books
Decoding Greatness
A game-changing approach to mastery that will transform the way you learn new skills, generate creative ideas, and think about success.
For generations, we’ve been taught there are two ways to succeed—talent or practice. In Decoding Greatness, I illuminate a third path that has quietly launched icons in a range of fields: reverse engineering.
Building on the latest research on pattern recognition, skill acquisition, and creative genius, Decoding Greatness reveals the hidden structures behind the success of top performers ranging from Andy Warhol to Serena Williams.
You’ll learn how to take apart models you admire, pinpoint precisely what makes them work, and apply that knowledge to develop your own breakthrough ideas, methods, and products.
Praise for Decoding Greatness
"If this book was full of insights about the patterns that drive excellence across fields, it would be well worth your time. Ron Friedman has gone a step further: he actually teaches you how to detect new patterns yourself. With alluring stories and illuminating studies, he shows how we can all learn more from great achievers and innovators.”
-Adam Grant,
Author of Think Again and Originals, and host of the TED podcast WorkLife
“Psychologist Ron Friedman melds storytelling and science with a page-turning effect. I finished Decoding Greatness with a list of things I want to try in my own work, and I bet you will too.”
-David Epstein,
Author of Range and The Sports Gene
“A much-needed handbook for learning how success really happens. Read this book if you want to upgrade from working hard to actually producing results that matter.”
-Cal Newport,
Author of Digital Minimalism and Deep Work
The Best Place to Work
A captivating and surprising journey through the science of workplace excellence.
In The Best Place to Work, I applied groundbreaking research from the fields of motivation, creativity, behavioral economics, neuroscience, and management to reveal what really makes us successful at work.
Some of the insights were surprising.
Like how learning to think like a hostage negotiator can help you diffuse a workplace argument, why placing a fish bowl near your desk can elevate your thinking, and how incorporating strategic distractions into your schedule can help you reach smarter decisions.
Brimming with counterintuitive insights and actionable recommendations, The Best Place to Work offers employees and executives alike game-changing advice for working smarter and turning any organization into an extraordinary workplace.
Praise for The Best Place to Work
“We’ve lost our way. In this stunning book, Ron Friedman helps us get back on track, exploring not only what work is for, but how we can leap forward and become more human, more alive, and more effective.”
-Seth Godin,
Author of Linchpin and The Icarus Deception
“What a gem! Enough that it’s a thorough, practical manual for optimizing relationships and work environments, based on new and solid research in human behavior—but it’s a surprising, witty, well-written, and wonderfully engaging read.”
-David Allen,
Author of Getting Things Done
