What Works by Hamish McRae

In this book, Hamish McRae wrote about lessons from 20 success stories around the globe, including the Edinburgh Arts Festival, Zurich drug rehabilitation, New York philanthrophism, Harvard – the world’s top university, property development in Dubai, the high-tech industries of Bangalore, public safety in Tokyo, Australia – the great sporting nation, the International Baccalaurate and others.

In the final chapter, he concluded by listing down 10 main lessons. And I quote “Here are powerful ideas that can be applied to many situations. If they are applied sensitively and thoughtfully, there will be better outcomes. We can all learn from things that work.”

1. Optimism – balanced by realism
- Pessimism paralyses
- Progress never follows a straight line

2. Excellence – tempered by decency
- If in the drive to be the best you neglect your wider responsibilities, you are liable to end up in greater trouble when you meet headwinds
- Pursue excellence but be aware of the needs and aspirations of those below the elite level

3. Community works – if it is allowed to
- Mobilize locally, but go outside for help when needed
– Look at things from ground up
– Celebrate community

4. Government works too
- Compare like with like

5. Become a true magnet for talent
- Create an environment that gets talent to attract talent
– Put out the welcome mat

6. Be honest about failure
- Face failure, and turn it to your advantage
– Keep learning, keep making mistakes

7. The need for humility
- Be as sensitive to success as you are to failure
– Acknowledge good fortune

8. Be nimble
- Be quick to adapt

9. Listen to the market
- Work with the market to effect change
– Remember, it is about more than money
– Manage your resources carefully

10. Have a sense of mission
- Keep it real
– Do right by those who share your objectives
– Keep the long game in view

In the example of New York philantrophism, the author pictured that Americans feel that they want to see something happen, they take actions, rather than just wait for the authority to act on it. In a way, it’s related to the ‘American Dream’ – anyone can get what they want or be who they want to be if they work hard enough for it.

Coincidentally, a few days after I finished this book, a friend shared this link about a philantrophist who built a special theme park for disabled children and named it Morgan’s Wonderland after Morgan, his 17-year-old daughter, who can't perform simple maths and struggles to form sentences because of cognitive disabilities.