Just finished this book tonight. It’s about how history, environment and opportunity combine to make “success” stories happen – that despite appearances, individual success is rarely totally self-made. I found it interesting for several reasons:
a) Malcolm Gladwell often writes about energetic phenomena without seeming to be doing that.
b) As a mixed-race person myself, I too have thought a lot about the interface between history/culture and individual choice. (I really liked the end of the book because of this.)
c) I regularly get a chance to look at how people have been energetically imprinted by their ancestry, upbringing and community, and what’s involved in becoming conscious of that content. I also know it’s possible to create or attract the kind of (apparently lucky) opportunities that he says make the difference to whether a talented or hardworking person succeeds (we won’t go into the deeper issue of defining success right now!).
We underestimate how connected and influenced we are by the collective, but we often underestimate our ability to become free choosers and creators as well. This book is a good reminder of the type of support we need to come into our potential: if you want to succeed, put yourself in an environment that makes it possible.
