While I think that Malcolm Gladwell (of ‘Blink’ and ‘The Tipping Point’ fame) has a penchant for writing the end of his story and THEN finding the facts to support it, he is nonetheless an immensely enjoyable storyteller, specifically because he so fancies the frame and measure of good narrative.
Hence, in the weekend reading bucket, read Gladwell’s “The Uses of Adversity” (online @ The New Yorker) with the same ‘willing suspension of disbelief’ that you mentally sign up for when you enter a movie theater; i.e., come to be entertained, just don’t over-think.
In the article, Gladwell prophesizes that sometimes being an underprivileged outsider trumps being the insider born with the silver spoon. Similarly, he argues that there are times when being an outsider is precisely what makes you a good insider.
To support his argument, he tells the story of Sidney Weinberg, for 40 years the face of investor banking giant, Goldman Sachs. As Gladwell details, the man who created what we know as Goldman Sachs was a poor, uneducated member of a despised minority, yet he rose to the top, becoming the trusted source of presidents, corporate heads and the generals of industry.
An underlying theme of the story is whether in these troubled times, we need more people who have been “cradled, nursed and reared in the stimulating school of poverty,” as Andrew Carnegie, the consummate self-made man, once put it.
Put another way, does a life born into adversity better prepare one for handling turbulent times than pedigree, socio-economic status and connections?
There is clearly not a binary answer to this one, but it’s a fun read nonetheless.
Read the full article HERE.
