《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》是一本由Scott Adams著作，Portfolio Hardcover出版的Hardcover图书，本书定价：USD 27.95，页数：256，特精心从网络上整理的一些读者的读后感，希望对大家能有帮助。
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感(一)：个人成功经验分享
其实很简单的可以将scott adams 和国内的李笑来做个对比，二者之间有很多观点有很多类似的地方，甚至有的地方，我都会有一种假想，李笑来不会是借鉴的scott adams的吧。
当然了 scott adadms 在一开头就已经说了，这些都是一些他的个人观点，其实任何人都无法能够客观的知道在其人生道路上是什么促使了其成功，任何观点与方法都是事主事后的主观的提炼与判断，重要的是，我们每个希望获得成功或幸福生活的人需要自己在生活中去发现和探索适合自己的方法。
cott adams在书里是提炼是一种简单，但需要很长时间来实现的方法，都是一些在他看来非常简单但重要的技巧和方法，通过使用这些方法来不断提升我们的赢面，通过时间和广度来获得更好的结果。
2 身体是第一位的，身体好，学习、工作、婚姻自然会有好的结果，每天要保持好的状态
3 不断学习 尤其是一些关键和通用的主题上，每多一种知识的了解就增加了一分的赢率
4 成功是一个无止境的过程，不要设定目标，而是要建立成功的系统，这个观点我觉得和李笑来所提出的的复利的观点很类似，可以对照着看。
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感(二)：牛人心法
非常有趣，大叔一边在唠叨自己牛逼哄哄的成功历程，一边总结了一整套关于成功的心法，一边告诫你不要轻易相信一个漫画家的人生忠告同时不忘提醒人生就是full of mystery.
最喜欢的几条大叔谏言
1.激情什么都不是，目标是给loser的，建立并手握系统才是成就牛逼的关键
2.关注自己的身体，掌握提升和保持自身能量的各种trick，包括锻炼保持良好的身体状态，减肥，大叔甚至还鼓励你manipulate your mind 让自己保持high。
3.掌握技能，大叔自己就是个疯狂的学习机器（牛逼哄哄的人生不是天上掉下来的），比如心理学、基础会计、商务写作、发音技巧，etc.
最喜欢的一句话就是那句：The only reasonable goal in life is maximizing your total lifetime experience of something called happiness.人生除了寻乐子之外都不值一提
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感(三)：朴实的人生经验
这本书是老板去年就推荐的，我现在才拿过来读，不过读得很过瘾。有的人能一天把这本书读完，当然很多是美国人，就像中国人读中文的畅销书一样。我自然做不到这一点，一个星期读完也算不错啦，完成了我一个月读两本书的任务。
这本书给我最大的感受就是没有鸡汤或鸡血，没有居高临下的说教，都是朴实的生活经验和思考。我想说这是一个人人都想成功的时代，可并不是每个人都可以成功，成功的人自有其成功背后的理由。作者摒弃了“激情”论，说这无非是一个比说自己“聪明”谦虚点的理由，要成功就是要努力，失败了爬起来继续努力。我赞同这种坦诚。“先天”和“后天”的辩论，对我们没有什么实质的帮助，那是科学家的研究问题。对于个人来说，我们已改变不了“先天”的自己，能做的只有“后天”的努力。
作者还提到了“目标”和“系统”对成功的不同影响。对于个人来说，追求成功是一辈子的事，有一个“系统”最好，“目标”对短期来说可以，但长期使用，容易“伤身”。运用“系统”的人更容易“乐观”，而“乐观”的人更容易看到“成功”的机会。运用“目标”的人容易“悲观”，而“悲观”的人容易错过“成功”的机会。这一点也很值得学习。
作者书中还提出了很多对个人发展有用的技能和注意事项，比如外表衣着，比如说话和写作。这对我也是一个很大的鼓励。在外表方面，我属于后知后觉，但最近也开始意识到外表在生活和工作中的重要性，开始慢慢捯饬起来。在美国工作，真心觉得聊天，演讲，和写作在职业发展的重要性，在这方面我需要更加努力。
有时在读到深有共鸣之处，真想写上两句旁注，可电子书这一点不方面。这是我又一次感觉到电子书的不方便。还是得想办法解决这个问题。
这本书绝对值得重读，我接下来有机会要听有声。
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感(四)：Q&A of the author
Author Q&A: Scott Adams, How To Fail At Almost Everything And Still Win Big
World-famous cartoonist Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, on being a "serial failure" and why goals are for losers.
