PDF Summary:David and Goliath, by Malcolm Gladwell
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In David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwell argues that what we often think of as disadvantages may actually be advantages, and that advantages of goliaths may turn into disadvantages. Gladwell shows us that underdog victories are less miraculous (and more achievable) than they seem, and sheds light on how we can reinterpret our own weaknesses to locate new sources of power.
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The Inverted U-Curve
Gladwell writes that there’s a point at which accumulation of resources stops being an advantage, and there’s another point at which those resources become a distinct disadvantage. This is illustrated by the inverted U-curve.
For instance, if we wanted to graph the relationship between money and happiness, we could chart wealth on the X-axis and happiness on the Y-axis. Picture the beginning of the inverted-U at the bottom left-hand corner, where the X- and Y-axes meet, at $0 and 0 on the happiness scale. (It’s difficult to be happy when you don’t have money and are just trying to survive.) As wealth increases, the arch moves diagonally up to the right. (An increase in money means an increase in happiness.)
But, at some point, more money stops making you happier—studies suggest the tipping point is a family income of around $75,000. At that income level, you have enough to meet your basic needs and enjoy a few luxuries, so the graph levels off, forming the top of an upside-down U.
Is there a point at which more money triggers a decrease in happiness, completing the upside-down-U shape? Many social scientists claim that, yes, you can have too much of a good thing. The tendency of graphs toward an inverted-U shape shows us that many things we think of as unequivocally advantageous, like money, aren’t. At the point of overabundance, its value goes from neutral to negative. For example, having more wealth could make parenting easier—you’re able to provide for your children—but having too much wealth could make parenting more difficult, when it becomes harder to pass down your hard-earned values to your comfortable kids.
Having Nothing Frees You
Occasionally, you have to break the rules to win the game. When you have money, a nice house, a fancy car, and clout in your community, you risk it all when you buck convention. Your desire to hold onto everything you have forces you to play by certain rules, and this constrains you. On the other hand, if you have nothing to lose, you’ll try anything. Like David challenging Goliath with a rock and a sling, you’ll take the unconventional approach that’s so crazy (and perhaps morally questionable) it just might work.
Being a Big Fish in a Little Pond Can Be an Advantage
Most people would rather be a little fish in a big pond than a big fish in a little pond. For example, when applying to college, we want to attend the most prestigious university possible (and, therefore, be a little fish in a big pond). Most would agree, when given a choice between two universities, you should choose the “best” one—the one with the most resources, the most accomplished faculty, the smartest students, and the prestige. But what if attending a “better” school could be a disadvantage?
The Theory of Relative Deprivation
The theory of relative deprivation says we compare ourselves to the people around us. Our feelings of happiness or deprivation, success or failure, are not absolute, but rather relative to how happy and successful our neighbors are. In education, Gladwell calls this the “big fish-little pond effect.” When assessing their academic abilities, students don’t compare themselves to every other student in the world. They compare themselves to the students in their class. The more elite the school, the more negatively students perceive their own academic abilities.
For example, if you attend Harvard and struggle in a chemistry class, you may feel that you’re just not cut out for a career in science. In reality, your skills in chemistry may be better than 99% of chemistry students in the world, but you only compare yourself to fellow Harvard students and lose confidence in your abilities. You may switch to a humanities major, depriving the world of a great scientist.
Thus, Gladwell argues that confidence in your skills may be a better predictor of career success than the prestige of the school you attend—and being a big fish in a little pond can give you this confidence.
Having a Disability or Deficiency Can Be an Advantage
Gladwell writes that we generally consider having a disability to be a disadvantage. However, disabilities force some people to make up for them by developing extraordinary abilities in other areas, sometimes becoming more skilled than they would have been without the disability.
This illustrates Gladwell’s distinction between two types of learning:
- Capitalization learning is the type we do when we get better and better at the things we’re naturally good at because we enjoy doing what comes easily. We capitalize on our strengths.
- Compensation learning is the type we do when we need to compensate for a crucial skill we lack. This is learning out of necessity.
Having a deficiency doesn’t automatically mean we’ll develop extraordinary talents in another area. But when we do, we may end up better off than if we’d never had the deficiency in the first place. For example, students with dyslexia struggle to read. Because they can’t depend on reading to learn, they often compensate by developing skills in memorization, listening, observation, and the ability to simplify issues to their key points.
Living Through a Traumatic Event Can Be an Advantage
Trauma is similar to a disability or deficiency in that it leaves some people better off than they were before. Gladwell suggests this is because it results in courage. Courage isn’t innate; it’s something you have to earn. You earn it by surviving something you didn’t think you could survive, or confronting a fear and realizing it’s not as scary as you expected.
After a traumatic event where the worst has already happened, you’re freed of fear to some extent. Nothing will ever be as frightening as the realization of your worst fear (an event you somehow survived). Overcoming fear then leads to a confidence you couldn’t have earned without it. Once you’ve endured the seemingly unendurable, it gives you a sense of your own invincibility and power.
Trauma Strengthens Some and Weakens Others
We tend to believe that trauma affects everyone the same way and that this effect is universally negative. However, there are actually three general effects of trauma:
- Direct hits: People who don’t survive the traumatic event. For example, the casualties of the Blitz, Germany’s bombing campaign of Britain during World War 2.
- Near misses: People who are close to the traumatic event, perhaps even witnessing it, but survive. Trauma weakens them. For example, people who were wounded or saw the carnage of the Blitz.
- Remote misses: People who are slightly more removed from the traumatic event. They experience it but not quite as acutely as near misses. Trauma strengthens this group—they benefit from the elation and relief of being spared. For example, Londoners who heard the sirens and bombs exploding during the Blitz.
The Limits of Power
Now that we’ve discussed the advantages of the Davids, we’ll shift the focus toward the Goliaths. Gladwell says that what Goliaths, people with overt power, tend to misunderstand is that power has limitations. The traditional hallmarks of power—massive weapons, years of experience, society’s blessing—can only take you so far. The degree to which you are powerful depends, in part, on how much power your “subjects” are willing to give you.
The Principle of Legitimacy
An authority figure’s power over the rest of us is especially limited if we don’t perceive him and his power as being “legitimate.” An authority’s legitimacy is based on three things:
- Subjects (or employees) feel like their voices are heard.
- The law (or the person in power) is predictable.
- The law (or the person in power) is fair.
People become defiant, rather than submissive, when they don’t view the authority as legitimate. Authorities may make the rules, but they have trouble enforcing them without legitimacy. In fact, if you aren’t “legitimate” and you exert your power, you may get the opposite of your intended effect.
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