Rebel Talent Summary
8 min read ⌚
Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and in Life
Sometimes, the practices and principles that look decent and worthy to follow are the ones you need to question.
In this book, Francesca wittingly propels the idea of inner revolution which breeds creativity and flair. It stands to reason, why the book is called “Rebel Talent.”
Without further ado, let’s get more precise about it.
Who Should Read “Rebel Talent”? And Why?
If you are on the fence about emerging talents, then this book will show you why every person has that enormous potential to seize the day.
It all rests on his/her shoulders to make something happen, and that’s not subjected to any alteration whatsoever. With that said, we wholeheartedly endorse the narrative presented in this book and believe that “Rebel Talent” is recommended for the broader audience.
We urge you to polish up your skills and think everything over.
About Francesca Gino
Francesca Gino is an Italian-American behavioral scientist, researcher, and author born in 1978. She currently works as a Tandon Family Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School.
Prior to joining Harvard, Francesca taught at the University of North Carolina.
She’s been receiving many accolades for her amazing achievements and was even venerated as one of the top US professors under the age of 40.
Francesca’s work has been featured on CNN, the Economist, Financial Times, New York Times…
“Rebel Talent PDF Summary”
Rebels don’t create trouble, but trouble creates rebels.
This simple but powerful analogy illustrates the beginning of a revolution with regards to craftiness.
Chapter One – Napoleon and the Hoodie
Napoleon’s conquests in North Africa were predicated on the idea of challenging British dominance. With an intention to capture Cairo, French troops led by Napoleon had to defeat the Mamelukes whose rule wreaked terror on the locals.
Even though the French were outnumbered, Napoleon managed to protect his flanks by disposing his army in a circle-like formation. The Mamelukes’ cavalry notorious for its close-combat fighting, was wiped out.
Many interpretations follow this battle, but most believe that Egyptians were liberated from the brutality of the autocratic rulers.
Bonaparte was driven by a constant thirst for new military knowledge that could enhance his prowess as a commander and political leader. He was regarded as France’s new savior, and he derived some of his ideas from Pierre de Bourcet.
Bonaparte modified the justice system and enacted laws that applied to every citizen – the very pillar of democracy.
Chapter Two – The Dog Named “Hot”
In this chapter, Francesca tells us a story that revolves around novelty by every stretch of the imagination. Accompanied by her husband, she paid a visit to an unorthodox show which exhibited a new form of acting. A man pulled up a chair and sat in the center of a small stage.
He then started steering his imaginary wheel, while another woman “ascended” from the crowd and tapped her on the shoulder. It was at this moment that Francesca realized that this whole improvisation was part of the act, where one person starts the whole show and others merely jump on the bandwagon.
This is why “novelty” has a pivotal role in keeping that fire burning in the relationships. Francesca and Greg feared that routine is the biggest killer of marriages, therefore, injecting spontaneity could spice things up a bit.
In addition, Francesca speaks about her wedding day, and why she decided to follow traditions, unlike her siblings.
Chapter Three – The Vanishing Elephant
You all have probably heard stories about Harry Houdini whose stunts, illusions, and magic left the crowd speechless. He mastered in escaping from handcuffs, ropes, chains; you name it. Widely reputed as one of the top illusionists of the 20th century, he was able to flare up the audience with ease.
Houdini’s extraordinary performances could not be fitted into one category. He did far more than just escaping while being locked up, as his remarkable accomplishments will continue to echo throughout the “illusionist” history.
For the sake of argument, please bear in mind that we know nothing about magic, so if we overestimate or underestimate some of his stunts, it’s simply a lack of knowledge.
He once managed to swallow a pack of needles, and twenty yards of thread helped only by a glass of water. The trickery commenced from an early age, whereas he as a child learned to unlock cabinets where his mom kept the pies and sweets.
In the vicinity of the Hippodrome, a noisy and intense drum sound filled the air and announced the act. The stage pistol gave the official go-ahead as the doors of the box at both ends opened simultaneously. The elephant was gone; knocking the socks off of everyone in the audience.
Chapter Four – The Hudson River Is a Runway
The name Chesley Sullenberger didn’t ring any bells up until that horrifying calamity that could have caused the deaths of hundreds of people.
On January 15th, flight 1549 took off from LaGuardia Airport, heading for Charlotte, North Carolina. A bird strike prevented them from continuing their journey, as Captain Sully tried to make it back toward LaGuardia and attempted Teterboro for an emergency landing, but none of that came to pass.
He was forced to land in the Hudson, with 150 souls on board. Despite the risk, every single person survived that day, with minor injuries. Harten testified that in the past decade, he never once failed to assist an airplane crew in making the right choice.
The control tower offered Sully runway 13th as a potential option for an emergency landing, but he declined the proposition as impossible to pull out. He was then instructed to turn right toward Teterboro, but that option was also dismissed as too risky and out of the question.
Prior to landing in the Hudson, Capt. Sully made an announcement:
Brace for Impact
After the incident, many questioned Sully’s expertise and decision-making, but they found out that if he didn’t follow his instincts that day, the consequences would have been disastrous.
Chapter Five – Uncomfortable Truths
DuVernay came to prominence when she was nominated for Selma in 2014. At that time, Ava DuVernay had already caught the attention of movie elitists like Sean Bailey, president of Motion Pictures Production at Walt Disney Studios.
