In Pursuit of Elegance, Matthew E. May
In Pursuit of Elegance, Matthew E. May
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In Pursuit of Elegance
Why the Best Ideas Have Something Missing

Author: Matthew E. May, Guy Kawasaki

Narrator: Malcolm Hillgartner

Unabridged: 5 hr 46 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/11/2009

Synopsis

What made The Sopranos finale one of the most talked about events in television history? Why is Sudoku so addictive and the iPhone so darned irresistible? What do Jackson Pollock and Lance Armstrong have in common with theoretical physicists and Buddhist monks? The answer is elegance.Matthew May explores why certain events, products, and people capture our imaginations and our loyalty. Defining elegance as the elusive combination of unusual simplicity and surprising power, he pinpoints the four key elements that characterize it—seduction, subtraction, symmetry, and sustainability—illustrating why what’s “not there” often matters more than what is. He also sheds light on the need for elegance in design, engineering, physics, art, urban planning, sports, and work.Download charts and figures.

About Matthew E. May

Matthew E. May, a graduate of the Wharton School of Business, is the author of the critically acclaimed Elegant Solution. A popular speaker, he lectures to corporations, governments, and universities around the world on ingenuity and innovation. He spent nearly a decade advising Toyota, and his articles and profiles have appeared in USA Today, Strategy & Business, the Wall Street Journal, and on CNN and National Public Radio. He lives in Lake Sherwood, California.

About Malcolm Hillgartner

Malcolm Hillgartner is an accomplished actor, writer, and musician. Named an AudioFile Best Voice of 2013 and the recipient of several Earphones Awards, he has narrated over 250 audiobooks.

About Guy Kawasaki

Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist of Canva and host of the Remarkable People podcast. He was the chief evangelist of Apple, trustee of the Wikimedia Foundation, and brand ambassador of Mercedes-Benz. He has a BA degree from Stanford University, an MBA from the University of California at Los Angeles, and an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jim

A good read, excellent ideas. It's worthy of 4 stars as a regular book, but the audio wasn't quite as good since the PDF is needed occasionally & that, unlike the audio book, is tied up under DRM so I couldn't access it. WTF? I found it on Recorded Books' site without any DRM. Oy! He starts off by d......more

Goodreads review by Arlington

A book about elegance should be elegant, right? I mostly just found this book to be very tidy. I haven't read any Malcolm Gladwell, but this author seems to be camping under similar stars. I read it in one sitting and liked it. My brain feels, if not reformatted, then carefully adjusted, like I went......more

Goodreads review by Emily

Interesting book on why we need elegance and how to achieve it. Elegance is defined as "cleverly apt and simple" and is achieved through symmetry, seduction, subtraction, and sustainability. I liked the big idea of the book and enjoyed the many examples, but did not always see the connection between......more

Goodreads review by Brian

I loved “In Pursuit Of Elegance” by Matthew E. May. This book will provide a basis for a whole new kind of thinking. I can not think of an audience that would not benefit from reading this book because it can apply to business, art, home-life, and many other ventures. One thing I found brilliant abou......more

Quotes

“As elegantly written as it is provocative. In Pursuit of Elegance makes a convincing—nay, worldview-shifting—argument that less is best.” Ori Brafman, New York Times bestselling author

“In Pursuit of Elegance is a fascinating intellectual romp that will change the way you look at your surroundings. As he takes readers from Jackson Pollock paintings to Dutch intersections to the secret menu at In-N-Out Burger, Matt May reveals the hidden elements beneath genuine innovation. This book is surprising, compelling, and, yes, extremely elegant.”
Daniel H. Pink, New York Times bestselling author

“What a masterpiece! The definitive guide to the ‘less is more’ mind-set. I meant to only take a quick glance at In Pursuit of Elegance, but once I started reading it, I couldn’t stop. In a world where everything keeps getting more complicated and overwhelming, Matthew May shows us that if we start looking for things to take out, things to stop doing, and intelligent shortcuts, we will all be happier, do superior work, and live in a better world.”
Robert I. Sutton, New York Times bestselling author

“Malcolm Hilgartner gives the ideal performance for May’s ‘less is more’ approach. His reading is understated and controlled, creatively engaging the imagination by what is not there.” AudioFile

“Enlightening. Makes a compelling case for doing more with less by optimizing the expenditure of one’s assets and resources. That’s something anyone can and should put into practice.”
Kevin Hunter, president, CALTY Design Research, Inc., Toyota Design Network

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