Gladwell's book was so well written and offered such compelling ideas, that I immediately decided I needed to teach the contents to my Speech Communications class. If you are interested, you can find it here http://prezi.com/mc0vtvu_-kdj/gladwel.... The basic argument? Change isn't dependent on a massive movement. Instead, ideas that catch on begins with individuals who are especially connected, informed, or enthusiastic within a certain context that is presented in a compelling way. This dynamic view about how change happens and how ideas spread is useful for many different fields. Understanding the power that certain individuals have and being able to target them as customers or as advocates can make the difference in spreading ideas. Being aware that the way an idea is presented matters, that the issue itself needs to be important enough to people, and that human beings like certain things is important to targeting the ideas that matter. But then, the knowledge that context makes a difference can let us know that even something doesn't work in one situation doesn't mean that it won't work elsewhere (or another time), and that something that worked before may not work now. This one will have a prominent place on my shelf as a book that I'll return to when I'm writing my own research. Thanks for the great book, Gladwell.
He also did an interesting interview about his book, which you can find at http://www.gladwell.com/tippingpoint/
And, if you want to hear him talk, he did a TED Talk (I love TED talks) about Choice, happiness, and spaghetti sauce, which you can view here http://youtu.be/iIiAAhUeR6Y
Or, you can also view his TED Talk where he Explains Why Human Potential is Being Squandered here http://youtu.be/kspphGOjApk.
Happy reading and watching!
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