Talent Is Overrated

I am currently reading Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin. Its tag line is "What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else." The premise is that top performers learned to be top performers rather than being born into natural talent. Using research done on musicians, athletes, and chess players Geoff builds a case for anyone being capable of world-class performance. The catch is that you must be willing to put in the work to become a top performer by performing what he calls deliberate practice. This deliberate practice accumulates over the lifetime of the individual adding up to their total lifetime hours practiced in a particular area.

This book has helped me to understand human performance better. For example, last year I took the test Strength Finder 2.0. It stresses the importance of focusing on your strengths, which I understood to mean that you are born with and have developed your strengths. My refined view now is that my activities in life and the things I have practiced up until this point have developed certain strengths in me. I should continue to work in the areas that I have spent the most practice as it is in those areas that I will achieve the highest results.

An axiom in the business world is that you should do what you like and the money will follow. A major reason for this is that you are willing to spend many more focused hours working on something you love than something you hate. If there is something you want to do 3-5 years down the road in your life, start doing it now! Use the next 3-5 years to gain more experience in that area.