If you cut off a spider's leg, it's crippled; if you cut off its head, it dies. But if you cut off a starfish's leg it grows a new one, and the old leg can grow into an entirely new starfish.What's the hidden power behind the success of Wikipedia, Craigslist, and Skype? What do eBay and General Electric have in common with the abolitionist and women's rights movements? What fundamental choice put General Motors and Toyota on vastly different paths? How could winning a Supreme Court case be the biggest mistake MGM could have made?
After five years of ground-breaking research, Ori Brafman and Rod Beckstrom share some unexpected answers, gripping stories, and a tapestry of unlikely connections. The Starfish and the Spider argues that organizations fall into two categories: traditional "spiders," which have a rigid hierarchy and top-down leadership, and revolutionary "starfish," which rely on the power of peer relationships.
The Starfish and the Spider explores what happens when starfish take on spiders (such as the music industry vs. Napster, Kazaa, and the P2P services that followed). It reveals how established companies and institutions, from IBM to Intuit to the US government, are also learning how to incorporate starfish principles to achieve success. The book explores:
* How the Apaches fended off the powerful Spanish army for 200 years
* The power of a simple circle
* The importance of catalysts who have an uncanny ability to bring people together
* How the Internet has become a breeding ground for leaderless organizations
* How Alcoholics Anonymous has reached untold millions with only a shared ideology and without a leader
The Starfish and the Spider is the rare book that will change how you understand the world around you.
People and organizations tend to approach chaos as if it were an unruly beast-something that needs to be reined in, or avoided at all costs. But what if there's a benefit to chaos? What if it's actually crucial for inspiring industry innovation?
In The Chaos Imperative organizational thinker and bestselling author Ori Brafman and management consultant Judah Pollack dramatically demonstrate how even the best and most efficient organizations-from Fortune 500 companies to today's US Army-can become more innovative by allowing a little unstructured space and "contained chaos" into their planning and decision-making.
Through their consulting work, they realized that while structure and hierarchy are essential both in large corporations and small groups, too much of either can stifle creativity.
Weaving together stories and case studies with insights from areas as far-reaching as neuroscience, medieval history, and video gaming, Brafman and Pollack reveal how creating pockets of chaos within organizations can inspire the creative leaps that lead to new growth.
If you cut off a spider's head, it dies. But if you cut off a starfish's leg, it grows a new one, and that leg can grow into an entirely new starfish. Traditional top-down organizations are like spiders, but now starfish organizations are changing the face of business and the world.
What's the hidden power behind the success of Wikipedia, Craigslist, and Skype? What do eBay and General Electric have in common with the abolitionist and women's rights movements? What fundamental choice put General Motors and Toyota on vastly different paths? How could winning a Supreme Court case be the biggest mistake MGM could have made?
After five years of ground-breaking research, Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom share some unexpected answers, gripping stories, and a tapestry of unlikely connections. THE STARFISH AND THE SPIDER argues that organizations fall into two categories: traditional "spiders," which have a rigid hierarchy and top-down leadership, and revolutionary "starfish," which rely on the power of peer relationships.
It reveals how established companies and institutions, from IBM to Intuit to the U.S. government, are also learning how to incorporate starfish principles to achieve success. Find out:
* How the Apaches fended off the powerful Spanish army for 200 years.
* The power of a simple circle.
* The importance of catalysts who have an uncanny ability to bring people together.
* How the Internet has become a breeding ground for leaderless organizations.
* How Alcoholics Anonymous has reached untold millions with only a shared ideology and without a leader.
You know the feeling. You meet someone new-at a party or at work-and you just hit it off. There is an instant sense of camaraderie.
In a word, you "click."
From the bestselling authors of Sway, Click is a fascinating psychological investigation of the forces behind what makes us click with certain people, or become fully immersed in whatever activity or situation we're involved in.
From two co-workers who fall head over heels for each other while out to dinner and are married a month later (and fifteen years later remain just as in love), to a team of scientists who changed the world with the magic of their invention, these kinds of peak experiences, when our senses are completely focused on the moment, are something that individuals-and companies-strive to achieve. After all, when you're in the "zone," you're happier and more productive. Why is it that we click in certain situations and with certain people, but not with others? Can this kind of magical connection be consciously encouraged? Is there a way to create such peak experiences, whether on a date or in your job?
According to Ori and Rom Brafman, there is.
In a powerful, story-driven narrative that weaves together cutting-edge research in psychology and sociology, the Brafmans explore what it means to "click": the common factors present when our brain and senses are fully engaged. They identify five "accelerators" that increase the likelihood of these kinds of magic connections in our work and relationships.
From actors vying for a role on a popular TV series to police officers negotiating with hostage takers, we learn how one can foster an environment where we can click with another person and shape our thinking, behavior, and emotions.
A fascinating journey into how we engage with the world around us, Click will transform our thinking about those moments when we are in the zone and everything seems to fall into place.
ORI BRAFMAN is an organizational business consultant. ROM BRAFMAN is a psychologist with a private practice in Palo Alto, California. They are the coauthors of the New York Times bestseller Sway.
Like the bestselling Blink and Freakonomics, this lively narrative is a fresh view of the world, explaining the previously inexplicable and revealing hidden influences on human
decision-making.
A Harvard Business School student pays over $200 for a $20 bill. Washington, DC commuters ignore a free subway concert by a violin prodigy. A veteran airline pilot attempts to take off without control tower clearance and collides with another plane on the runway. Why do we do the wildly irrational things we sometimes do?
Drawing on cutting-edge research from the fields of social psychology, behavioral economics, and organizational behavior, brothers Ori and Rom Brafman reveal the dynamic forces that act on us repeatedly over time, affecting nearly every aspect of our personal and business lives.
They show how we are sabotaged by loss aversion (going to great lengths to avoid perceived losses), the diagnosis bias (ignoring evidence that contradicts our initial take on a person or situation), and commitment (even when a plan isn't working, we are reluctant to change course). Weaving together colorful stories about dot-com millionaires, game show audiences, NBA coaches, and the US Supreme Court tours the flip side of reason and points us toward a more rational life.
