By Adam Grant
A friend is someone who sees more potential in you than you see in yourself
“A reasonable man tries to adapt himself to the world. An unreasonable tries to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man”
Sales employees who used chrome / Firefox vs safari / internet explorer were statistically 20% more productive and efficient at their jobs. This seemingly random link was traced back to those individuals questioning the stats quo
In another study, individuals with negative default conditions were significantly less likely to question the status quo than those with positive default conditions
When presidential candidates’ likelihood of winning increases, so too does their approval among both parties. This relationship holds in the other direction as well. People justify the status quo subconsciously
Question the status quo, most do not. This is how Warby Parker was created — they stopped accepting the status quo of expensive eye glasses. Be curious — that is the first step
Society encourages conformity because it is comfortable — this being said, all important occurrences stem from non conformity
Originality is an act of creative destruction, you must do away with the old to make way for the new
“On matter of style swim with the current, on matter of principal stand like a rock”
— Thomas Jefferson
Entrepreneur means bearer of risk
People who street companies while playing it safe and staying at their current jobs are 33% more likely to avoid failure than those who bet the house on their ideas — their companies also last longer
People diversify risk in their lives the same way investors diversity risk in their portfolios
Being hedged in one aspect of our lives allows us to be risky in others
Successful originals take extreme risk in some aspects of their lives while being extremely hedged in others
Entrepreneurs are far less likely to take risks than the general population