Need to better understand how I review books? You can review my book review criteria here.
Overview
Title: Original: How Non-Conformists Move The World
Author: Adam Grant
Genre: Self-Help, Psychology
Publish Year: 2016
ISBN-10:014312885X
Utility: 5/5
Readability: 5/5
Storytelling: 4/5
Literary Quality: 5/5
Pace: 5/5
Impact: 5/5
Favorite Excerpt/Quote
"The greatest shapers don’t stop at introducing originality into the world. They create cultures that unleash originality in others" (Grant, 209)
Review
Adam Grant's Originals is an inspiring piece of literature and a book that artists, entrepreneurs, and leaders should read in their lifetime. Through the use of social science and psychology, Grant challenges perceptions of creativity and ingenuity to reveal the transformative potential that lies in each and every one of us. Grant leverages his experience as an organizational psychologist to illustrate how the structure of environments and social norms can hinder or invigorate originality. More importantly, he offers strategies that empower us to make the changes necessary to spark our originality and encourage it in others. Originals is empowering and a starting point for those searching to create and be something bigger and unique.
Grant dives in by challenging narratives and social norms that hinder our creative potentials such as the stigma against procrastination and the idea that the most innovative professionals hold the deepest knowledge in their fields. Grant then turns towards others and addresses how our perceptions and interactions with others serve to either hinder or promote originality. The final chapters of Originals explore organizational structures and leadership and their role in creating environments that empower employees and others.
Though I have read many great books, perhaps none is more inspiring and impactful than Originals. Grant's anecdotes are diverse and illustrate his thesis through a number of individuals and environments, making it applicable to any and everyone. The readability, the storytelling, and the structure of the book allow the reader to grow with Grant's ideas, a journey that promotes inspiration and a new perspective about our capabilities as thinkers, creators, and organizational members.
This book is a must-read for anyone who wishes to carve a place in the world that transcends beyond being a cog in the machine. Originals shows us that the potential to do great things is in each and every one of us and serves as a starting point for how we can build lives and environments to capture that potential.
Overall Rating
A Must Read: 4.8/5
MLA Citation
Grant, Adam M. Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World. , 2016. Print.