Business

Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success

Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success

  • Downloads：8758
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-07-30 06:51:01
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Ron Friedman
  • ISBN：1982135794
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
  • Download

Summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

For readers of Atomic Habits， Deep Work， and Peak comes a game-changing approach to mastering new skills and succeeding faster。

For generations， we’ve been taught there are two ways to succeed—either from talent or practice。 In Decoding Greatness， award-winning social psychologist Ron Friedman illuminates a powerful third path—one that has quietly launched icons in a wide range of fields， from artists， writers， and chefs， to athletes， inventors， and entrepreneurs: reverse engineering。

To reverse engineer is to look beyond what is evident on the surface and find a hidden structure。 It’s the ability to taste an intoxicating dish and deduce its recipe， to listen to a beautiful song and discern its chord progression， to watch a horror film and grasp its narrative arc。

Using eye-opening examples of top performers—from Agatha Christie to Andy Warhol， Barack Obama to Serena Williams—and groundbreaking research on pattern recognition， skill acquisition， and creative genius， Friedman reveals the staggering power of reverse engineering and teaches you how to harness this vital skill for yourself。

You’ll learn how to take apart models you admire， pinpoint precisely what makes them work， and apply that knowledge to develop novel ideas， methods， and products that are uniquely your own。 Along the way， you’ll meet the culinary detective who exposes top-secret recipes， the burglar who can visit a bank and recreate its blueprints， and the celebrated artist who reverse engineered his way to the top of his profession without any formal education。

You don’t have to be a genius to achieve greatness， but you do need a method for getting there。 Bursting with unforgettable stories and actionable strategies， Decoding Greatness is an indispensable guide to learning from the best， improving your skills， and sparking breakthrough ideas。

Download

Reviews

Jennifer Louden ，

Ton of good ideas and clever if very masculine stories。

Stephen ，

Decoding Greatness is an engaging book which explores why “borrowing” from others or reverse engineering works and how to be better at it。 This is as much a personal growth book as a survey of the history and mechanisms of reverse engineering in business and personal success。 It has has the inspirational elements of Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative but with more weight on the psychology and technique than inspiration。While it’s not true that every think is a c Decoding Greatness is an engaging book which explores why “borrowing” from others or reverse engineering works and how to be better at it。 This is as much a personal growth book as a survey of the history and mechanisms of reverse engineering in business and personal success。 It has has the inspirational elements of Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative but with more weight on the psychology and technique than inspiration。While it’s not true that every think is a copy or derivative， there is some basis to feeling that there are， say， 5 basic board games， or novel plots and decoding greatness will give you some insights。 Incremental amounts of creativity built on prior successes tend to be successful。 What differentiates a success from a “meh” creation or business is often some combination of innovation， timing or execution。 Some of the recurring themes in the book are the benefits of reflection and how to get the best feedback。 As an Agile software developer （and a fan of good feedback in general） a lot of these ideas were familiar， but I found Friedman’s explanations clear and engaging。After providing context and examples the book wraps up by giving concise， actionable advice on how to apply “reverse engineering” to be more successful in your work and other endeavors， including advice on how to best learn from experts， and how to solicit and receive feedback in a way that is useful。 There are whole books written on these topic， the information here is a good， actionable primer。 Friedman also gives insights into why the best performers are often not the best teachers。With engaging stories （covering areas including technology， business and sports）， and clear， actionable， advice this book is a valuable guide to becoming better by listening， observing， and learning。 If you are thinking about how you can do something more interesting but felt as if you are struggling with creativity， this book may help you make progress。 And you will learn some fun facts along the way。 。。。more

Niccolo Alexander Hamlin ，

Not just knowledgeable but excellently written。 A page turner of memorable and actionable insight。

