1. Chapter Five: The Three Lessons of Joe Flom (Part One, pages 116-133

2. Journal -What do you think “rags-to-riches” means?
-Do you think that religion should affect what kind of job you can get? Why or why not?
-Do you think that people become successful by themselves or as a product of the environment they came from? Why or why not?

3. Summary
-Joe Flom grew up during the depression, went to Harvard law, and eventually joined a group of men making their own law firm.
-Flom was not able to join big law firms because he was Jewish even though he was talented and ready to work.
-Gladwell urged readers to be skeptical of “rags-to-riches” stories because they do not bring up the environment they came from and how that affected them becoming successful.
-If you were born after 1912, you got out of college when the worst of the depression was over, were drafted when it was not a disruption, and you were back after the depression.
-Lawyers not working in big firms were successful due to the amount of work big firms did not take after the depression was over.

4. What is Joe Flom’s occupation? Where does he grow up? When is he born?

5. Lawyer, grew up in Brooklyn, born in 1930s during the depression

6. Why does Gladwell urge readers to be skeptical of typical “rags-to-riches” stories?

7. Successful people don’t do it alone, they are products of particular places and environments

8. What is the first lesson of Joe Flom?

9. The Importance of Being Jewish

10. Why does Flom have trouble getting a job after college?

11. Because he is Jewish

12. What is a proxy war. How are they characterized
What is a proxy war? How are they characterized? Why do Flom and his colleagues take on proxy wars?

13. Legal maneuvers at the center of any hostile takeover bid, they are hostile, they need any business they can get

14. What is the Second Lesson of Joe Flom?

15. Demographic luck

16. Group Activity
-We will throw the tennis ball to one of you guys and you will say one thing you learned from this section.
-After you say something you can throw it to anyone you want and they will do the same.

17. Individual Activity
-Write down whether you agree or disagree with race having an effect on which type of jobs you can get and why.
-If you agree, throw your paper at Jimmy.
-If you disagree, throw your paper at Blain

18. Closing
-Around the times of the depression people were not able to get certain jobs because they were Jewish.
-Jewish lawyers ended up doing well because the big firms they were declined from left lots of work for them after the depression.
-Thanks