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199 reviews for:
The Slight Edge: Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success and Happiness
Jeff Olson
4.07 AVERAGE
199 reviews for:
The Slight Edge: Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success and Happiness
Jeff Olson
4.07 AVERAGE
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
slow-paced
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
some basic good reminders, skimming would be fine. a few certain parts were very white priviledge-y and felt completely not applicable.
I agree with everything Jeff says. That is partially why I found this book so useless.
He does a good job organizing the book—I like the method of presenting his information, some stories backing it up, and then some summarizing concepts at the end. This is good for drilling in the point. However, the messages are all so obvious and uninteresting as to not be of little use. The Slight Edge, although not really well defined and with apparently shifting definitions throughout the book, seems to be this ephemeral concept of doing the thing that makes the difference. Yes, we want to do the things that make life get better. He talks a lot about small things compounding every day, yes we also want to compound good effects, sure. Yes, we need to adopt an attitude that makes us successful, clearly. Yes, it requires thought to think. Yes, the sky is blue.
The book was so full of self-evident platitudes that I'm flabbergasted it is as well-rated as it is. Take some of these nuggets of wisdom for example.
• "A single thoughtful, committed person can change the world."
• "Great success often starts from a tiny beginning—but there has to be a beginning. You have to start somewhere. You have to do something."
• "Mastery begins the moment you step onto the path. Failure begins the moment you step off the path."
• "Wanting is uncomfortable, yet wanting is essential to winning."
These are all some of those summarizing points at the ends of various chapters. He spends dozens of pages explaining each of these and others like them. This whole book should be a 3-page essay, but instead, he stretches simple concepts so far that I wanted to stop reading halfway through. I wish I did.
By the end of this review, I could rightly be accused of one of the people he describes as "dimming the room"—or being a negative nelly. But my indignation is mostly because there are so many other good books that are interesting, engaging, challenging and useful that it seems a pity that people should pick this one up instead. There are books out there, be they self-help books, business books, or ethics books that provide real insightful information to the reader, things you can learn from and act on. Read "How to Win Friends and Influence People," "Good to Great," "Zero to One" or "Rich Dad, Poor Dad." Read "The Road to Character," "The Moral Landscape," or "Man's Search for Meaning." Some books can even give simple advice but do so concisely, like "Discipline Equals Freedom."
For the person who's actually motivated by cheerleaders yelling "Go you, you can do it!" then this book might actually be for you. For everyone else, skip it.
View my best reviews and a collection of mental models at jasperburns.blog.
He does a good job organizing the book—I like the method of presenting his information, some stories backing it up, and then some summarizing concepts at the end. This is good for drilling in the point. However, the messages are all so obvious and uninteresting as to not be of little use. The Slight Edge, although not really well defined and with apparently shifting definitions throughout the book, seems to be this ephemeral concept of doing the thing that makes the difference. Yes, we want to do the things that make life get better. He talks a lot about small things compounding every day, yes we also want to compound good effects, sure. Yes, we need to adopt an attitude that makes us successful, clearly. Yes, it requires thought to think. Yes, the sky is blue.
The book was so full of self-evident platitudes that I'm flabbergasted it is as well-rated as it is. Take some of these nuggets of wisdom for example.
• "A single thoughtful, committed person can change the world."
• "Great success often starts from a tiny beginning—but there has to be a beginning. You have to start somewhere. You have to do something."
• "Mastery begins the moment you step onto the path. Failure begins the moment you step off the path."
• "Wanting is uncomfortable, yet wanting is essential to winning."
These are all some of those summarizing points at the ends of various chapters. He spends dozens of pages explaining each of these and others like them. This whole book should be a 3-page essay, but instead, he stretches simple concepts so far that I wanted to stop reading halfway through. I wish I did.
By the end of this review, I could rightly be accused of one of the people he describes as "dimming the room"—or being a negative nelly. But my indignation is mostly because there are so many other good books that are interesting, engaging, challenging and useful that it seems a pity that people should pick this one up instead. There are books out there, be they self-help books, business books, or ethics books that provide real insightful information to the reader, things you can learn from and act on. Read "How to Win Friends and Influence People," "Good to Great," "Zero to One" or "Rich Dad, Poor Dad." Read "The Road to Character," "The Moral Landscape," or "Man's Search for Meaning." Some books can even give simple advice but do so concisely, like "Discipline Equals Freedom."
For the person who's actually motivated by cheerleaders yelling "Go you, you can do it!" then this book might actually be for you. For everyone else, skip it.
View my best reviews and a collection of mental models at jasperburns.blog.
I think I read this book wrong. There is so much repetition about doing little things daily to progress yourself. He tells you to read 10 pages a day of a self help book and I think that is the best way to consume this book. I read it all in just a few days and it was good, I started a few daily tasks that were recommended. I think this is a great book to start with when beginning to self educate and look towards success. Many other books are referenced and suggested and I've added some to my Kindle library for the future. This may need read again at some point.
challenging
informative
medium-paced
A simple, yet compelling, idea on how to improve various aspects of your life in a maintainable way.
The book itself feels fairly repetitive and a little too sure of its ideas applying in every single life and circumstance.
There are a couple of good videos on YouTube that summarise the central idea well.
The book itself feels fairly repetitive and a little too sure of its ideas applying in every single life and circumstance.
There are a couple of good videos on YouTube that summarise the central idea well.