How to fail at almost everything and still win big
cott Adams
ortfolio Penguin, £14.99
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE "HOW TO FAIL AT ALMOST EVERYTHING AND STILL WIN BIG"？
I grew up in a very small town and didn’t have access to a credible mentor who could show me any shortcuts or tips for success. I had to figure it out by trial and error. After Dilbert hit big, people started asking for my secrets on success. It made me wonder if I could bottle my experience in book form.
I don’t believe in giving advice because every situation and every person is different, and the advice-giver rarely has complete information. But I do think it helps to expose yourself to a variety of success stories and observations so you can look for patterns and systems that might work for you. I wrote How to Fail for the person who has the desire to succeed and is looking for some ideas on how to get there.
WHO DID YOU WRITE THE BOOK FOR？
I think young adults need this type of material the most to get them started in the right direction, but experienced folks will understand it at a deeper level. And I think some people will enjoy reading it just to learn of all the embarrassing ways I failed until Dilbert took off.
THE DILBERT COMIC STRIP IS ENJOYED DAILY BY 150 MILLION PEOPLE IN 2,000 NEWSPAPERS, IN 65 COUNTRIES. WOULD YOU BE AS COMFORTABLE WITH FAILURE IF YOU HADN’T ENJOYED THAT KIND OF SUCCESS？
I was comfortable with failure long before Dilbert worked, so apparently I deal with failure well. And I choose my ventures so that no matter what happens with them, I come out with new skills. I want my market value to increase no matter how well things are going at the moment. My system involves moving from a game with low odds to a game with better odds and making myself a more attractive target for luck to find me. When you feel yourself becoming more valuable it doesn’t feel like losing, even if the details of the situation argue otherwise.
YOU HAVE AN MBA FROM BERKELEY’S HAAS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS. WHAT WAS THE MOST USEFUL THING YOU LEARNED THERE？
The best way to explain the value of an MBA is that it tunes your brain to see the world in business terms. Some people see a flower shop and marvel at the pretty arrangements in the window. But I reflexively wonder if their profit margins are sustainable given the low barriers to entry.
A big turning point with Dilbert happened when I started including my email address in the strip. Prior to that I had no direct customer feedback about my work, and I knew from my business training that it was a huge mistake to fly blind. Thousands of readers wrote and asked me to do more comics featuring Dilbert in the workplace because they liked those best. So I quickly morphed Dilbert into a comic about work and it took off.
YOU SAY THAT GOALS ARE FOR LOSERS AND IT’S BETTER TO ADOPT A "SYSTEM". SUM UP YOUR OWN SYSTEM.
My most important system involves continuously acquiring knowledge and skills that are complementary by their nature even if I don’t know exactly how it will play out. For example, I took the Dale Carnegie course long before I became a cartoonist and author. That training allowed me to make a fortune on the speaking circuit after Dilbert became a hit.
Likewise, I studied to become a certified hypnotist when I was in my twenties. I reasoned that I could use those skills in a wide variety of settings, from business to writing to dating. I was right on all counts.
Rather than focus on a particular goal, which can be limiting, my system involves continually improving my market value while scanning my environment for opportunities. For example, when I started blogging, my wife asked why I was doubling my daily workload for what looked like a 5% increase in income that I didn’t need. She was concerned that I had no goal. But I was working a system, and my system involved sharpening my writing skills while gaining a deeper understanding of what my readers wanted via the comments on the blog. I figured that the noise I created on the blog would attract offers, but I didn’t know what sort. My new book is the end result of that process. It’s getting great reviews because my system had already filtered the topics down to what I knew would get the best reaction.
IN THE BOOK, YOU LIST SOME OF YOUR MOST SPECTACULAR FAILURES. HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN TO QUIT？
It’s easier to answer the question of when NOT to quit. The best predictor that your product or service will be a hit is that you see big demand for the "bad" version. By bad, I mean the buggy and unreliable first version. For example, the first cell phones had terrible quality and they dropped calls like crazy, yet the demand was high from the start. The same was true in the early days of personal computers, automobiles, and even television.
