firewalker99
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The talent myth
As this discussion seems to be wandering off into another direction, I might as well throw myself before the dogs and add the usual stir
It's not the first time there's been debate around this topic, temptrader and other might remember the discussion we had in another thread over a year ago. Nevertheless, I'll add my own opinion to the matter, which is based on what I've read and studied into the matter.
Although exceptional people are rare (always have been, always will be), there is more to it than just 'talent'. I'll be the first to admit that I'm in awe over child prodigys who manage to speak 5 different languages when most other kids are barely able to speak fluently in their mother tongue. However, environment does play an important role. Laszlo Polgar set out to raise his children to become chess players. Surprisingly, all three of his daughters went on to become worldclass players (two are in fact grandmasters).
What makes exceptional people truly exceptional is that they have more motivation and an inherent "urge" to do better than others. Hence they work, study, exercise, train,... harder than anybody else so they can improve and will improve. I - and scientists appear to prove me right - don't believe for one second you are born a genius. Yes, you can inherit some traits/characteristics, but this is not what makes one exceptional.
The environment has a great effect in determining how a child's energy will be used and shows that an extraordinary amount of skill can be developed through sustained and intense training.
Why were champions like Schumacher and the late Ayrton Senna a class of their own? Because they were fanatics. They worked like mad, trained like mad, drove hundreds of test laps more than others and got started very early in their life (driving karts on the age of 4 or 5). Every other driver in the field admitted that Michael Schumacher worked extremely hard in every aspect of his career, not only on the track but also off the track. Again, hard work seems to be the key here!
Newton at the height of his powers was studying 18 hours a day in total solitude in his rooms, and this contributed to his nervous breakdown in later life. Einstein almost worked himself to death in finishing the General Theory of Relativity. Luck has little to do with it, and talent even less. Talent is just a way for people who don't want to understand why "they don't have what it takes" and others do. Talent is an excuse for those who are unable to dig as deep as true champions to find the motivation to outperform (yes controversial comment I know
II can't prove nor disprove this but these hypotheses has recently been confirmed by several experiments. One of the best examples is where people with an IQ of 90 were trained to become chess masters. And indeed, they became. It shows that anybody can become almost anything, if he's got the drive and the motivation. And this is what separates the best from the rest: some have it an extraordinary amount, others just in "very much".
For all those sceptics out there, this won't convince you, but read it nonetheless:
What it takes to be great
People are just not willing to accept the fact that they could achieve great things too. But no, it won't "happen to you" unless you make it happen. Geniuses are made, not born. Mozart played the violin before he could speak, Tiger Woods played golf before he could walk. Environment plays a big role: deliberate practive and sensitive mentoring.
"The environment has a great effect in determining how a child's energy will be used and shows that an extraordinary amount of skill can be developed through sustained and intense training" (sorry don't know who I'm quoting this from, but I remember it vividly).
Eric Kandel of Columbia University in New York, who won a Nobel prize in 2000 for discovering much of the neural basis of memory and learning, has shown that both the number and strength of the nerve connections associated with a memory or skill increase in proportion to how often and how emphatically the lesson is repeated. So focused study and practice literally build the neural networks of expertise. Genetics may allow one person to build synapses faster than another, but either way the lesson must still be learnt. Genius must be built.
Makes for an interesting read:
The Expert Mind
E=mc2 and a lot of hard work
If you want to read more and discover the disappointing reality check that hard work is the key, you can The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance, available from online bookstores.
Ok this is enough for a Sunday!
PS: If anyone wants to reply to this post, please so, but please take the time to read some of the articles I've posted first, instead of just advocating your own opinion for the sake of it. I'm not trying to convince anybody...
As this discussion seems to be wandering off into another direction, I might as well throw myself before the dogs and add the usual stir
It's not the first time there's been debate around this topic, temptrader and other might remember the discussion we had in another thread over a year ago. Nevertheless, I'll add my own opinion to the matter, which is based on what I've read and studied into the matter.
Although exceptional people are rare (always have been, always will be), there is more to it than just 'talent'. I'll be the first to admit that I'm in awe over child prodigys who manage to speak 5 different languages when most other kids are barely able to speak fluently in their mother tongue. However, environment does play an important role. Laszlo Polgar set out to raise his children to become chess players. Surprisingly, all three of his daughters went on to become worldclass players (two are in fact grandmasters).
What makes exceptional people truly exceptional is that they have more motivation and an inherent "urge" to do better than others. Hence they work, study, exercise, train,... harder than anybody else so they can improve and will improve. I - and scientists appear to prove me right - don't believe for one second you are born a genius. Yes, you can inherit some traits/characteristics, but this is not what makes one exceptional.
The environment has a great effect in determining how a child's energy will be used and shows that an extraordinary amount of skill can be developed through sustained and intense training.
Why were champions like Schumacher and the late Ayrton Senna a class of their own? Because they were fanatics. They worked like mad, trained like mad, drove hundreds of test laps more than others and got started very early in their life (driving karts on the age of 4 or 5). Every other driver in the field admitted that Michael Schumacher worked extremely hard in every aspect of his career, not only on the track but also off the track. Again, hard work seems to be the key here!
Newton at the height of his powers was studying 18 hours a day in total solitude in his rooms, and this contributed to his nervous breakdown in later life. Einstein almost worked himself to death in finishing the General Theory of Relativity. Luck has little to do with it, and talent even less. Talent is just a way for people who don't want to understand why "they don't have what it takes" and others do. Talent is an excuse for those who are unable to dig as deep as true champions to find the motivation to outperform (yes controversial comment I know
II can't prove nor disprove this but these hypotheses has recently been confirmed by several experiments. One of the best examples is where people with an IQ of 90 were trained to become chess masters. And indeed, they became. It shows that anybody can become almost anything, if he's got the drive and the motivation. And this is what separates the best from the rest: some have it an extraordinary amount, others just in "very much".
For all those sceptics out there, this won't convince you, but read it nonetheless:
What it takes to be great
People are just not willing to accept the fact that they could achieve great things too. But no, it won't "happen to you" unless you make it happen. Geniuses are made, not born. Mozart played the violin before he could speak, Tiger Woods played golf before he could walk. Environment plays a big role: deliberate practive and sensitive mentoring.
"The environment has a great effect in determining how a child's energy will be used and shows that an extraordinary amount of skill can be developed through sustained and intense training" (sorry don't know who I'm quoting this from, but I remember it vividly).
Eric Kandel of Columbia University in New York, who won a Nobel prize in 2000 for discovering much of the neural basis of memory and learning, has shown that both the number and strength of the nerve connections associated with a memory or skill increase in proportion to how often and how emphatically the lesson is repeated. So focused study and practice literally build the neural networks of expertise. Genetics may allow one person to build synapses faster than another, but either way the lesson must still be learnt. Genius must be built.
Makes for an interesting read:
The Expert Mind
E=mc2 and a lot of hard work
If you want to read more and discover the disappointing reality check that hard work is the key, you can The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance, available from online bookstores.
Ok this is enough for a Sunday!
PS: If anyone wants to reply to this post, please so, but please take the time to read some of the articles I've posted first, instead of just advocating your own opinion for the sake of it. I'm not trying to convince anybody...
