21A: Reading Reflection 2

The book I chose for the second reading reflection was Scott Adam's How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life. 

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?
The general theme and the lesson Adams tries to convey to the reader is that one's failures usually lead a person to their biggest successes. I really enjoyed a quote in it, where he says, "Everything that you want out of life is in [a] big vat of failure. The trick is to get the good stuff out." Adams takes the reader through his many, many failures throughout his life, and shows that every experience he had later led him to his success as a comic illustrator.
2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?
For me, the biggest lesson in the book that resonated with me and connected with the Entrepreneurship course was his opinion that people should set systems, not goals, in order to achieve things. For example, instead of setting a goal of losing twenty pounds, why not create a system for yourself in where you exercise regularly and eat well? Both will probably take you to the same destination. But if one sets goals, the journey to the destination feels like a "pre-success failure," instead of in a system, where one simply follows their own rules and ends up happily at their destination.

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?
I would have people write down their goals for their life, whether big or small. Then, I would tell them to convert their goals into a solid system that they can follow to attain that goal. This way, people will become more strict in achieving their dreams, and not be so sad if tey don't.

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?
I think the biggest surprise I had with the book was the amount of absolute failures this man went through before and even after he found success in 'Dilbert'. He constantly tries new things, whether they're successful or not, and I feel that is worth commending him for over anything else.

Comments

  1. ChrisMarch 29, 2019 at 10:30 AM

    This book was one of two that I was interested in reading. I chose Mindset instead, but I am still interested in reading this one after reading your blog. I experienced my own failure which has led me to UF to pursue and MBA. I also like the concept of systems rather than goals and look forward to learning more about that.

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  2. VictoriaMarch 29, 2019 at 4:44 PM

    I also read this book and found it very interesting. A lot of it held true and I was able to use it in daily life. It really decreased my stress about failure. I am currently managing a store out of state for my company and I have been stressing about getting everything together. After reading the book it really made me think even if it doesn't work out the experiences itself can lead to better things. I did your idea for an assignment to be a creative and beneficial one.

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  3. Caroline PierceMarch 30, 2019 at 2:09 PM

    Hi Federico,
    After reading your reflection, I wish I had read this book! I feel that I identify with this in a big way. The phrase “pre-success failure” 5explains so much why You can feel like you’ll never get to where you want to be. I too admire the way some people can just pick themselves up over and over again after everything they have been through. I hope to work on this more in the future.

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