When Dilbert launched it was poorly drawn and the characters’ personalities had not been defined. And yet a small portion of the public was wild for it anyway. When you see enthusiasm independent of product quality, you might have a hit on your hands. You can fix the quality as you go.
HOW DOES A SERIAL FAILURE STAY OPTIMISTIC？
ome of my optimism is probably genetic. But a lot of it has to do with seeing life in terms of systems and not goals. I try to pursue challenges that will improve my market value no matter what else happens.
For example, at the moment I’m working with partners on an Internet start-up. No matter what happens, I’ll come out of it with a deep understanding of the start-up process. That will help me write Dilbert comics about the start-up world, and it will help me do another start up someday if I choose. I’ll also learn enough to make me feel more confident investing in someone else’s start-up if that ever comes up. So no matter what, I’ll come out ahead.
YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT HEALTH AND PERSONAL ENERGY. WHAT’S YOUR OWN EXERCISE REGIME？
I used to exercise 3-4 times a week and dread it every time. I would exercise until I knew my body would be sore the next day because no pain, no gain, I thought. It wasn’t a good system.
ow my system boils down to this: be active every day. That might mean going to the gym, playing tennis or just cleaning the garage. The important part of the process is the "every day" part because that’s how habits form.
When I’m active every day, so long as I don’t overdo it, I get a positive lift in attitude that is addictive. I’m like Pavlov’s dogs in the sense that at about lunchtime every day my body is so trained to be active that it feels as if exercising would be easier than not. Sometimes I feel my foot start to tap as my body reflexively prepares for the daily workout.
I’m in the best shape of my life, by far, at age 56.
WHERE DO YOU TYPICALLY FIND FODDER FOR YOUR COMIC STRIP？
I spent 16 years in the corporate world, so I have a lot of memory to draw on for context. But the specific topic ideas come from readers’ suggestions, conversations with friends, stuff I read on the internet, and my own side projects. And don’t forget that Dilbert is a business too. On any given day I’m negotiating contracts, reviewing marketing plans, refining pricing models, designing apps, applying for patents, and that sort of thing. I stay immersed in the business world.
YOU SAY THAT ALL SUCCESS IS LUCK IF YOU TRACK IT BACK TO THE SOURCE. TELL US ABOUT THE LUCKIEST MOMENT IN YOUR CAREER.
It all seems lucky in retrospect. But the first big break happened when I got a call from Sarah Gillespie, an editor at United Media (then one of the largest three comic syndicators), offering to syndicate Dilbert – meaning they would sell it to newspapers. The other major syndicators had seen my Dilbert submission packets and politely rejected it. Luckily for me, Sarah was married to an engineer who worked at IBM and could have been the prototype for Dilbert. When Sarah saw Dilbert, she instantly related to the character and championed it in her own company. If Sarah had been married to someone else, you never would have heard of Dilbert.
