Margaret Young, a popular singer in the 1920s once said,
“Often people attempt to live their lives backwards, they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want.”
Does it really take natural talent to a become a great success? Research is showing that it does not.
So what makes Tiger Woods great or Warren Buffett the world’s premier investor? If it’s not talent, then what? If it’s not targeted natural gifts, what in the world is it?
A person only will achieve greatness through an enormous amount of hard work over many years and that work must be demanding and painful. You don’t want to hear that? You think you can coast to fame and riches once you find your talent?
Read on.
People usually learn quickly at first, followed by a plateau, then stop developing entirely. However, there are a few persons that continue to improve over many years, eventually becoming great at what they do. How are some people able to do this?
The answer seems to be that there is no such thing as a free lunch or free ride. Researchers have found that it takes about ten years of hard work before some people arrive at greatness. And it not just any type of hard work. The experts call it deliberate practice. Hitting a bucket of golf balls at the driving range is not deliberate practice. Hitting 500 balls to within 20 feet of the pin most of the time and doing that every day is what experts call deliberate practice. This requires discipline and feedback as to how one is doing. This deliberate practice model is found in all endeavors including music, art, athletic performance, medicine, and even business. Warren Buffett spends endless hours pouring over financial statements. Musicians spend countless days of practicing their craft.
So the lesson is simple. Don’t just do your job. Find your passion and begin deliberate practice to become great. Don’t be discouraged for it takes a minimum of ten years. The good news is that the more you work at it the better your performance will become. Greatness is not preordained; it is within the grasp of each of us.
So……I should have taken 6 months off before going to PA school and hike the Appalachian Trail. Now my knee is worn out and I’m trying to decide how I can possibly do this at the end of my career. I should have been a Park Ranger for 10 years; I would have been the best!
(Tongue in cheek….partly).
Yes, diligence, persistence and hard work are important and highly valued, but we also must have balance.
My daughter as struggled with similar issues for her generation http://littleredsuit.com/2007/11/02/winning-the-battle-of-work-vs-life/
We may not see the forest for the trees.
I can relate to your pain, literally. We are now at that point in our lives where we can see it slipping away and all the great things we were going to do when we were young are getting out of reach. What’s the solution? Suicide, I guess. No, seriously, I don’t know. We find ouselves at the edge of a precipice not wanting to jump but the enemy is gaining from behind. We are paralyzed with fear and indecision. I thinks it’s the human condition.