Chris Boutté ，

I’ve never read anything from Friedman， so I didn’t know what to expect from this book， but it’s really good。 At the time of writing this， I just celebrated 9 years sober， and one of the biggest parts of my foundation was that I was able to learn from others who did what I wanted to accomplish。 Since then， I’ve tried to adapt it to all aspects of my life， and that’s exactly what this book from Ron Friedman is all about。 Through scientific and psychological research。 Friedman argues that we can l I’ve never read anything from Friedman， so I didn’t know what to expect from this book， but it’s really good。 At the time of writing this， I just celebrated 9 years sober， and one of the biggest parts of my foundation was that I was able to learn from others who did what I wanted to accomplish。 Since then， I’ve tried to adapt it to all aspects of my life， and that’s exactly what this book from Ron Friedman is all about。 Through scientific and psychological research。 Friedman argues that we can learn from people who came before us， and he provides some solid anecdotes along the way。 Aside from great strategies for reverse engineering from others， I really liked the second half of this book because he has a whole chapter on managing risk as well as how we can get better at taking feedback。 I don’t even know if I have a criticism of this book aside from the fact that it’d be interesting to hear a conversation between Friedman and Duncan Watts。 While there are some formulas and steps you can follow from others who are successful， luck and many other factors play a massive role as well。 So， while I highly recommend that people read this book， I also think it’s important to round out your analysis of this type of strategy by getting the full perspective on the balance between hard work and factors beyond our control。 。。。more

Shirley Brosius ，

A fascinating read。 The book applies to business but includes illustrations that inspire writers and speakers and could even be applied to personal life。 The author explains how to examine （decode） something you admire—whether it’s a book， a speaker or something that has brought someone success。 Then he explains how to dissect their approach to understand what makes it tick。 However， you don’t just “copy” the elements; you insert your own style/behavior/etc。 The subtitle explains the content: Ho A fascinating read。 The book applies to business but includes illustrations that inspire writers and speakers and could even be applied to personal life。 The author explains how to examine （decode） something you admire—whether it’s a book， a speaker or something that has brought someone success。 Then he explains how to dissect their approach to understand what makes it tick。 However， you don’t just “copy” the elements; you insert your own style/behavior/etc。 The subtitle explains the content: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success。 Chapters deal with topics such as visualization and talking to experts to better appreciate their approach。I especially loved the stories。 The can-you-top-this competition of Steve Jobs and Bill Gates。 The transformation of Barach Obama’s speaking style。 The song-writing of Roy Orbison。 The journey of artist Vincent van Gogh。 Even the careful study and planning of a master bank robber。Here’s an interesting nugget: When groups of students were scored after one group read material that was clearly printed and another group read material that was blurred or faint， the latter had better recall。 Evidently difficulty in reading helps knowledge stick。 Who knew？ And that’s just one example from the book。Published in 2021 by Simon & Schuster， the book is quite readable and very informative。 I highly recommend it for anyone seeking to better themselves in any area of their lives。 。。。more

Cory Miller ，

Your blueprint to creating blueprints to greatness Intensely practical guide to greatness with inspiring stories that illustrate the author’s points。 I’m creating a list of things I want to learn now。 I hesitate sharing only because I feel like this is THE secret hack to success。

