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Barking Up the Wrong Tree summary
Eric Barker
The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong
14 mins
Brief summary
Barking Up the Wrong Tree by Eric Barker is a self-help book that debunks conventional wisdom, and provides evidence-based insights for achieving success.
It explores the science behind success, and offers practical strategies for achieving it in both personal and professional life.
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Barking Up the Wrong Tree
Summary of 6 key ideas
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Key idea 1 of 6
Playing by the rules will only get you so far; creativity is the real engine of success.
Just about every parent wants his teenager to turn out well-adjusted, conscientious and intelligent, with the grades to prove it. After all, students with these traits often grow up to be reasonably successful. The problem is, an ability to succeed in an environment governed by rules, like a high school, won’t prepare a student to rise to the top of the real world.
In fact, the number of valedictorians who transform the world is close to zero. There’s a Boston College study to demonstrate this. Researchers followed 81 high-school valedictorians from graduation onward and discovered that these incredibly high-achieving students were rarely visionary in their life pursuits. Rather than revolutionizing the system, they simply settled into it.
How come?
Well, good grades are a stellar predictor of a person’s ability to follow rules. However, while school has clear guidelines, life doesn’t; it’s an unpredictable roller-coaster ride with no clear path. In this environment, rule-addicted academics lose their advantage.
But if valedictorians aren’t the most successful people in the world, then who are?
Those who are obsessed; the unruly creatives who can adapt to every aspect of the outside world.
These creatives are driven by passion rather than external rules, and commit themselves to their passion projects with almost religious virtuosity – a clear recipe for excellence.
Just consider a sample of the richest people in the world. Are they conscientious rule followers? Absolutely not!
Some 58 people on the Forbes 400 list either dropped out of college or never even went. Those 58 academic failures have more than double the average net worth of the other individuals on the 400, all of whom attended Ivy League schools.
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What is Barking Up the Wrong Tree about?
Barking Up the Wrong Tree (2017) explores the divide between the extremely successful and the rest of the pack. These blinks draw on science, statistics and surprising anecdotes to explain the factors that determine success – and how almost anyone can attain it.
Best quote from Barking Up the Wrong Tree
Research has found that emotionally stable introverts make the best investment bankers.
—Eric Barker
Who should read Barking Up the Wrong Tree?
- Parents, coaches and teachers
- Psychologists and those interested in the field
- Anyone who wants to be more successful in life
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