Maybe I did not give this book much of a shot. I was put off immediately by "my parents say this but I'm going to do this." That is not a great start to me. ( )

How ironic that I'm giving a single score to The End of Average Todd Rose starts off strong about the Air Force finally creating adjustable settings for their plane, as opposed to designing a cockpit for average size pilot. This breakthrough trickled down and resulted in things we take for granted, like adjustable seats in our car.

Todd Rose hates "avergarian", a world built around the average. Everyone is boiled down to a single number. He prefers the world built around individuals. He shares the rich history of "avergarian" (Taylorism) and makes some solid points on the averages having flaws.

However, I couldn't figure how to really apply it to my life, my job, or just my way of thinking. ( )

possibilities ... read by color ... ( )

Another book that could've been better as a long blog post. Really disappointing on "How We Succeed": own your individuality, take charge of your learning, MOOCs, the usual. ( )

The End of Average: How We Succeed in a World That Values Sameness
"The rising star and face of the new field "science of the individual" draws from the latest psychological and sociological research to show that success is found in individual strengths and weaknesses that don't fit along any average curve--a powerful manifesto for change i
This book Rose explores the impact that averagarism has had on our societal institutions and cultural life from design, business, education, and the impact that these practices has had on opportunities and success. As a person who didn't conform to averages and expectations and someone who found success on a different path, Rose definitely has a personal stake in his theory building.

Todd Rose's book explores how Western cultures and social institutions became oriented around the idea of the average person and exposes the central flaw of this approach. Averages are based around the concept that each unit being averaged is roughly identical, whereas people are individual and unique. Rose explores how to recognize your own individuality and work within current systems to make them work for you. He also advocates for ways of altering business and educational institutions to orient around the individual rather than the average. A well-researched and fascinating non-fiction read, I found the historical sections most interesting. While Rose's arguments about altering education to an individual oriented system, I found myself a bit skeptical that such a massive, time- and money-intensive alteration is viable for the near future. An intriguing and recommended read. ( )

▾Book descriptions
"The rising star and face of the new field "science of the individual" draws from the latest psychological and sociological research to show that success is found in individual strengths and weaknesses that don't fit along any average curve--a powerful manifesto for change in the ranks of Emotional Intelligence and The Power of Habit.Modern science has proven that people behave and learn in distinctive ways. And yet these individual patterns get lost in our institutions of opportunity--from education to the workforce--which remain rooted in the misguided belief that statistical averages are good enough to understand individuals and identify their unique talents. Standardized tests, grading systems, job applicant profiling, performance reviews--they invariably ignore our differences and ultimately fail at measuring our capacity for success.In this first popular book on the science of the individual, Todd Rose, a pioneer in the field draws on the latest research to show how, when we focus on individual findings rather than group findings or averages, we can rethink the world and everyone's potential in it. By understanding the three "principles of individuality"--the principle of the jagged profile, the principle of context, and the principle of pathways--we can avoid setting ourselves and those we are tasked with helping succeed (our children, students, employees) up for repeated failure and inst

Another book that could've been better as a long blog post. Really disappointing on "How We Succeed": own your individuality, take charge of your learning, MOOCs, the usual. ( )
success. As a person who didn't conform to averages and expectations and someone who found success on a different path, Rose definitely has a personal stake in his theory building.