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感(五)：比较一般，缺乏深入分析
选这本书的原因，Amazon和豆瓣上，都评价很高。可是，读了之后，觉得实在没什么意思。主要的原因，大概还是缺乏深度，讲的东西太简单了，有时又过于啰嗦。同类型里，个人更喜欢Paul Graham的文章
不过书中还是有一些不错的点，拎出来讲讲
1. 个人的失败历史和成长经历
尽管作者是以Dilbert漫画作者出名，但是你恐怕很难想象，他还是伯克利的MBA，曾经是大银行的中层管理人员。你恐怕更难想象，他还会写程序，曾经自己做过个人游戏，网站等等。至于他开饭店的经历，相比之下已经不算什么了
那么他是怎么失败了这么多次（e.g. 互联网创业，开餐馆，大公司管理层天花板...）？，Dilert又是怎么让他获得成功的呢？
这部分的个人历史，很有意思，值得一读
2. Don't follow your passion
“Follow your passion” 和“Don't follow your passion”已经成为陈词滥调了。
作者说，不要去追求你热爱的事情
为什么呢？
银行在贷款的时候，一个人说，我很喜欢 Karate (空手道), 所以希望能够贷款来开一家空手道学校。这种人千万不能借钱, 因为他太热爱，而变得不切实际了，忽略了空手道学校客观的市场需求。相反，我们应该去借钱给那些开干洗店啊什么的人，他们对这种东西毫无热爱，但这个能让他们挣到钱
这很有道理，可是你怎么看Airbnb呢？
贷款最重要的是什么？是稳定。而并不是成功的结果有多大，这是VC和银行最大的差别。实际上，热爱，是让你更愿意去冒险。因此有更多追求热爱的人成功了，也有很多人失败了。这个，作者说的很有道理
但是，所谓的“热爱”，仅仅只是3分钟热度吗？（作者的另一个观点）
他觉得，我们热爱的，其实是我们自己擅长做的事情。做好我们擅长的，我们就会热爱这件事情。因此，我们应该做自己擅长的，而最后的结果就成了follow your passion
这个我不同意。确实，很多我喜欢的事情，都是我所擅长的，比如足球，魔术，产品。但是并非我擅长的，都是我所热爱的。我的英语水平比周围人都要好，但我并不是那些“喜欢英语”的人。对我来说，英语只是工具而已
我觉得“热爱”真正的特点，并不是你会喜欢上自己擅长的事情。而是你会主动选择这个事情。自由的选择，是热爱的前提。做一件事情，并不是因为能赚钱，并不是因为别人让我来做。而是因为这件事情，它本身就是有意思的，我就是喜欢这个事情，这个才叫热爱。
而具体的做法，就更没有谈到了。像Antifragile里面提到的，如果热爱的是写作的话，是不太可能一开始就当职业作家的，比较好的做法是找一份日常消耗不大的工作，然后利用业余时间写作。《明朝的那些事儿》的作者就是这样的，本身是公务员，但是因为追求自己的热爱，利用业余时间写出了书。
关于这方面，我觉得有太多细节可谈了，并不仅仅是follow / don't follow这么简单的区别
3. System vs. Goals
作者说“Goals are for losers, and systems are for winners”.
一个人的目标是减掉XX斤，他现在可以做到，但是之后，又会反弹。如果一个人的系统，是健康的生活的话就不会。但关于系统和目标的解释基本上就止步于此了。两者的区别是什么，读起来很是疑惑。如果我的目标是“健康的生活方式”呢？那我到底是loser还是winner？
我个人觉得，作者的意思是“讲究方法”
如果我们仅仅着眼于目的本身，很有可能就忽略了做事情的方法。比如，背10个单词，那么就下个手机App, 背完10个单词就行了，而不会考虑用更为系统的背单词，学英语的方法。比如，想要健身，就下去跑个步，而不会考虑，以后不再“心血来潮”了怎么去锻炼？或者目标就是每天做XX个俯卧撑，而不知道还需要做拉伸，怎么规划每天锻炼的部位，变化不同的动作等等
区别的另一个特点，就是“失败了怎么办？”，即做了一件事情，如果仅仅关注于目的，而最终没有达到目标的话，那么什么都没了。但是，如果是注意方法的话，那么即便失败了，还学会了很多东西，可以在以后的生活中用到
4. The X factor
一款产品，不管当初再怎么烂，但是一旦有人喜欢的话，那么说明这个产品是有搞头的。相反，一个产品，在早期的时候，没什么人在乎，那么可能以后也没什么人在乎。Dilbert最开始，就很粗糙，但是并不妨碍一开始就有人喜欢
5. Dilbert & Luck
作者回顾了在DIlbert漫画成功中，一系列偶然的因素，挺有意思
6. Lifestyle
5 Skills + 5 points(Eat, flexibility, diet, fit, sleep)。多样的技能，可以增加你成功的概率：演讲，编程，心理学等等。良好的生活方式也是：可以自由支配的时间，充足的睡眠，每天锻炼等等...
《How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big》读后感(六)：Here are a few key points I learned from reading the book zz
ystems vs Goals
“Goals are for losers” he writes.
In order to explain his systems vs goals theory, I’ve written down a few examples.
utting on Muscle:
Goal: I want to put on 20lbs of muscle
ystem: I will follow the xxx training program. I will eat 2700 calories a day.
