Book Review: "RANGE: Why Generalists Triumph In A Specialized World"
David Epstein (2019); 291 pages
If you are curious to learn how we best learn and innovate then this book is for you. To clarify the book’s sub-title, “Triumph” in this context is not related to income earning potential.
The author, David Epstein, is focused on the how and why of specialization vs. generalization (kind vs. wicked learning environments).
Kind environments would be like learning chess, a musical instrument, or golf where repeating patterns and memorized procedures can be learned and subsequently practiced to the nth degree.
As any adult knows, the world of life and work is definitely much more a wicked learning environment.
Wicked domains lack automatic feedback and experience alone does not improve performance or immediately solve problems. Effective habits of mind are more important and they can be developed with a wide number of strategies.
The author posits that, too often, students are rushed to specialize before they learn how to think. You have people walking around with all the knowledge of humanity on their phone, but they have no idea how to integrate it. Students are very often not trained in thinking or reasoning.
Epstein divides the book into 12 chapters, backing up each section with studies, personal experiences, and interviews.
If you are a parent, I personally recommend Chapters 1, 3, and 4.
If you are thinking about a career change, I recommend the entire book, specifically chapters 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11.
1 - The Cult of the Head Start
2 - How the Wicked World Was Made
3 - When Less of the Same is More
4 - Learning, Fast and Slow
5 - Thinking Outside Experience
6 - The Trouble with Too Much Grit
7 - Flirting with Your Possible Selves
8 - The Outsider Advantage
9 - Lateral Thinking with Withered Technology
10 - Fooled by Expertise
11 - Learning to Drop Your Familiar Tools
12 - Deliberate Amateurs
Struggling to generate an answer on your own, even a wrong one, enhances subsequent learning. This is called a “desirable difficulty.” Socrates was apparently on to something when he forced pupils to generate answers rather than bestowing them.
It requires the learner to intentionally sacrifice current performance for future benefit. Of course, this needs to be clearly defined and incentivized, as many people will not intuitively think this way living in a world dominated by quick dopamine hits ad infinitum.
Embracing range, experimentation and breadth of experience is often a better road to success than an intense focus on specialization. Range demands patience, open-mindedness and scientific curiosity where people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive.
We learn who we are only by living, not before. We learn who we are in practice, not theory. Test and learn over, plan and implement.
Other books I recommend that are complimentary to “RANGE” -
So Good They Can't Ignore You (Newport, 2016)
Thank you for reading!
References -
RANGE: Why Generalists Triumph In A Specialized World (Epstein, 2019)
One of my favorite books - great recap!
Great review of an outstanding book! Really like your comment, “It requires the learner to intentionally sacrifice current performance for future benefit.”