According to this book.. there are 3 Simple things that make any group exceptional and if you don't have all three you will fail.
1. A sense of superiority. Not self esteem. Criminals in Prison have by measure the highest self esteem of any group of people. A sense that you are special, well born, bloodline, chosen people. Superior to all others. Asians, nearly ALL, (Particularly Japanese) believe they are far superior to anyone in the USA. Families with certain blood lines (Bush, Kennedy, Rockefeller etc) think they are better... Families that instil this in their children, (never forget who you are) get more successful children.
2. A fear and insecurity that you might not make it. With that sense of your being born better, if you fail, it's a double whammy. You are expected to do well. The pressure is great. Look at how hard Asian children are driven. Jews as well. Bringing shame to your group or family name is unthinkable. My dad has been gone 50 years but i still hear his voice and feel his strong kick in my rear end for screwing up.
3. Impulse Control. These groups learn to stifle themselves. They learn to buy well and buy carefully. Then never just "go for it". That has to do with sex as well. And drugs, and drinking, and taking a plunge for the heck of it. They have learned how to control their wants and desires in every area and live carefully.
This is sobering to me because this should be the stuff of the Church of Jesus. WE are superior if we know who we are in Christ. We should be insecure about shaming HIS name and we must control the impulses that lead to ruin.
Read this from the books review... think about this. If you are a senior leader, are you teaching them to walk in these three arenas?
"Certain groups do much better in America than others—as measured by income, occupational status, test scores, and so on—is difficult to talk about. In large part this is because the topic feels racially charged. The irony is that the facts actually debunk racial stereotypes. There are black and Hispanic subgroups in the United States far outperforming many white and Asian subgroups. Moreover, there’s a demonstrable arc to group success—in immigrant groups, it typically dissipates by the third generation—puncturing the notion of innate group differences and undermining the whole concept of 'model minorities.'"
Mormons have recently risen to astonishing business success. Cubans in Miami climbed from poverty to prosperity in a generation. Nigerians earn doctorates at stunningly high rates. Indian and Chinese Americans have much higher incomes than other Americans; Jews may have the highest of all.
Why do some groups rise? Drawing on groundbreaking original research and startling statistics, The Triple Package uncovers the secret to their success. A superiority complex, insecurity, impulse control—these are the elements of the Triple Package, the rare and potent cultural constellation that drives disproportionate group success. The Triple Package is open to anyone. America itself was once a Triple Package culture. It’s been losing that edge for a long time now. Even as headlines proclaim the death of upward mobility in America, the truth is that the old fashioned American Dream is very much alive—but some groups have a cultural edge, which enables them to take advantage of opportunity far more than others.
• Americans are taught that everyone is equal, that no group is superior to another. But remarkably, all of America’s most successful groups believe (even
if they don’t say so aloud) that they’re exceptional, chosen, superior in some way.
• Americans are taught that self-esteem—feeling good about yourself—is the key to a successful life. But in all of America’s most successful groups,
people tend to feel insecure, inadequate, that they have to prove themselves.
• America today spreads a message of immediate gratification, living for the moment. But all of America’s most successful groups cultivate heightened discipline and impulse control.
But the Triple Package has a dark underside too. Each of its elements carries distinctive pathologies; when taken to an extreme, they can have truly toxic effects. Should people strive for the Triple Package? Should America? Ultimately, the authors conclude that the Triple Package is a ladder that should be climbed and then kicked away, drawing on its power but breaking free from its constraints.
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