Growing a Blog:
Goal: I want 100k visitors a month
ystem: I will write two blog articles a week.
ecoming a CEO:
Goal: I want to be a CEO
ystem: I will always be in search for a better job.
cott met a CEO once who gave him some career advice on climbing the ladder. His system is that as soon as he has a job, he’s already looking to move on to a better one. With each job he moved on to, it would pay more and offer more responsibility. He kept applying the system until eventually he became CEO of a screw company.
Goal oriented people are always in chasing mode. When you’re chasing a goal, you’re always in a state of failure until you reach the goal. Sometimes when you reach the goal, you’ll find that you just lost the very thing that gave you drive and purpose.
eing system oriented means you feel a sense of achievement every time you complete the actions. It means that you’re always taking actions each day and making progress.
I want to improve my posture in the upcoming year (spending so many hours in front of the computer’s not good for you). Most people would set a “goal” of wanting a better posture, but how do you really measure？ Instead I’ve put his advice to work and developed a system for it.
I’ll attend Yoga once a weekI’ve designed a workout program that emphasizes more pulling movements (rows, deadlifts, pullups). I need to do the workout twice a week.I’m switching to a standing desk. I need to use it at least 3 hours a day.I’ll do this exercise twice a day (http://www.youtube.com/watch？v=Q9ldFtv_DEo)
I’ve broken what I want to achieve into daily, actionable steps.
assion is Bullshit
How many times have you heard the advice, “Follow your passion” or “Find work you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life again.” Sounds like advice that’s better for motivational posters than actually following.
cott use to be a commercial lender at a bank and his boss gave him advice on who to lend money to.
Don’t give to people who are following their passion, it’s a bad bet. An example could be someone who loves Karate and it’s his dream to start a karate school. If you do the research maybe there’s no demand for karate schools or the area is over saturated with them. What about the people who love singing, but just aren’t particularly talented at it. Should they “follow their passion？”
His boss recommends instead to bet on the “grinder.” He’s the guy that’s in business to make money. He might start a dry-cleaning business because the math makes sense. It’s not sexy, but his goal is to make money, not chase a dream.
Why does every successful person always give the advice to follow your passion？ Because it’s accessible and humble. You don’t want to be saying stuff that offends people such as, “I’m successful because I’ve worked my ass off or because I’m smarter.”
Think about the guys who followed their passion and failed – There are no books or wall street journal articles about those guys. What happens is most people actually develop their passion; the more skillful or successful a person becomes, the more their passion develops.
If you read my Rise of Ngo series, I was never “passionate” about internet marketing. I just did it because I saw people were making money from it and it seemed like a good idea.
What about now？ I live and breathe this industry. I became passionate about it because I’m good at it and it gave me an awesome life.
Right now I have no passion for developing mobile apps, but I’d be passionate as fuck if I woke up with one doing 1 million bucks a day.
His argument is to chase after opportunity, and the passion will come.
Increase Your Odds of Success
cott views success as a numbers game involving odds. In order to increase your odds of being successful, you should be good (but not amazing) at multiple skills. Whatever your main pursuit in life is, being good in each of these areas will only increase the odds.
egotiationBusiness WritingPsychologyPublic SpeakingAccountingDesignConversation skillsetc.
My main skill is internet marketing. But I’ve been more successful at this business because I’m decent at various sub skills as well: basic programming, managing people, people skills, etc. For all the sub-skills he recommends I’m going to look into either reading books or taking classes to improve myself at them.
Optimize Your Life for Energy
You can’t do anything without energy.
Here’s how I think of it. Imagine if each human’s energy levels could be measured. By default we start off with 50 units a day. Lack of sleep, no exercise, and bad diet means you’re already at 40 compared to the average person. However someone who focuses their life around increasing energy levels might be at a 70.
eing at level 40 energy could mean you’re already exhausted by 5pm. No energy means you can’t do your best work. A man with level 70 energy means everything he does will be better
The big 3 ways to improve your energy are sleep, a good diet, and exercise.
His additional suggestions include: keeping your working area clean, simplifying everything you do in life, not being an asshole, and managing your priorities in life better.
Go Buy This Book
There’s much more material that he covers that I haven’t went into. Not only is the material good, but his writing style is funny and easy to understand.