Debjeet ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This book has lots of meaty material which you can learn and apply in your daily creative life。 Though none of the themes in the book are new， but the presentation and various references from writing， business， innovators， etc to explain those themes are very good。Some of the theme mentioned are-1 Reverse outlining- First， detect a bigger picture & patterns & then put efforts into working out details i。e。 bottom-up approach。 2 Creativity*It begins with concerted efforts to analyze the great work This book has lots of meaty material which you can learn and apply in your daily creative life。 Though none of the themes in the book are new， but the presentation and various references from writing， business， innovators， etc to explain those themes are very good。Some of the theme mentioned are-1 Reverse outlining- First， detect a bigger picture & patterns & then put efforts into working out details i。e。 bottom-up approach。 2 Creativity*It begins with concerted efforts to analyze the great work of others & distill their approach into a reproducible formula that compliment your unique abilities， interest， and situation which one could deconstruct， analyze and reproduce。 Don't mimic， evolve。* Optimal Newnessa-Leveraging the proven formula and add your unique twist- It involves blending the different influences to come up with something new。-Application of ideas from one domain to another domain。3- Vision-ability gap- Skill can be taught but vision and taste come from within which is harder to develop。* To address the unmet needs we must find out why it exists & what challenges we are going to solve。4 Keep score* Metrics motivate， it keeps progress tangible & sparks satisfaction & pride。 It makes you think more strategically。 3 approach for designing your scoreboard* break down the complex task and isolate specific aspects & focus on it one at a time。*Keep the focus on the totality of the job rather than concentrating on each component。*Measuring short-term outcome makes progress easier to appreciate。How not to measure score。* Surrogation- People forget the ethics and larger picture & only concerned about meeting the target。* Minimize- undesirable metric i。e。 not aligned with larger goal be avoided。5 Learning^ Desirable difficulty- We learn well when we stretch the limit of our current comfort zone， observe our outcome and make adjustments。^Effective learning requires constant， detailed and immediate feedback。^Reflective practice- It tells us to pause， reflect， analyze， strategize & consider our progress。We move away from daily routine & examine the value of our actions。 Resist our beliefs and test our assumptions。^Keeping record- Making a journal is part of learning because it helps in collecting past mistakes and improves upon them。^Visualize-Mental rehearsals and imagery exercise helps in reducing anxiety and it activates neural pathways involved in physically doing the behavior^ Practice novelty- avoid endless repetition & alternate among tasks & blending an assortment of tasks。6 Talk to expertsWhile talking to an expert we must focus on asking 3 categories of questionsa- Journey questions*ask experts roadmap for success。*What mistakes they committed？*What metrics they value most？*What events they had spent less time on？b- Process questions*Nitty-gritty of execution*Idea generation & strategy， planning & daily routine。c- Discovery Questions*Asking their initial expectation & compare it with belief that exists today。*Wish what they had known when they started。*What was their defining moment & what surprised them most。- Ask experts for examples- Learning with examples lead to faster comprehension & fewer errors。-Look for analogies- where you can link complex & new ideas to something you already know。-Demonstration- can you show what you mean？-It leads to generate our own explanation。-Repeat back- Paraphrasing what you have heard to confirm your understanding。It leads to process information more deeply & reveals a gap in your comprehension。7 FeedbackEssential elements-* It has to be specific， speaks of a particular element of some task。*It must help in realizing opportunities for getting better。*Must solve your weakness head-on。* Must be taken from the select group who has the subject knowledge and can give a solution， not from any random people。Taking feedback from the wrong people is worse than taking no feedback at all。* it must be properly timed。Convert feedback to the growth- Translate negative feedback into corrective actions。 Identify changes you can apply to address feedbacks。 It makes failure feel temporary。- Take a break， step back and reflect on big picture objectives。- Viewing struggle as natural and desirable part of growth provides greater openness to outside feedback。 。。。more

Chiraag Swaly ，

This is a really well written book with excellent storytelling to help bring the concepts of reverse engineering to life。 It is a great combination of science and storytelling providing a clear blueprint using examples of some of the world’s best performers。The book highlights that traditionally the view is that to succeed you either need to rely on innate talent or diligent practice but there is a third way， which is reverse engineering。 This is finding a hidden structure within a piece of work This is a really well written book with excellent storytelling to help bring the concepts of reverse engineering to life。 It is a great combination of science and storytelling providing a clear blueprint using examples of some of the world’s best performers。The book highlights that traditionally the view is that to succeed you either need to rely on innate talent or diligent practice but there is a third way， which is reverse engineering。 This is finding a hidden structure within a piece of work， a product， service or approach。 The book does such an amazing job of bringing to life the concept of reverse engineering， it shows how Steve Jobs and Bill Gates used this to achieve phenomenal success。 Barack Obama was really bad at speaking and he then had to change his approach by spending time in Chicago's churches， paying close attention to the way preachers get their message across and inspire their audience。 Roger Federer reversed his career slump by changing his vulnerability into a major strength。The book has many more fascinating stories like these and it helps you understand pattern recognition and using data to analyse the structure of a something you want to reverse engineer。 I really enjoyed the analysis of Sir Ken Robinson's TED Talk and bringing this to life using data and algorithmic thinking。This book will inspire you with fascinating stories and enable you to harness the power of reverse engineering。 If you want to produce results for the projects you are working on， tap into your creative genius， create breakthrough ideas and learn complex skills then this book is a great enabler。 It is a book I will be referring to often and will support in transforming how I approach my work and learning。 Highly recommended。 。。。more

