Made to Stick

About the Author

Chip Heath and Dan Heath, two brothers, are the masterminds behind "Made to Stick." Chip Heath is a professor of organizational behavior at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. With a Ph.D. in psychology, his academic work has been featured in notable publications like Scientific American and the Financial Times. Dan Heath, on the other hand, brings his expertise from the world of education and business. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and has worked as a consultant at Duke Corporate Education. Together, they have co-authored not just "Made to Stick," but also the bestseller "Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard."

Main Idea

"Made to Stick" explores the intriguing question: Why do some ideas thrive while others fade away? The Heath brothers delve into the anatomy of what makes an idea "sticky," offering a comprehensive framework to help anyone craft ideas that capture attention and are remembered. They propose that sticky ideas share six key principles: simplicity, unexpectedness, concreteness, credibility, emotions, and stories. Through a blend of research, anecdotes, and practical advice, the Heaths illustrate how these principles can be harnessed to make ideas more impactful.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: What Sticks?
2. The Curse of Knowledge
3. Simple
4. Unexpected
5. Concrete
6. Credible
7. Emotional
8. Stories
9. Epilogue: What Stuck?

Introduction: What Sticks?

The introduction sets the stage by addressing the fundamental question of the book: why do some ideas stick while others don't? The Heaths argue that sticky ideas are not necessarily the result of natural talent or luck but can be systematically created. They present the concept of the "Curse of Knowledge," where experts struggle to communicate their knowledge effectively to novices because they can't easily reimagine what it's like not to know what they know.

The Curse of Knowledge

The Curse of Knowledge is a critical barrier to making ideas stick. It suggests that once we know something, it becomes difficult to imagine not knowing it. This cognitive bias makes it challenging to communicate complex ideas simply and clearly. The Heath brothers use examples from business, education, and urban legends to illustrate how the curse of knowledge can be overcome by adhering to the six principles of sticky ideas.

Simple

The first principle of stickiness is simplicity. The Heaths emphasize that a core idea must be both simple and profound. They illustrate this with the example of the Golden Rule: "Treat others like you want to be treated." This principle is universally understood and remembered because of its simplicity. To make an idea simple, one must strip it down to its most critical essence without turning it into a sound bite. The authors call this finding the "core."

Simplicity is about prioritizing and focusing on the essential elements of an idea. The Heaths discuss the example of Southwest Airlines, which built its entire strategy around being "THE low-fare airline." This clear, simple idea guided every decision the company made, from the services it offered to the way it trained its employees. By adhering to a single, simple core idea, Southwest was able to maintain its focus and consistently communicate its value proposition to customers.

Another compelling example comes from the field of public health. The "1% milk" campaign aimed to reduce the consumption of whole milk, which is high in saturated fat. Instead of bombarding the public with complex nutritional data, the campaign focused on a simple, memorable message: switch from whole milk to 1% milk. This simplicity made the message easy to understand and act upon, leading to significant changes in consumer behavior.