The True “Outlier” The dictionary definition of success is “the attainment of popularity or profit.” Everyone wants to be successful: parents constantly tell their children to work hard in school, people immigrate from all over the world for opportunity and success. How can you be successful? The common stereotype is that a high IQ will lead to a successful life, but this is false. As Malcolm Gladwell states in his book Outliers, success is shaped by random external forces, such as a supportive middle class or wealthy family, social savvy and random opportunities. All our lives, we hear about our IQ, but what really is it? IQ, which stands for Intelligence Quotient, is a score derived from multiple tests that measure a person’s “intelligence.” Today, we assume that a high IQ will lead to a prosperous, successful life. Because of this stereotype, “gifted children” or children with high IQs, were put in different programs. Starting in the early 1920s, these gifted…show more content… This is shown through someone’s social savvy. Gladwell, in Outliers, states that average and rich families raise their children with social savvy when he says, “But social savvy is knowledge. It’s a set of skills that have to be learned. It has to come from somewhere, and the place we seem to get these kinds of attitudes and skills is from our families.” This concept is shown through the “rags to riches” story. My father grew up in a poor family, often having to care for his younger brothers and sister. He had the courage to not succumb to his stressful situations, and pursued a life of success, proving motivation and character can see opportunity when it is hidden. At a young age, he moved to New York, where he later became a successful businessman. Because of my father’s experiences, I embody the the value of being able to create our own success through our own power, refusing to succumb under difficult and hard