Robert Slaker ，

Every time I read something by Ron Friedman， I go “aha， I can use that！” That happened again when I read Decoding Greatness … several times in each chapter。Over my years as a technology marketer， I’ve used my own process of “reverse engineering” to figure out what I need to do in order to generate the result I’m seeking。 Decoding Greatness amplifies that process and turns it into a comprehensive， workable system that can be applied to any endeavor。Anyone who is looking to accelerate their own su Every time I read something by Ron Friedman， I go “aha， I can use that！” That happened again when I read Decoding Greatness … several times in each chapter。Over my years as a technology marketer， I’ve used my own process of “reverse engineering” to figure out what I need to do in order to generate the result I’m seeking。 Decoding Greatness amplifies that process and turns it into a comprehensive， workable system that can be applied to any endeavor。Anyone who is looking to accelerate their own success， whether in a profession， entrepreneurial venture or personal avocation should read this book in detail， and apply its teachings immediately。 。。。more

Manisha Thakor ，

OMG。。。 this Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success is an absolute MUST READ if you've ever longingly thought， "Why them and not me？？？" when it comes to achieving a professional or personal goal。 （I've sure had that thought ;）。 This book literally helps you crack the code so you can very clearly identify the steps you need to take to get where you want to go。 What I found extra fascinating was how much I learned from disciplines not even remotely related to my own OMG。。。 this Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success is an absolute MUST READ if you've ever longingly thought， "Why them and not me？？？" when it comes to achieving a professional or personal goal。 （I've sure had that thought ;）。 This book literally helps you crack the code so you can very clearly identify the steps you need to take to get where you want to go。 What I found extra fascinating was how much I learned from disciplines not even remotely related to my own goals （for example: how a top-notch chef or a world class photographer hones their expertise）。 Additionally， while the concept of reverse engineering is one I'd heard of before in the context of areas like engineering and manufacturing， I'd: （a） never thought to apply it the way Ron Friedman uses it， （b） had not realized how - rather than mimic someone else's process - it can help you create at a whole new and unique level， and （c） how much fun this way of thinking can be。 Highly， highly recommend this book！ my link text 。。。more

Norman Horn ，

"Decoding Greatness" is for anyone who likes to learn by example。 We know that we do not merely do something great through pure creativity and ingenuity， but rather by "standing on the shoulders of giants" we innovate and re-iterate into great things。 And if you "get" this， then you need to get this book and further equip yourself through the example of Ron and the many stories he tells to do further great things。 "Decoding Greatness" is for anyone who likes to learn by example。 We know that we do not merely do something great through pure creativity and ingenuity， but rather by "standing on the shoulders of giants" we innovate and re-iterate into great things。 And if you "get" this， then you need to get this book and further equip yourself through the example of Ron and the many stories he tells to do further great things。 。。。more

