The three lessons of joe flom- Chapter 5 Andrea Antal, Emila Danilowicz, Brian Johnson, jeff Wallace Period 1

Summary In the chapter, Joe Flom starts out with nothing in his life, and he’s poor and doesn’t have a good life, he ends up becoming very successful none of his abilities were enough for him to be able to succeed, but his drive for overcoming all of that and having his own originality and ingenuity is what pulled through in the end.

Lesson number 1 The importance of being Jewish Joe flom was Jewish and poor, and he wasn’t able to find a job because of his religion. Jewish people were discriminated at the time, and since he found a once in a lifetime opportunity, he took it and made the best of it.

Lesson number 2 Demographic luck Relates to the study of occurring changes in large groups of people over a certain period of time When there were more people born, there were less benefits and opportunities available for them

Lesson number 3 The garment industry and meaningful work He was selling all kinds of stuff before the aprons, but he wasn’t really making any money off them so he realized that clothes made a lot of business Him and his wife started to make aprons- sold out in the first day, and their business boomed since then

Questions Do you agree that “acceptability is made up of the sum of its parts”? Gladwell is trying to make us think if success comes from working for something or does it just come easily. I don’t think that “acceptability is made up of the sum of its parts.” I think you have to work for your success. It does help if you know people and have connections, but you can’t base your success off of people’s connections.

Questions cont. What made Joe Flom’s will to win? Flom was raised in a family with no money and that had to move from house to house. He always wanted to be a lawyer since he was little and since he knew what it felt like to have nothing, he gained an opportunity and made the best of it. Once he found a law firm, he worked hard in it and became successful. Gladwell is trying to tell us that if you work hard you can gain success.

Connections Some people’s parents came here with nothing and now they are successful. Joe Flom also had nothing and became a successful lawyer in a law firm that now makes billions of dollars. This connection makes the chapter more real because we know how it feels like to have nothing and then come out being successful.

Connections cont. In the Pursuit of Happiness, Will Smith started out with nothing and ended up getting an internship, which made him into a billionaire. Louis and Regina Borgenicht had nothing and had to feed their children. They had to think of a business to help them make money. Louis ended up making and selling aprons which helped them make a lot of money and start a business. This can relate to us because a lot of kids now start their own businesses to make quick money.