21A – Reading Reflection No. 2

"How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big" by: Scott Adams

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?

 The general theme of the book is within the title itself. It does not take something completely individually special to be a great success. It teaches us that by failing in a systematic way and, as cliche as it sounds, learning something from your failures, you can be a great success. It teaches the formula of being successful and that it is pretty fool proof as long as you do it. It not only teaches you how to be a better person in your career, but in your personal life, by managing your personal energy. 

2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

Well, the book goes hand in hand with what professor Pryor has been talking about all semester. You don't have to have a secret special talent in order to be a successful entrepreneur. It is all a process that we all have to learn and evolve in, to win big. There are skills we can learn and things we can experiences that will help us be better along the way. There is always going to be a trial and error process in our lives, but its our job to turn it to an advantage by controlling what we can and how we react to the things we can not. 

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

An exercise I would design on this class, based on the book, would be highlighting the differences between goals and a system. I would have students come up with 4 goals and how they can instead be turned into systems. The author abhors the idea of setting goals, as either you fail or you don't, while systems are different as it is a life style change and makes progressive micro goals. I would also have people prioritize their personal energies as how they have it in certain domains of their lives in the present and have them prioritize their energies in certain domains of their lives as they want it to be in the future. 

4) What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

The biggest surprise I read in this book is how practical it is and how it isn't very sappy. It was at times even quite cynical about the world. It was pretty cut and dry about everything and made fun about the classic career advice cliche's like "find your passion" and "set goals". It was very pragmatic, realistic, and makes success seem attainable, as long as you are willing to fail and evolve.