Hard Work, or Plain Old Talent?

talent-overrated

‘Talent Is Overrated’ by Geoff Colvin is an excellent read, well worth the trip.

The tagline reads: ‘What Really Separates World-Class Performers From Everybody Else.’ The book delivers that answer in a clear, concise way.

There are many gems here. I suggest you check it out if you are attempting to become good at anything; be it sports, music, or work.

The biggest treasure in this book, is that you must do deliberate practice.

Deliberate practice is the golden key that unlocks your musical success.

Deliberate practice is defined in the book this way:

“It is activity designed specifically to improve performance, often with a teacher’s help; it can be repeated a lot; feedback on results is continuously available; it’s highly demanding mentally… and it isn’t much fun.”

Each of those elements are crucial to developing talent. Colvin digs into each element so you can see how practice should be done for best results.

We all know practice is important. That’s not that hard to understand. But, after reading this book you will know how to spot effective practice that will get you somewhere. That makes all the difference.

“…and it isn’t much fun.”

This truth is both encouraging and discouraging. Why is that? Because it means that yes, you can learn to do darn near anything. It also means you will have to deliberately practice things you are not immediately good at. You will have to be okay with the pain and struggle, even to enjoy it!

Are you properly motivated to practice in that way, or would you like to stop as soon as it gets difficult, opting instead to watch TV or surf the web?

This book made me appreciate how much we all must have a self-driven attitude to succeed.


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