Rebel Talent: Micro Review

Of course, I liked this book. Esp because of the title and the theme. I am a firm believer in being the rebel :) Question the status quo. That’s the only way we can improve.

The overall book however fell little short in doing justice to the topic. Don’t get me wrong, it does cover a lot of anecdotes which kind of prove the points that the author is trying to make. However, those anecdotes are a little all over the place and does not do a great job of conveying the central ideas of the book. To be honest, I loved Originals be Adam Grant which kind of conveys a similar theme and I kept comparing this book to that so it might be a little unfair of me :)

In the book, Francesco Gino discussed different aspects of why it pays for some of us to break the rules and do something different than the established norms. She explores this from various aspects of the benefits she sees of being this “rebel” — novelty, curiosity, perspective, diversity, authenticity etc. Each of these and more are covered in the chapters with anecdotes/case studies and research that the author has done on the topic.

She puts a bow on the book by covering the 8 principles of Rebel Leadership, which did resonate with me a lot and will resonate with anyone leading or participating in a transformation or change in an organization. The principles include things like “Seek out the new”, “Encourage Constructive Dissent”, “learn Everything-Then Forget Everything” etc.

Overall, you wont be completely disappointed if change or transformation is your cup of tea and you are a rebel yourself. Though if you are seriosuly interested in the topic, I would suggest reading “Originals” by Adam Grant first.

Here are some interesting excerpts:

To signal status, deviations from the norm must demonstrate one’s autonomy to behave consistently with one’s own inclinations and to pay for the cost of non conformity.

Whether power is real or simply perceived, it leads us to take more risks, express stronger emotions and views, act based on our natural inclinations and impulses, and ignore situational pressure.

This curse of knowledge leads us to overestimate the amount of knowledge that others have.

Rebels, by contrast, realize that stereotypes are blinding and that fighting the tendency to stereotype produces a clearer picture of reality- and a competitive advantage.

At their core, rebels are engaged>they have abundant energy and mental resilience, they invest in their work and in their personal relationships, and they persist even when the road gets tough.