He started pondering about the possibility of giving DuVernay a shot to direct the adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time. They even had a meeting, discussing a potential agreement.
Raised in a rough neighborhood, Ava had a tough time moving forward through life. Nonetheless, she doesn’t believe that this situation reflected some kind of disadvantage, but quite the opposite. It made her stronger, and independent to work hard and follow her dreams.
As a matter of fact, entering a male-dominant industry wasn’t a piece of cake.
Her leadership was always under scrutiny, but that didn’t stop her from crushing the stereotypes. As we mentioned, thanks to Selma – the story of the 1965 voting campaign spearheaded by Martin Luther King Jr. Ava became a renowned movie director.
The Disney pair caught a glimpse of her potential, and Ava was given full support to adapt A Wrinkle in Time. Her passion and skill emerged as some sort of a package deal.
Chapter Six – Coach Cheeks Sings the National Anthem
Back in 2003, Portland Trail Blazers were hosting the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Playoffs series – best of seven. Dallas had won the first two matches on their home court, but now it was the Blazers turn to show why they won thirteen of the last fifteen games against the Mavericks in Portland.
Prior to the match, thirteen-year-old girl Natalie Gilbert was invited to do the honors and sing the national anthem. Unfortunately, she caught a flu that morning and was unable to perform at its best. Nonetheless, she plucked up her courage and went on anyway.
On the second line, her voice suddenly switched off, and she wasn’t able to pull herself together. Coach Maurice Cheeks won the hearts of millions when he approached her and started to sing alongside her, giving Natalie the support to continue.
Later on, Natalie told the press that Maurice was her “guardian angel,” while Coach Cheeks remained humble in his words.
The Trail Blazers lost that night, even though they put up quite a fight. They won the next three games and tied the series, but the Mavericks managed to win the decisive Game 7.
Coach Cheeks told the press:
I never thought about doing it before I did it. I’m a father. I have two kids myself. I’d have wanted someone to help them if they could.
Chapter Seven – The Secret of Story
In this chapter, Francesca addresses a problem and explains how our decisions are sometimes irrational. She recalls a situation that helped her to see the big picture. One time, upon boarding the plane, she overhears the instructions laid out by the flight attendant and the rest of the crew.
In the meantime, Francesca prepares a group exercise for 40 people and doesn’t pay attention to the actual schooling in case of emergency.
Upon landing, she conducts the exercise and finds out that people’s mindset is often inspired to act in a given manner based on the group mood. This mindset conflicts with rationality and puts people’s position in jeopardy.
In addition, she also realizes that disengagement is very expensive because it hampers commitment, responsibility, and productivity overall. This short-attention span is proving to be a problem not just in the States but globally.
Catching people’s attention hangs in the balance and breaking the ice is harder than ever.
Chapter Eight – Become a Rebel Leader
Last but not least, we all wonder what it takes to develop into a true leader! So, here’s the 8-step process one must follow to accomplish just that:
- Seek Out the New
- Encourage Constructive Dissent
- Open Conversations, Don’t Close Them
- Reveal Yourself—and Reflect
- Learn Everything—Then Forget Everything
- Find Freedom in Constraints
- Lead from the Trenches
- Foster Happy Accidents
Key Lessons from “Rebel Talent”
1. Embrace change and work your way through life
2. Keep your hopes up
3. Don’t let your guard down
Embrace change and work your way through life
How many times have we witnessed stories that belong in the same trilogy as “David & Goliath.” That serves as a proof that despite the odds, you have what it takes to come out as a winner on the other side.
Let this be a motivation, not a guide for you to circumvent a problem, but to face it and deal with it. It’s a wake-up call that could signify the start of a new day.
Keep your hopes up
Not everything goes according to the plan, and that’s fine. You shouldn’t be the one passing judgments, nor pointing those poisonous arrows at your heart.
Leave the interpretation to others, and you focus on the action!
Don’t let your guard down
Sometimes, the environment you excel in can be subjected to various influences that impede the process of evolvement.
Even in those kinds of circumstances, one must keep its eyes peeled and be on full alert for potential twists and turns.
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“Rebel Talent Quotes”
One of the biggest surprises in my research has been the discovery of how important, and meaningful, rebel talent can be in one’s personal life. Click To Tweet At their core, rebels are engaged. They have abundant energy and mental resilience, they invest in their work and in their personal relationships, and they persist even when the road gets tough. Click To Tweet As professional opportunities expanded, women weren’t the only ones who benefited. There were gains for the companies they joined and for the economy more broadly. Click To Tweet Even outside of work, when we think about self-improvement, we tend to focus on weaknesses. Click To Tweet In a crisis, when we think about what we should do, we focus on the most apparent courses of action, often those we relied on when making similar decisions in the past, whether we are following a checklist or not. Click To Tweet
Our Critical Review
Every chapter has its separate story, one that reveals people’s knack for all sorts of things. The ineptness in one thing can be compensated with a proclivity for something else.
In all honesty, we all have these tendencies and urges that are worth questioning. Hence, one can become aware of its talents, and build up from there.
With this in mind, you get the idea of why we think “Rebel Talent” would be an excellent addition on your bookshelf.
Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.
