The Tipping Point-My Interpretation

After reading "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell, I found that I enjoyed reading it and would recommend it to any up-and-coming communicator. Although it has been criticized, which you should research for yourself, I believe that this book serves a simple purpose. It makes sense of things in culture that we can't quite put our finger on: The understanding of social epidemics. Gladwell gives us a name for the spark of an epidemic. He explains reasoning for the epidemic, supplies us with who help to create and strengthen the epidemic, and describes how and why these things worked.

As Gladwell explains, "The Tipping Point" is the point that pushes a trend, behavior, rating or response to the edge. There, it receives uncomparable recognition and success. However, there are key players such as Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen who are the human force behind an epidemic. From there, the Stickiness, as Gladwell has coined it, of your message is vital:it must be something that people can identify with and something that persuades people to act. This can be a small but powerful adjustment to your message.
Lastly, Gladwell tells us that The Power of Context is the last ingredient to the perfect epidemic. This concept refers to the state and shape of the enviornment where the epidemic is attemting to emerge.

From all of this, I found two things most interesting in 'The Tippin Point"
1.) A 80/20 Rule Gladwell uses to describe and catogorize workers in the world. He believes that 20 percent of people handle 80 percent of the work and responsibility in certain situations. This is evident if we look around our classroom and/or workplace. Have you ever had to work in a group project or on a group assignment? It never fails that some people are just workers and others are simply not. It's a mystery that they've gotten this far in life.-something we all want to say right?

2.)I found the idea of Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen genius as to categorize the people we know in our everyday life.
Connectors as those people who know a lot of people. As for pop culture, rapper Trick Daddy says it the best: "I know somebody, who knows somebody, who knows somebody." Those people who tend to be socialites and great networkers, in my opinion, fall into this category. Next are Mavens. These people are information seekers, keepers and sharers. Commonly called "know-it-alls." they know people, places and prices like the back of their hand. Mavens know their stuff and enjoy sharing their knowlege with others. They are also trusted for their opinion. These are the people who always know the inside scoop on sales, trips and other great finds.

Lastly, there are Salesmen. These are the people who have the natural charisma to sell an idea or product. Those who fit this category could sell us air if they made it sound good enough to buy.

Nonethless, these three categories are what Gladwell calls the Law of The Few. If your message passes through these individuals, you may be on the brink of a tipping point.

These categories made me consider where I would fall into place. Can you find your spot?