Rating: 
Summary: How to start a fad
Review: This book details new important information about epidemics. I enjoyed the unique perspective, particularly the information about "stickiness" and the research conducted with "Sesame Street" Buy this book if you want to rise above the crowd!
Rating: 
Summary: NETWORK EXTERNALITY? PAY IT FORWARD? NO, TIPPING POINT
Review: Some voracious reading of research on...(1) "Network externalities" from economics and
(2) WOM (word of mouth) research from social/cognitive psychology ...and shamelessly rehashing them with a doozy touchy-feely spin on "small things can inspire big things" a la "Pay it Forward" (that Helen Hunt/Kevin Spacey rigmarole) -- and lo and behold, you have a tipping point for a book that people are stomping over each other to buy and magically provoke their thinking about marketing or sociological phenomena. Indeed every once in a while we need a business book that summarizes and makes sense of all that goes on in academia, so even such blatant intellectual debauchery would be fine as long as the BASIC professional integrity of attribution was upheld. The very least one can expect from such a self-proclaimed "biography of an idea" endeavour is an honest acknowledgement of WHERE the idea came from. As though it was not embarrassing enough that epithets like "maven" and "connector" are well established in WOM or network externality research since nearly 20 years, we were also fed with the MOST commonly used illustrations -- faxes becoming important because other people had faxes, or some quaint fashion catching up overnight (Hush Puppies in this case, but it could be any number of things), or how broadband has swept our world, or the success of a TV show -- these are all primetime textbook examples to explain the very fundamental concepts of network externality in ECON 101. Some arcane mention of epidemiologists' theories does not count because the whole hypothesis here is to provide something that is "beyond the world of medicine and diseases". Not one mention of the "Network Externality" in the book or in the glossary at the end. To its minor credit, the book is written with a readable flow although expect to have each and every minutiae explained in a "for dummies" style. For e.g., the perfectly simple notion that yawning is visually and aurally contagious is explained over 2 pages of relatively small print with about 100 mentions of the word yawn. Yawn. Such excruciating fleshing out of material is understandable of course, given how little of substance there really was in this "thinking" to begin with. The text wallows in its conflicting logical morass. Remember, "small things" are supposed to make a big difference. A winding 40 pages are devoted to crime combat in NY under a newly appointed police chief. Forgive me if this concerted annual effort by a legitimate full-fledged police force does NOT sound like a "small thing" to me. We are told "What must underlie successful epidemics is a bedrock belief that change is possible". Unfortunately, all the examples Gladwell cites such as a sweeping shoe vogue, faxes becoming popular -- these are all a matter of happenstance instead of a concerted effort by individuals at a point in time. Such is indeed the true nature of contagious phenomenons as he himself mentions at the outset, there is no "bedrock belief" until afterwards when someone sits and analyzes the event. I could also hypothesize that a lot of these mini-revolutions happen when an optimal chain of events is accidentally (unintentionally) spurred on by some triggers in society/environment etc, but that is for another day. As though this were not enough we are treated to semi-pompous implications. For e.g., page 131: "There is something PROFOUNDLY counter-intuitive in the definition of stickiness that emerges from all these examples". Really? Would have been nice if it were apparent instead of having us hit on the head with it. Come to think of it a "big effect" is a pretty flaky/subjective concept anyway. How could this supposed big effect be sustained? Where are hush puppies now? As for NY's crime rate, many experts such as Andrew Karmen from CUNY (John Jay) believe that the drop in crime rates in NY in 1980s or 90s is insignificant, homicides in the city have risen 10-fold since 1950. How about faxes -- and their big effect being eaten by another big effect (email)? What is most piquing though is that in a round-about way we are offered Polyanna solutions as a result of this 3-pronged theory of network externality. One priceless gem emerges when we are convinced how cleaning a subway system would be enough to solve crime rates (with the Bernie Goetz case as a lynchpin). My retorts won't fit this review. Whether this is a legitimate business book or a mere avante-garde coffee table thoughtpiece, one would have at the least expected some sort of an organized framework to plan for these "small things" or to sustain the "big effects". None is forthcoming. As for me, the very fact that well-established research is packaged here in a 250-page drawl as a pretentiously seminal idea is quite a put-off in itself. A simple 5-6 page HBR article would have done the job just fine, but then that wouldn't make a lot of money for Gladwell, would it. If you are in business and hope to use this stuff for a spiral marketing/branding effort, you'd do a lot better getting your hands on some WOM literature than this inchoate theoretical indulgence. Highly over-rated material, this.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting fast read, generally applicable.
Review: I bought this book looking for something a little outside of the normal business and sales oriented books I usually read (SPIN, Solution Selling, $100K to $1Mill Jobs, et'c.). The best thing about this book is that the ideas are easy to implement, and are applicable to both your personal and professional life. The examples are very interesting, like the theory of broken windows, and again, can be used in many contexts. I have sent copies of this book to business associates and clients as a thank you. I recommend this book, it would work well as a beach read this summer.