Ali ，

An insanely useful trove of immediately actionable tools & deep insights conveyed through memorable stories of the greatsDid you know that Barack Obama used to be terrible at public speaking？ That Stan Lee almost quit writing comics around age 40？ That after a slump and injury， Roger Federer took almost a year off to revamp his entire game to become the greatest of all time？ Well I did not， which is part of why I enjoyed "Decoding Greatness" enough to have read it twice already！But the even bigg An insanely useful trove of immediately actionable tools & deep insights conveyed through memorable stories of the greatsDid you know that Barack Obama used to be terrible at public speaking？ That Stan Lee almost quit writing comics around age 40？ That after a slump and injury， Roger Federer took almost a year off to revamp his entire game to become the greatest of all time？ Well I did not， which is part of why I enjoyed "Decoding Greatness" enough to have read it twice already！But the even bigger reason for my enthusiasm for the book is its giant trove of deep， sometimes counterintuitive， always actionable insights about how you， too， can achieve world-class results。 This is a book about reverse engineering success — also known as emulating those who are great at what they do so you can get similar results。 Friedman expertly structures the book to make its life-altering information easy to digest， reference， and implement。Heck， I've already implemented not one but *two* of its suggestions （and it's still the release day）。 For one， if journaling is good enough for Thomas Edison， Michael Phelps， and Serena Williams， I figure it's good enough for me。 So I just acquired my first-ever 5-year journal。 I'll also be tracking my own performance in various realms to find more "leading indicators。"Some other super-useful techniques:• Reverse outlining: To write a great article or book， read then break down the structure of the best works in the genre。 Then， emulate that structure。• Totally new stuff tends to bomb; people actually prefer the familiar。 So for maximum creative success， you want "optimal newness" -- something that's "derivative with a twist。"• Visualization is miraculously effective！ Just make sure you visualize the whole process of doing the thing。 If you just visualize standing on the damn podium， that's actually counterproductive。 Optimal dose: 20min/day。• Reflective practice: This is so huge。 “We’ve been taught that education occurs from the outside in—that learning happens through exposure to new information。 But that’s only half the equation。 Reviewing past events with an eye for insights， patterns， and predictions is how we turn experience into wisdom。”I also appreciate all the tools that Friedman casually drops in that I had no idea existed。 Want to see all the chord progressions for any pop song？ Get the Capo 3 app！ All the parts of every car in the world？ The A2Mac1 website has you covered！ And then there's the epic， word-by-word breakdown of the late Sir Ken Robinson's greatest TED talk of all time。Of course， there's even more in there: the science of giving and receiving useful feedback; cognitive task analysis; how to interview an expert to get actually useful information （harder than you think）; and my favorite — pressure acclimatization training， as exemplified by speed cuber Dan Knights and basketball god Stephen Curry。As a coach， therapist， and performer， I'm a huge fan of the literature of high performance， and this book is now one of my favorites。 Implementing any one of its dozens of science-backed ideas is bound to measurably improve your game。 Do more than that， and who knows how far you'll go！ "Re-read great books often"， another of the book's recommendations， is one I'll be applying to this one regularly。 Get one copy for yourself and one for the favorite budding performer in your life。-- Ali Binazir， M。D。， M。Phil。， Happiness Engineer and author of The Tao of Dating: The Smart Woman's Guide to Being Absolutely Irresistible， the highest-rated dating book on Amazon， and Should I Go to Medical School？: An Irreverent Guide to the Pros and Cons of a Career in Medicine 。。。more

Carol Gyzander ，

Decoding Greatness by Ron Friedman， Ph。D。 is an exciting and inspirational book。 As a fiction writer myself， I gravitated to his advice in the second chapter about how to collect and then analyze a series of master works in a genre – but not just for what they share in common。 What makes each unique？ Don’t mimic， evolve。 I will definitely be sitting down with a bunch of books and going through them， then following the author’s advice on how to evolve the key points and make my own stories terrif Decoding Greatness by Ron Friedman， Ph。D。 is an exciting and inspirational book。 As a fiction writer myself， I gravitated to his advice in the second chapter about how to collect and then analyze a series of master works in a genre – but not just for what they share in common。 What makes each unique？ Don’t mimic， evolve。 I will definitely be sitting down with a bunch of books and going through them， then following the author’s advice on how to evolve the key points and make my own stories terrific。 。。。more

