In 1995, the sale of Hush Puppies rose from 30,000 pairs to 400,000; that quadrupled a year later. According to Gladwell, that all started with some kids in the East Village of Manhattan who decided to start wearing the shoes just because nobody else thought they were cool. The fad spread to a couple of fashion designers and then the shoes ended up in malls across America within two years. The Tipping Point compares such trends to epidemics suggesting that they spread the same way.

Gladwell examines a variety of epidemics including the 500 percent increase of children born with syphilis in Baltimore during the mid 90s; the success of Paul Revere’s ride, as well as the reasons behind his virtually unknown counterpart’s failure; and the decrease of crime in New York City in the 90s. Through these examples and others, the author describes his three rules of epidemics: 1. The Stickiness Factor; 2. The Power of Context; and 3. The Law of the Few. This is a very interesting, thought-provoking read in that it demonstrates the power of a few people and how small things can create dramatic change.

Further, the book shed some illumination on some of my misconceptions. Ever heard of the “Six Degrees of Separation” game? Now, it seems to be most closely identified with Kevin Bacon and has become a bit distorted from its original message. In the late 1960s, psychologist Stanley Milgram developed this concept. Contrary to the belief that six degrees of separation means that we are all linked to everyone else within six steps, Milgram actually proved that a small number of people are linked to everyone else in a few steps and the rest of us are linked to the world through those few people. Admittedly, I will probably continue to play the game based on the inaccurate version, but it is always good to have correct information.

Suggested by Shereen Williams - Brooklyn, New York