

The second part is luck. It talks how every successful people are born in the right timing for the specific field… Bill Gates, BlackRock founders… and he even included his family as the own example.

This is his third and latest book, yet this is the only book I read from him. Not sure if his style of writing is all the same, but it’s an interesting book overall, packed with facts and interrelations between each example. The examples themselves are only a handful, but in every chapter, he reveals more and more interesting facts, which engaged us until the end of the chapter.

The book actually makes me think further about how my own luck brings me to what I’m right now. If only my eldest sister wasn’t in Medan, I would not have been studying there for my high school. If I didn’t study at Medan, there is little chance that I will make it to overseas. If only my BINUS exam card wasn’t stolen by the robbers, I might now be in Jakarta and works there. If I didn’t pick my internship at Apple; I might not be able to get the sponsored trip to WWDC (and if only I slept outside of the Moscone West, I might have got the chance to meet Steve Jobs hehe). And of course, if only I choose other courses in NTU, I might not get the chance to enjoy all this graduate training program experience.

These are all the opportunities... the encounters… the luck if you want to call it, plus the hours I have spent in dunno-where, which determined what I’m right now. But if you want to dig further and question what determine the opportunities… I totally have no idea. I am a believer that opportunities came randomly. If I can do it, I will take and live to it. As simple as that. Frankly speaking, I can’t remember what is the hardest decision I have made… guess this is another effect of being born as the youngest in family… you are not trained to make decision. Hehe.

Should I continue or sleep now? I choose the latter! :D
ED

... Forgot to include a short summary of what has happened this week...
This week is full of late night sleeps. Full week of OTs, ended with a Saturday OTs until 4am. Had a team dinner on Friday at Vila Bali which served superb grill chicken. Had a lunch at Mahattan with Calvin Rina Winson @ Central Clark Quay.

RCHN Committee 13th - Comms and CIP Gathering

Had a KTV Session with SCE-ians @ Party World Liang Court. Had a lunch session at IMM with YX and gotten jealous over his trip pictures. Had a nice swim on Sunday morning which is forcing my eyes to close now.

The first time being in Party World - the moments worth the every single cent :)