Is a person’s success the result of their own merit, drive and accomplishments? The nurturing of doting and well meaning parents? Or lucky coincidences?

Malcolm Gladwell seeks to answer these questions in his book, Outliers. Gladwell takes us on a fascinating exploration into the meaning of success and how people get there. Using extensive research, he gives us clear examples on topics such as the golden rule of 10,000 hours (why 10,000 hours is the ’gold’ standard to master any skill), the Matthew Effect (how the date you are born affects opportunities you receive), and accumulative advantage (the idea that if a person has one advantage, they tend to ‘accumulate’ more of them due to the original advantage). Gladwell also uses universally recognized people to demonstrate these theories and rules such as the Beatles and Bill Gates.

With clear, organized thoughts and a strong structure, Outliers is the perfect book for anyone interested in becoming the next Silicon Valley tycoon or readers just interested in how those people made it to the top. Above all, this book challenges the definition of ‘success’ and proves that there’s more to being successful than meets the eye.