Captivating Notions: A Review of the Rebel Talent Book

Part 1

Last year, I didn't plan to add more books to my stack. Little did I know that this book, whose title grabbed my attention and led me to break the rules and buy it, would be the one that topped my pending readings. The "Rebel Talent" book by Francesca Gino, a Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School (HBS).

What particularly stood out to me was the seamless blend of the author's personal short real stories that the writer has personally experienced, combined with thorough research work, theory, and conclusion. The book left me in awe and fueled my desire to visit the Italian restaurant that she frequently references, "Osteria Francescana," where the talented chef patron, Massimo Bottura, cultivates the abilities of his team while defying traditional norms.

Rebel definition, according to Francesca, is "people who question their own assumptions and strongest beliefs, as well as the widely accepted norms around them, to identify more creative and effective ways of doing transcendent work”. Gino studied the causality of rule breakers who cheat, but through her journey of studying this negative form of rebels, she unraveled the other type of rebels who are deviants but in positive ways. She found an interesting connection between people who have a passion for their work and being a rebel who breaks the status quo.

As I am personally very much interested in the work psychology in organizations, Gino also unfolds her experience in understanding why people become unproductive over time in a job and disengaged. This is a reality that I have observed firsthand through my own experiences. When organizations fail to nudge their style of work and question their current ways, the pattern of disengagement and burnout among the team increases. When team members who were once believers become silent and merely show up for the salary, it is crucial for leadership to start questioning their methodologies and current strategies, rather than blaming the team!

Gino's research suggests that "we can actually bring more joy into our lives by being rebels: by behaving in ways that defy conformity".

Moreover, interestingly Gino discusses the paradox of how people associate power and assertiveness with corrupted or outcast rebels. However, Gino poses the thought-provoking question of how we can redefine power in our careers. Personally, I strongly believe that assertiveness can be synonymous with positive leadership rather than a manifestation of bullying behavior.

Another captivating notion, "we all tend to process in a self-serving manner, we uncritically accept evidence when it is consistent with what we want to believe and call for more data or disregard evidence when it isn't”. Scary, right? when bias becomes our internal monster, preventing us from judging with pure objectivity and fairness. I can clearly see this phenomenon at play in some scenarios within the world of hiring.

However, the author also presents a solution to overcome our biases and conformity, which she refers to as "counterfactual thinking." This method encourages us to let go of our preconceived notions and consider alternative perspectives. By examining things from a fresh angle and posing questions that challenge our current circumstances, we open ourselves up to new insights and possibilities.

Gino emphasizes that as we gain more experience, we may grow a dislike for counterfactual thinking, referring to it as the “curse of knowledge”. This tendency can cause experts to disregard the valuable perspectives of non-experts, who often bring fresh insights and innovative ideas. It traps experts in a vicious cycle of bias, where they become locked into their own knowledge, which can be potentially life-threatening!

Life threating?! yes, life-threatening, it can reach that level! Read this article about Asiana Airlines who faced an aviation incident and reviewed its flight crew training to encourage junior officers to speak up and to teach captains to be more attentive listeners”. (https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140217220032-266437464-asiana-airlines-sorry-captain-you-re-wrong/)

I have been captivated by numerous intriguing ideas in this remarkable book, and I look forward to sharing them in part 2. Whether you have already read it or have now been inspired to do so, I encourage you to stop by and share your reflections and comments!