The Fine Line Between Culture and Cult

August 10, 2016 — Audible, book, free subscription, innovation, Originals

Originals by Adam Grant

I am listening to the book Originals by Adam Grant.  This audio book is the second of my free treats in the 3 month Audible subscription I have initiated.  I am employing Alexa in the Echo to read the book to me at home.  When I go to the gym I switch to the iPod or iPad for a workout.  The system knows how to bookmark my last page and start in that spot without a hitch.  This is fun for now, but I don’t see myself keeping the membership for the extra $15 a month.  You still have to purchase the audio books beyond that basic dues payment.  I like it as a temporary novelty, but I still have some of my favorite books on audio CD, which is the only way I can listen in my car.

I love the theory as well as the writing in this book.  The way originality develops and makes change possible in the world is a subject this author has studied from many perspectives.  His many concrete examples of entrepreneurs who both fail and succeed to execute meaningful change help the reader understand how power and status quo operate.  The common beliefs that great risk and speed are the keys to cultural change are disproven with real stories.  Procrastination may well be the innovator’s best friend.  By waiting for the first line to fail in various ways, the second line is an a much better position to correct mistakes while proving the need for the same innovations.  “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives, and in his own household.” Mark 6:4

Birth order and other lifestyle factors are studied as possible catalysts for becoming a meaningful leader.  Groupthink is the enemy of originality.  When non-conformists are able to use influence to create a change in culture, in business or in politics, it is because the original has learned to open a cultural mentality, destroying the myth of the cult.  Even in our fast-changing world with innovation running  copiously toward individualization status quo is still the strongest force.