Think Like a Rocket Scientist : Simple Strategies You Can Use to Make Giant Leaps in Work and Life

A veteran of the Mars Rover project reveals the habits, ideas, and strategies that will help your once-impossible ambitions achieve liftoff. We're experiencing a second age of spaceflight, and the renaissance of rocket science is captivating the world. Movies and television shows set in this sphere consistently top the charts, and millions tune in to watch SpaceX launches. Although we glamorize rocket science, we assume that it's beyond comprehension by mere mortals who don't have a special kind of genius baked into their DNA (hence the common saying, "It's not rocket science"). Yet while the complex math and scientific details of building rockets may be out of our reach, the principles that guide the discipline don't have to be. In this mind-expanding book, Ozan Varol, an actual rocket scientist, shows how the strategies that built the Apollo 11 can help you achieve your own moon shot. Think Like a Rocket Scientist teaches you how to attack previously unsolved problems, how to overcome everyday obstacles to grand ambitions, and much more. A deeply knowledgeable scholar with a breezy, contrarian voice, Varol inspires us not only to dream big--but to achieve those dreams too. * One of Inc.com's "6 Books You Need to Read in 2020 (According to Bill Gates, Satya Nadella, and Adam Grant)" * Adam Grant's # 1 pick of his top 20 books of 2020 * One of 6 Groundbreaking Books of Spring 2020 (according to Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Dan Pink, and Adam Grant). A former rocket scientist reveals the habits, ideas, and strategies that will empower you to turn the seemingly impossible into the possible. Rocket science is often celebrated as the ultimate triumph of technology. But it's not. Rather, it's the apex of a certain thought process -- a way to imagine the unimaginable and solve the unsolvable. It's the same thought process that enabled Neil Armstrong to take his giant leap for mankind, that allows spacecraft to travel millions of miles through outer space and land on a precise spot, and that brings us closer to colonizing other planets. Fortunately, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to think like one. In this accessible and practical book, Ozan Varol reveals nine simple strategies from rocket science that you can use to make your own giant leaps in work and life -- whether it's landing your dream job, accelerating your business, learning a new skill, or creating the next breakthrough product. Today, thinking like a rocket scientist is a necessity. We all encounter complex and unfamiliar problems in our lives. Those who can tackle these problems -- without clear guidelines and with the clock ticking -- enjoy an extraordinary advantage. Think Like a Rocket Scientist will inspire you to take your own moonshot and enable you to achieve liftoff. * Adam Grant's # 1 pick of his top 20 books of 2020 * Named a "must read" by Susan Cain, "endlessly fascinating" by Daniel Pink, and "bursting with practical insights" by Adam Grant * One of Inc.com's "6 Business Books You Need to Read in 2020" A former rocket scientist reveals the habits, ideas, and strategies that will empower you to turn the seemingly impossible into the possible. Rocket science is often celebrated as the ultimate triumph of technology. But it's not. Rather, it's the apex of a certain thought process — a way to imagine the unimaginable and solve the unsolvable. It's the same thought process that enabled Neil Armstrong to take his giant leap for mankind, that allows spacecraft to travel millions of miles through outer space and land on a precise spot, and that brings us closer to colonizing other planets. Fortunately, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to think like one. In this... Title Page 2 Copyright 4 Dedication 8 Introduction 10 STAGE ONE: LAUNCH 24 1 Flying in the Face of Uncertainty 25 2 Reasoning from First Principles 56 3 A Mind at Play 86 4 Moonshot Thinking 114 STAGE TWO: ACCELERATE 144 5 What If We Sent Two Rovers Instead of One? 145 6 The Power of Flip-Flopping 171 7 Test as You Fly, Fly as You Test 198 STAGE THREE: ACHIEVE 225 8 Nothing Succeeds Like Failure 226 9 Nothing Fails Like Success 256 Epilogue: The New World 285 What’s Next? 290 Acknowledgments 291 Discover More 294 About the Author 295 Notes 297 Named a "must read" by Susan Cain, "endlessly fascinating" by Daniel Pink, and "bursting with practical insights" by Adam Grant. A former rocket scientist reveals the habits, ideas, and strategies that will empower you to turn the seemingly impossible into the possible. Rocket science is often celebrated as the ultimate triumph of technology. But it's not. Rather, it's the apex of a certain thought process -- a way to imagine the unimaginable and solve the unsolvable. It's the same thought process that enabled Neil Armstrong to take his giant leap for mankind, that allows spacecraft to travel millions of miles through outer space and land on a precise spot, and that brings us closer to colonizing other planets. Fortunately, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to think like one. In this accessible and practical book, Ozan Varol reveals nine simple strategies from rocket science that you can use to make your own giant leaps in work and life -- whether it's landing your dream job, accelerating your business, learning a new skill, or creating the next breakthrough product. Today, thinking like a rocket scientist is a necessity. We all encounter complex and unfamiliar problems in our lives. Those who can tackle these problems -- without clear guidelines and with the clock ticking -- enjoy an extraordinary advantage. Think Like a Rocket Scientist will inspire you to take your own moonshot and enable you to achieve liftoff. "We're experiencing a second age of spaceflight, and the renaissance of rocket science is captivating the world. Movies and television shows set in this sphere consistently top the charts, and millions tune in to watch SpaceX launches. Although we glamorize rocket science, we assume that it's beyond comprehension by mere mortals who don't have a special kind of genius baked into their DNA (hence the common saying, "It's not rocket science"). Yet while the complex math and scientific details of building rockets may be out of our reach, the principles that guide the discipline don't have to be. In this mind-expanding book, Ozan Varol, an actual rocket scientist, shows how the strategies that built the Apollo 11 can help you achieve your own moon shot. Think Like a Rocket Scientist teaches you how to attack previously unsolved problems, how to overcome everyday obstacles to grand ambitions, and much more. A deeply knowledgeable scholar with a breezy, contrarian voice, Varol inspires us not only to dream big--but to achieve those dreams too."-- Provided by publisher