Brent Taylor started his research with the Forbes Rich List and applied a criteria to whittle down the world's richest people to the final line up for his fascinating new book: Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Ingvar Kamprad, Larry Ellison, Carl Icahn, George Soros, David Geffen, Steve Jobs, Charles Schwab, Frank Lowy, Ralph Lauren, George Lucas, Bernie Ecclestone, Richard Branson, Steven Spielberg, John Sperling and Oprah Winfrey.

Some extraordinary and unexpected factors are revealed in Taylor's fascinating new book that explains why some people become billionaires. Despite the fact that the sample of 17 self-made billionaires come from disparate backgrounds, work in different industries, have very different personalities, and superficially appear to have different upbringings, they have one important thing in common. They are all outsiders. Their edge comes from being different and that difference is the well-spring of their creativity and wealth. This combined with direction, drive and trading intelligence has powered them to extreme wealth.

The Outsider's Edge will appeal to lovers of well-written biography; business enthusiasts and entrepreneurs looking to learn from these ultimate wealth creators; parents and educators interested in development - this book debunks a set of conventional wisdoms perpetrated about home and school; and, last but not least, outsiders themselves who have up until now been poorly served by biographies and other analyses extolling them to fit in, which frustrates them greatly, since simply they can't. Many outsiders may now wear their status as a badge of honor rather than a cause of embarrassment.