Barking Up the Wrong Tree
The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong
2017 • 320 pages
Ratings21
Average rating3.9
15
The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong
Ratings21
Average rating3.9
Wall Street Journal Bestseller Much of the advice we’ve been told about achievement is logical, earnest…and downright wrong. In Barking Up the Wrong Tree, Eric Barker reveals the extraordinary science behind what actually determines success and most importantly, how anyone can achieve it. You’ll learn: • Why valedictorians rarely become millionaires, and how your biggest weakness might actually be your greatest strength • Whether nice guys finish last and why the best lessons about cooperation come from gang members, pirates, and serial killers • Why trying to increase confidence fails and how Buddhist philosophy holds a superior solution • The secret ingredient to “grit” that Navy SEALs and disaster survivors leverage to keep going • How to find work-life balance using the strategy of Genghis Khan, the errors of Albert Einstein, and a little lesson from Spider-Man By looking at what separates the extremely successful from the rest of us, we learn what we can do to be more like them—and find out in some cases why it’s good that we aren’t. Barking Up the Wrong Tree draws on startling statistics and surprising anecdotes to help you understand what works and what doesn’t so you can stop guessing at success and start living the life you want.
Reviews with the most likes.
A little light on actual actionable advice, and I didn't like the first chapter, but otherwise it was interesting and worth the time to read.
Wonderful. Lots of good actionable insights. Only issue is occasionally odd stats, like “this will make you 6%.happier”. Highly recommended, regardless.
3.5/5 stars
Mostly enjoyable. Nothing really new here, but enjoyable. Probably the most important thing I learned and enjoyed was the section about self-confidence and how it should be more self-compassion than just delusional pride.
Main takeaways:
-Set goals
-Know yourself and what you want
- Connect with people and help each other out. Be friends.
- Volunteer two hours a week for more happiness
- Follow up and reach out to people
- Bad behavior works in the short term, but good behavior works in the long term.
- It's not a zero-sum game. All of us can succeed.
- Self-confidence should be self-compassion.
- WOOP: (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan) Write down your wish, the outcome, any obstacles you may face, and how you'll overcome them
What is success? 1. Happiness 2. Achievement 3. Significance 4. Legacy
Quotes:
“Here's the problem: We love having choices. We hate making choices. Having choices means having possibilities. Making choices means losing possibilities. And having so many choices increases the chance of regret.”
“When you choose your pond wisely, you can best leverage your type, your signature strengths, and your context to create tremendous value. This is what makes for a great career, but such self-knowledge can create value wherever your choose.”
