In Pursuit of Elegance: Why the Best Ideas Have Something Missing (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Guy Kawasaki (Foreword)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Advance Praise for In Pursuit of Elegance

“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, author of A Whole New Mind and The Adventures of Johnny Bunko

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

“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

“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, Stanford professor and author of The No Asshole Rule


From the Hardcover edition. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Review

Advance Praise for In Pursuit of Elegance

“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, author of A Whole New Mind and The Adventures of Johnny Bunko

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

“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

“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, Stanford professor and author of The No Asshole Rule

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Business (May 19, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385526490
• ISBN-13: 978-0385526494
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #12,681 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I beg to differ, May 24, 2009

By	Martin P. Cohen "Seeker" (Langhorne, PA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I fail to see what is so great about this book. The idea of elegant solutions is nothing new. The author's definition of elegance is anything but elegant. Consider this definition of elegant instead - "simple, intuitive and powerful."

The book did a lot of rambling. It could be cut by at least a third without loss. I found many of the examples to be contrived, like the California fast food joint with the small menu and an additional secret menu. Does this strike you as elegant?

The one thing that I have praise for is the presentation of the concept of symmetry. The author showed how mathematicians came up with a definition for a term that many may initially feel is undefinable. The mathematical definition of symmetry is a good example of elegance. I disagree, however, with the insistence that elegant solutions must always be symmetric.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not just about lean., May 21, 2009

By	Daniel Markovitz - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

To say that his book is about lean would be a disservice. It's much more than that. The stories and analyses record Matt's search for creative ideas and innovative solutions to problems in a surprisingly wide range of fields, from Jackson Pollack to the Sopranos, from traffic circles in Europe to video rental stores, from sudoku to corporate HR policies. I don't buy into all of his examples, but the overall force of his argument is compelling and very, very thought-provoking. Certainly, I won't look at a product boasting a "New & Improved!" sticker in the same way again.

Matt proposes that truly "elegant" solutions have a wonderful -- and elusive -- combination of simplicity and power. We don't have to lard up a product with new features to solve customer problems any more than we need a 175-page employee manual to tell workers what we expect them to do.

What I love about the book -- and what I'm still thinking about two weeks after reading it -- is the challenge of creating elegant solutions to the ongoing information management problems I see everyday.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Whole New Way Of Thinking, May 19, 2009

By	Brian R. Buck "Lean Healthcare Consultant" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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 about the book is that it doesn't offer specific steps to follow. This is not a "go and do" kind of book. What is NOT in the book is what makes this powerful (and elegant). May provides many case examples with different perspectives of elegant thinking without telling the reader what to make of them. After reading chapters, I found myself applying the thinking to my own situations. Powerful stuff started popping in my head based on the principles I learned about in the book. This is a highly interactive book if you plan to daydream a little bit after you read it.

I am a big fan of his last book "The Elegant Solution" and noticed a lot of similar ideas and concepts from that book. What the author did was shake loose the Lean/Toyota anchor and make this new book more open and accessible for a wider audience. There is a lot of freedom from that decision that will make this a better book for non-Lean practitioners while still providing relevant thoughts for those who are on the Lean journey.

This book is difficult to explain the highlights because most of them came from my personal application once I understood the concepts explained.

What great ideas will come to you while you read the book?