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Originals

Written by: Adam Grant, Sheryl Sandberg - foreword
Narrated by: Fred Sanders, Susan Denaker
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Publisher's Summary

The number one New York Times best seller that examines how people can champion new ideas in their careers and everyday life - and how leaders can fight groupthink, from the author of Think Again and co-author of Option B.

With Give and Take, Adam Grant not only introduced a landmark new paradigm for success but also established himself as one of his generation’s most compelling and provocative thought leaders. In Originals he again addresses the challenge of improving the world, but now from the perspective of becoming original: choosing to champion novel ideas and values that go against the grain, battle conformity, and buck outdated traditions. How can we originate new ideas, policies, and practices without risking it all?

Using surprising studies and stories spanning business, politics, sports, and entertainment, Grant explores how to recognize a good idea, speak up without getting silenced, build a coalition of allies, choose the right time to act, and manage fear and doubt; how parents and teachers can nurture originality in children; and how leaders can build cultures that welcome dissent. Learn from an entrepreneur who pitches his start-ups by highlighting the reasons not to invest, a woman at Apple who challenged Steve Jobs from three levels below, an analyst who overturned the rule of secrecy at the CIA, a billionaire financial wizard who fires employees for failing to criticize him, and a TV executive who didn’t even work in comedy but saved Seinfeld from the cutting-room floor. The payoff is a set of groundbreaking insights about rejecting conformity and improving the status quo.

©2016 Adam Grant (P)2016 Penguin Audio

What the critics say

"Reading Originals made me feel like I was seated across from Adam Grant at a dinner party, as one of my favorite thinkers thrilled me with his insights and his wonderfully new take on the world." (Malcolm Gladwell, number-one New York Times best-selling author of Outliers and The Tipping Point)

"Originals is one of the most important and captivating books I have ever read, full of surprising and powerful ideas. It will not only change the way you see the world; it might just change the way you live your life. And it could very well inspire you to change your world.” )Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and author of Lean In)

“Filled with fresh insights on a broad array of topics that are important to our personal and professional lives.” (The New York Times DealBook)

What listeners say about Originals

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boring

stopped following it after 4 hours. wasn't going anywhere. boring and hard to listen to

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  • SSV
  • 2021-03-19

Disappointed- The Lion King example is a lie

So I guess you can also become original by outright stealing an idea?

The author cites The Lion King as an original idea claiming it was a completely original story thought I’d by the people at Disney (hamlet with lions he said). Unfortunately that was just part of Disney’s marketing. The Lion King is actually a rip off of an anime from the 1960s known as Kimba the White Lion. After the legendary creator Osamu Tesuka, creator of both Kimba and Astro Boy, died, the Lion King started production. It’s not just an inspiration, same characters, screenshots etc. Early depictions of Simba show him as a white lion. It was the same old Disney tactic of turning someone else’s story into a movie.

This is a NYT Bestselling book. I expected things to be more well researched. It’s a shame because the book started off well but this just makes me question what else in the book is off.

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Forward written by a psychopath.

Sheryl Sandberg is profiting off of disinformation and domestic terrorists. Not a figure to be admired, but one that should be thrown in the dustbin.

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Not what I expected

I was just expecting different stories about original creators, not the case. The author keeps building almost entirely about the story of voting rights in America as an example of innovation. Sure there are interesting notions to learn there regarding human interaction and change management, but I wasn’t looking for that.

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Worth Listening

The book is worth listening to. One can relate to himself and the everyday challenge he/she is facing. One of the best book I read so far.

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Worthwhile but off topic at times

It is a Worthwhile and interesting read. I would still recommend but Adam Grant seems off topic at times.

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Extraordinarily practical insights

Mr. Grant is most definitely a professor, and it does seem to me that the input of anecdotal storytelling sometimes weighs down the narrative. However, the practical insights he reports as a result of his research, I believe, if fully appreciated through implementation, can be career and life altering.

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    1 out of 5 stars

Boring business/ management textbook in disguise

This is basically a boring business management and leadership book. It reads like a textbook. Rather than focusing on interesting stories of unique and original ideas/ people, its an exhausting review of boring topics and stories. It felt like the author had to stretch everything in order to achieve a certain word count or he wouldn't get paid. This book wanders and seems to delight in dwelling on whatever is the most boring possible aspect of each topic. This is not a fun book, not a concise book, and not an enjoyable book. I was suckered by the good reviews. I cant finish the last 2 hours of the audiobook, I powered through the first 8 hours hoping it would go somewhere, but I'm done.

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Such a gifted author.

A user manual for life. Loved this book and Think Again as well. Gifted author.

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This book was a pleasant and valuable read.

This was a pleasant listen with a lot of very valuable content. Highly recommend.

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