Quirky

December 18, 2017
Schilling, a professor at NYU’s Stern School of Business, takes a crack at the popular question of what makes a genius—and comes away largely empty-handed. Interested in the personality traits that separate the greats from the not so greats, she embarked on a familiar, ponderous consideration of the people who become “serial breakthrough innovators,” including Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, and Steve Jobs. She describes wanting to study people from a variety of backgrounds and in a variety of fields who are responsible for multiple objectively impressive innovations. The book finds that these people had some not-unexpected quirks in common: “High levels of social detachment,” self-confidence, idealism, creativity, and work ethic. No person being an island, Schilling’s subjects also had access to substantial resources—both in terms of finances and mentors. Schilling asks whether these traits can be cultivated in one’s own workforce. Her answer is that it is possible—with some effort. She rounds out the book with some ideas on how, such as by teaching employees about “building self-efficacy” and “finding the flow.” While she presents some interesting behind-the-scenes stories of famous innovators’ lives, there’s not enough new here, either in history or analysis, to break this out from the pack of similar titles.

December 15, 2017
Examining the lives of serial innovators reveals strong commonalities.Applying the research methods of large sample studies to investigate genius, Schilling (Management and Organizations/New York Univ. Stern School of Business; Strategic Management of Technological Innovation, 2004, etc.) failed to answer her overarching question: "is there some combination of traits or resources that increases the likelihood of an individual becoming a serial breakthrough innovator?" Instead, she took "a multiple case study approach" of a small sample of innovators, aiming to identify any unusual characteristics that set these individuals apart. Focusing on science and technology, she chose men--and one woman, Marie Curie--from different time periods and about whom significant biographical details were available: Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, Steve Jobs, Dean Kamen, Elon Musk, and Nikola Tesla. Except for Kamen, the inventor of Segway as well as the first portable kidney dialysis machine, among other medical breakthroughs, all the innovators are likely to be familiar to readers, and Schilling offers no groundbreaking information about their lives or work. Her interest is in illuminating factors that enabled them to generate original ideas. She distinguishes between personal characteristics (such as a sense of separateness or rebellion against authority) and mechanisms (any situational advantage that allowed them to flourish). A feeling of being different or disconnected from the crowd, she found, "typically emerges quite early in life." Einstein, Curie, and Jobs perceived themselves as different from peers and family; although this separateness may result in "a sense of suffering," it also helps individuals "generate and pursue big and unusual ideas." Although they thrive in solitude, innovators benefit from "a dense personal network" through which they can disseminate their ideas. Schilling uses her findings to offer suggestions to business leaders and parents about fostering innovation. She cites flexible teams at Pixar, for example, which give team members autonomy and support. She urges parents to consider that children who struggle in a structured classroom may benefit from a more fluid curriculum as well as access to intellectual and technological resources.Hardly revolutionary, but sensible advice on how to nurture creativity.

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January 1, 2018
Do successfully innovative people share identifiable character traits? Professor of management and organizations at NYU's Stern School of Business, Schilling argues that they do in this book about the skills, habits, and world-changing visions of famous scientists and inventors. In each of the eight chapters highlighting a trait of highly innovative people, she presents a short biography of a well-known figure who made several scientific discoveries or important new inventions, such as Benjamin Franklin, Marie Curie, Nikola Tesla, or Steve Jobs. Then she compares the figure's dominant traits with the other seven selected innovators. The author never claims readers can emulate these figures of genius. To the contrary, she emphasizes how unique their lives were. Many lived through great hardship, and most were socially disengaged. Nevertheless, readers may seek ideas and find inspiration in their stories. Shelve Quirky with books like Outliers (2008), by Malcolm Gladwell.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)