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Summary: What is it? What was it? Where did it go?
Review: This book generated a great deal of attention when it first appeared because Gladwell approaches creative thinking from a unique perspective: he focuses on a critically important moment (a "window of opportunity") when a decision must be made and explains how (a) to prepare for that moment and then (b) make a decision which is both creative and appropriate. He describes his book as "the biography of an idea", a simple idea: the best way to understand the emergence of all major social, economic, or political forces (what Kuhn and then Barker call a "paradigm shift") "is to think of them as epidemics. Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread just like viruses do." (This is precisely what Seth Godin means when discussing his concept of an "ideavirus.") But first they must be activated, set in motion, more often than not by what Gladwell characterizes as a "little thing." In the Conclusion of his book, he suggests: "Look at the world around you. It may seem like an immovable, implacable place. It is not. With the slightest push -- in just the right place -- it can be tipped." He offers an abundance of examples. As I first read the book, and began to grasp this concept, I thought of Isaac Newton and his alleged encounter with a falling apple. Also of Shakespeare's Richard III who lost a kingdom because his horse lost a shoe. You get the idea. Tipping points can occur almost anywhere at any time. Most of us fail to recognize them because of what I call "the invisibility of the obvious." They can be the result of many different factors which, in combination, can sometimes change the course of history. During the next few years, my guess is that progressively more tipping points will occur and at progressively greater velocity but that they will reveal themselves not as windows of opportunity but as blinks of a strobe light. Those who see them and know what to do about them will probably have a decisive competitive advantage, if not dominate the marketplace in which they compete. At least for a while....
Rating:
Summary: Pretty interesting look at what makes a trend 'work.'
Review: This is actually a fairly interesting look into what makes a trend catch on and what makes other's fail. Gladwell uses some great examples to support his theories, and, while some of them he uses probably too much, they still serve to support his points extremely well. If you like wondering what makes a society of individuals funtion as 'one' towards the rise and fall of a trend, this is a terrific book. It will also help you realize just how much of our own ideas aren't as much our own as we might want to think they are. Overall, you can't really go wrong with this book if mass communication or sociological topics interest you.
Rating:
Summary: Unconventional Wisdom
Review: There is a point when things change. This change then grows exponentially until it becomes an epidemic (whether good or bad). Gladwell reviews several socio-economic epidemics to identify the critical "tipping point" when things changed ... the catalyst so to speak.
From an information perspective, this was fascinating since it explained several things to me (e.g., why did Hush Puppies come back in vogue). But more importantly, the book demonstrates that the catalyst that creates change is typically not what most of us assume. E.g., the reduction of crime in NY was not caused by adding more police, but changing how petty crime was treated (I will not give away any more examples).
This has profound implications for people grappling with change, whether disease control, job growth, corporate competiveness, etc. It forces change agents to understand that it is not necessarily the addition of resources that creates results; rather the realignment of what is being done with existing resources.
I would have given the book 5 stars but it does tend to go on a bit (like my commentary!) and I did not enjoy the bit about types of roles people play (though insightful). On the other hand, full marks for entertaining factoids, original thinking and ease of read.
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Rating:
Summary: Briliant
Review: I could not have been more impressed by this book and the myriad concepts illustrated in the clearest possible way. From how Sesame Street became such a touchstone to so many childhoods, to how Syphillis runs rampant in Baltimore, to people who are so compulsively social they can effect sales and popularity of specific brands. A great mind at work and wonderfully easy to digest. One of those books that won't leave you like "Culture of Fear".
Rating:
Summary: A Different Perspective
Review: The Tipping Point provides interesting angles regarding trends, stigmas and perceptions throughout society. As this book is solidly on bestsellers lists, it is an example of the phenomenon that takes place when influential people (Connectors? Mavens?) discuss products and ideas. In fact, this book was recommended to me by a restaurant owner and I have, in turn, recommended it to a dozen other people. So the theory stands strong! The one criticism I have, though, is the repetitive nature of the information. Some sections simply ramble on too long. Overall, I think that anyone who reads this book will gain a different perspective on at least one tipping theory as it is evident in everyday life!
Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Galdwell takes a look at various social phenomena and examines the how and why of their success. Gladwell uses examples from the rise in popularity in Hush Puppies (yes, the shoes) to the decline of crime in New York (yes, the city). In examining the "tipping point," he discusses his research on how a fashion statement by a few can become a national trend, or how seemingly simple changes in law enforcement can affect urban crime rates. So whether your area of interest is psychology, business, public affairs, advertising, medicine, sociology, public policy, law, or marketing, I think you'll find this book interesting.
Rating:
Summary: A BIG little book
Review: A perfect little book that's easy to read and internalise. There are several interesting little known facts (as least to me when I read this book) that reminds the reader that no idea if ever too small if you can think of it in a big way. The Tipping Point is surely insightful, motivational and optimistic. I found it a heartwarming and an optimistic read.
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