So Good They Can’t Ignore You
This week, Denise Heroux chose Cal Newport’s So Good They Can’t Ignore You to the discussion. She shares how the book’s focus on building skills, learning through small steps, and turning overwhelming tasks into new abilities reflects her own path in animal-focused work. The conversation takes a sharper turn as the book’s central argument gets challenged by Mary Oquendo and Sacheen Mobley. The discussion questions whether Newport’s examples truly support choosing skill over passion, especially when so many career stories begin with curiosity, circumstance, or a passion that develops along the way. It also raises a more pointed criticism: the book missed an opportunity to spotlight women who built remarkable careers in industries where they were never expected to belong.Along the way, the group imagines a different book, one centered on women who became impossible to ignore because of the skills they developed and the barriers they overcame. Denise also gets a recommendation for Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers as a stronger exploration of success and circumstance.