Mary Roberts ，

I greatly appreciate works that synthesize the latest research and evidence-based strategies to improve the way we approach aspects of our lives。 This book delivers all of this in an engaging and accessible way which is no small feat！ I especially enjoyed the discussion on the importance of measurable outcomes to track progress towards a goal， and leveraging the research on expertise in examining the ways to facilitate successful performance。 If you are looking for actionable ways to improve you I greatly appreciate works that synthesize the latest research and evidence-based strategies to improve the way we approach aspects of our lives。 This book delivers all of this in an engaging and accessible way which is no small feat！ I especially enjoyed the discussion on the importance of measurable outcomes to track progress towards a goal， and leveraging the research on expertise in examining the ways to facilitate successful performance。 If you are looking for actionable ways to improve your performance， this book is for you。 Thank you， Dr。 Friedman， for another insightful read！ 。。。more

Jonathan ，

Ron's ability to deconstruct behavior and outcomes， integrate science， then offer usable insights in an easy to read format makes this a great read。 Ron's ability to deconstruct behavior and outcomes， integrate science， then offer usable insights in an easy to read format makes this a great read。 。。。more

Mischelle Raftery ，

Ron Friedman is one of the good ones。 His book Decoding Greatness offers a new and insightful look into how to succeed in almost anything。 He offer the reasons why things work， not just telling you to do something， but why you want to do something。 He is an easy to read and understand author。 I will be using the tools in this book for years to come。

Judy ，

This book is for anyone who wants to analyze the success of others to find principles and patterns they can reapply in new ways to their own creations。 Dr。 Friedman offers a brilliant analysis of some of the world’s most significant successes and explains clearly and concisely how anyone can apply the principles of reverse engineering。 One of the things I most admire about Dr。 Friedman’s work is that he provides straightforward information without fluff or hype。 As a classically trained musician This book is for anyone who wants to analyze the success of others to find principles and patterns they can reapply in new ways to their own creations。 Dr。 Friedman offers a brilliant analysis of some of the world’s most significant successes and explains clearly and concisely how anyone can apply the principles of reverse engineering。 One of the things I most admire about Dr。 Friedman’s work is that he provides straightforward information without fluff or hype。 As a classically trained musician， his approach resonates deeply， and enables me to apply it more broadly。 Highly recommended！ 。。。more

Melissa Smith ，

Dr。 Friedman's latest book is superb！ It's clear that he used his own reverse engineering process in writing to create this book。 I was pleasantly surprised to learn more than I expected when it comes to Decoding Greatness。 I thoroughly enjoyed learning the reverse engineering process to be successful。 However， the surprise was in learning how to minimize risks as well。 Anytime risk can be minimized taking action always becomes more exciting than scary。 A must-read for anyone who wants to do som Dr。 Friedman's latest book is superb！ It's clear that he used his own reverse engineering process in writing to create this book。 I was pleasantly surprised to learn more than I expected when it comes to Decoding Greatness。 I thoroughly enjoyed learning the reverse engineering process to be successful。 However， the surprise was in learning how to minimize risks as well。 Anytime risk can be minimized taking action always becomes more exciting than scary。 A must-read for anyone who wants to do something great！ 。。。more

Peppy Adi-Purnomo ，

Enjoyed reading it and I like the reverse engineer approach to realise an idea into actionable items。

Jim Vangerud ，

This is a great book！ I would recommend Decoding Greatness to anyone who wants to understand how the most successful people in the world have achieved greatness。 Weaving together the latest research along with many interesting stories， Ron Friedman unpacks the hidden structures used by top performers from a wide variety of fields to become elite。 Reverse engineering， as it is laid out in this book， works on anything and I will be putting this strategy to good use。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0