Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin, editor of Fortune magazine, is an epic volume based on 30 years of research, basically disproving the generally assumed "fact" that people are blessed with talent. By looking at examples such as Mozart and Tiger Woods, he essentially dismantles the idea that elite performers are blessed with an innate gift, and proves that rather it is the result of the 10,000 hour rule - that is, that In order to achieve mastery at anything, one must practice deliberately for over 10,000 hours. To give you an idea of how long that is, it is equal to about 417 days. Or, at 3 hours per day, roughly over nine years. Thus, the ten-year rule was born. You have to practice something deliberately for 10 years to "master" it.
But that begs the question, "What about people who practice their profession and never get better, or even get worse with time?" Colvin's answer is a habitual process he calls "deliberate practice" based on the research of Anders Ericsson, a world-class expert on world-class experts. Deliberate practice must be designed specifically to improve performance, it must be repeated endlessly, the practitioner must seek continual feedback and coaching, it is inherently a demanding enterprise, and the last caveat? It isn't really considered "fun" by anyone who practices this way. It is not "inherently enjoyable". So what is the good news? The glimmer of hope this book presents is that anyone can be exceptional at anything - if they spend over 10,000 hours of deliberate practice. His research findings use examples from chess, ice skating, music, sports, business, and more. I have started to apply this practice to my teaching practice in instructing English as a New Language in a suburban high school. This has taken the form of my taking a targeted skill to improve, such as using carefully crafted questions to ignite inquiry in a student to propel them towards their own solution of their problem, versus carefully scaffolding support to offer a solution. This has been beneficial as students learn to become more independent solution-seeking learners adept at problem solving and struggling for gains versus being handed neat little educational support packages that produce little gains in terms of teaching them how to struggle to master a concept, apply a scientific idea to a problem, or overcome a stumbling block to comprehension. In fact, I have applied deliberate practice to many different skill sets in teaching, including but not limited to: using humor to deflect possible behavioral issues and personalizing questions about educational background to identify possible weaknesses and/or educational gaps. I have also applied to it my yoga practice while focusing on alignment, breath control, and body mechanics to name a few discrete goals. I have made it my approach of late, before I begin an activity in which I would like to improve; be it art, yoga, teaching, or writing, to set a small, specific, and achievable goal which I can assess at the end of practice to determine how I have improved or determine how I can improve further through coaching or cycles of observation and feedback. So next time you write off a symphony, masterpiece of artwork, or other remarkable feat as the domain of only the truly talented, check out Geoff Colvin's book, Talent is Overrated; or Anders Ericsson's book, Peak. It just might widen your horizons and ignite your passions.
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AuthorBetty Lynn is an writer, educator, artist, illustrator and yoga teacher living in the suburbs of New York City. Archives
October 2019
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