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bookmarkedbytab's review against another edition
3.0
This book does a great job of pointing out how failures, creativity, and small ideas are the cornerstone of success.
vittoria_ann's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars. This book has some good ideas, but it was twice as long as it should have been. The chapters were organized by concept, but then the same examples were used again and again. Instead of the repetition I would have preferred short chapters that focused on each example. I know his concept is try lots of things and ask questions, but I still felt like it would have been more useful if he included a more instructive chapter to making your own little bets because the lessons got a little lost in the repetition.
nickertz's review against another edition
4.0
I just finished Little Bets by Peter Sims. The book deals with innovation as an incremental activity and gives examples from the world of Pixar, Chris Rock, Amazon and a host of other famous people and institutions. The thesis is that innovation is successful when it is the practice of repeated trial and experiment. This is not the small innovation of line extensions, but real pushes by small steps in new directions. Even after a short exposé the case is compelling. But there is another thing in this book: it makes it clear that personality is an equally important force in the success of a venture. All the companies and people featured exhibit the same strength of character and will. I believe this is equally important for a successful institution today.
patrick_'s review against another edition
5.0
Lots of little stories about little risks people take to make progress with ideas.
marrije's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting, but the meat of this (already pretty tiny) book could have been condensed into about 30% of its present length, I think: lots of repeats of the same anecdotal material. Yeah, we get it! Chris Rock tries out lots of stuff in small clubs! That's the sixth time you're telling me that!
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