Category: Reading

Book Review: Quiet

I’d like to share my thoughts on the book Quiet, The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.

Quiet-Jacket

I thoroughly enjoyed this treatise of introverts versus extroverts. Filled with personal anecdotes as well as pertinent research and scientific theory, the book tells the story of introverted people and their quiet power.

My main takeaway is the idea of sensitivities—both externally and internally  focused—and how they motivate, describe, and prescribe our interactions with the world and other people.

Reward-sensitivity, as described in the book as a sign of extroversion, is something I can relate to. Pleasure seeking and excitement overrules your better judgement; I am impulsive at times and do things for immediate satisfaction. I need to learn the lesson from quieter spirits who pause for important feedback in order to be able to learn from it. Sometimes worrying about consequences and long-term results can lead to a better decision.

Cain also tells of people who are rejection sensitive being warm and loving when they feel secure, yet hostile and controlling when they feel rejected. Food for thought, at what point does controlling our behavior become futile or exhausting?

Introverts like people they meet in friendly contexts, extroverts prefer those they compete with.

This was a poignant reminder for me—I tend to both sides of the spectrum depending on the context, and it’s a good practice to look closely at my motivations and see how I’m acting. Is it appropriate? Out of touch?

I can relate to both reward sensitivity and rejection sensitivity. I feel like sometimes I’m critical of other people because I’m nervous that they’ll be critical of me. As a better way, I should be careful not to point out their mistakes and instead find gentler ways to communicate it. Or, just let it go and no longer try to be right but try to be happy.

Sometimes it pays to be quiet and gracious, to listen more than talk and you have an instinct for harmony rather than conflict. With this style you can take aggressive positions without inflaming your counterpart’s ego.

…by listening you can learn what’s truly motivating the person you’re negotiating with and come up with creative solutions to satisfy both parties.

Another idea described in the book is that of “free traits”—if something’s important to you, such as a service of love or a professional calling—you can put on the extroversion when you need it, and it isn’t fake because you’re being true to something that you love.

I absolutely loved the conclusion, titled “Wonderland”—it is inspiring and sums up the book nicely. I printed it out… To see what I mean, you’ll have to read the book.

I borrowed Quiet for a first read; I’ll be buying my own copy to dive into it again.

 

Book Review: Let My People Go Surfing

“Quality is absolutely objective and definable” is the main idea I got from this book. Patagonia founder and owner Yvon Chouinard tells the story of his journey of starting a company, defining its quality and ethical standards, and running it sustainably through the years.

My favorite passage that relates directly to my work at Automattic is about the questions designers at Patagonia ask to see if each product fits their standards—things like functionality, durability, simplicity, authenticity, and timeliness. I loved reading about their central tenet of concurrency versus assembly line production. Every product decision involves the designer and producer at all stages, and they work together until it’s done.

Recommended if you love reading about products and companies, as well as an intimate look at a very popular outdoor clothing and equipment company.

Many of the principles built into Patagonia’s standards can and should apply equally to software and product design. Here are some of my favorite bits from the book.

Without a serious functional demand we can end up with a product that, although it may look great, is difficult to rationalize as being in our line—i.e., “Who needs it?”

This is relevant to building web apps or products—who’s going to use your app? Is it needed in the marketplace? Does it add value? As product builders and managers we should cut out products no one uses. They clutter up our codebase and confuse users away from our core products that help them the most.

The best restaurants in the world have set menus, and the best ski shops have already decided which skis are best for your skill level.

Make the best choice for people. You know how your product works intimately, and you use it yourself. Design for that core use case and you’ll find your software helps other people, too, naturally. This goes well with the WordPress project’s philosophy of decisions, not options.

The best-performing firms make a narrow range of products very well.

I love this since it requires you focus on doing one thing really well—a principle espoused by software greats like Microsoft, Apple, and Google.

Moreover, we carefully define, rather than just assert, what makes each product the best of its kind.

This is important for the why below the what. Explaining your philosophy and why it’s important—and carefully building your products to match that creed—rather than just saying you do things the right way.

Market trends are less important than strong intuition.

As a craftsperson, go with your instincts born from experience and intuition and pay less attention to what everyone else is doing. Don’t just copy your competition. If you follow your own way, you’ll innovate and they’ll soon be copying you.

Photo credit: Tom Walker, Flickr.

surfing

This is my book review of Let My People Go Surfing, The Education of a Reluctant Businessman by Yvon Chouinard—founder and owner of Patagonia clothing and equipment company, based in Ventura, California, USA.

See more of my book reviews and check out my Goodreads profile.

The Power of Habit

My review of The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg.

… once you understand that habits can change, you have the freedom—and the responsibility—to remake them. Once you understand that habits can be rebuilt, the power of habit becomes easier to grasp, and the only option left is to get to work.

This book breaks down habits into small, understandable pieces—at its simplest a 3-step loop of cue + routine + reward. The narrative style is easy to grasp, in the vein of Malcolm Gladwell and Freakonomics.

habit-book-cover

Wonderfully illustrated with examples of both good and bad habits, from alcoholism and gambling to workplace safety and employee willpower. Duhigg describes willpower, self-discipline, the power of belief as “keystone habits” that can create a structure for widespread change.

The stories and examples explain the central idea of the book: habits can be changed if we understand how they work. In the 3-step loop for a negative habit like overeating, for example, the cue and reward remain the same but the routine changes to a healthier one. And, importantly, small changes—no matter how tiny they may seem—fuel bigger ones.

Habits are powerful, but delicate. They shape our lives far more than we realize—they are so strong, in fact, that they cause our brains to cling to them at the exclusion of all else, including common sense.

My biggest takeaway is a motivation to think critically about my own personal habits, as well as the keystone habits and cultural values of my workplace. Raising my awareness is the first step to understanding my habits, and identify which ones I should change.

(Props Matt for the recommendation.)