I stand here in front of you today all because of an idea.
“I can be who I wanted if I could see my potential.”
And I know that one day, Ima be him.
Put the gloves on, spar with my ego.
Everyone’s greatest obstacle – I beat ‘em.
Celebrate that achievement.
Got some attachment and baggage I’m actually working on leaving…Ten thousand hours felt like ten thousand hands.
Ten thousand hours – they carry me.
According to Gladwell, it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become successful in a specific arena. Today is a good day to start, isn’t it?
Hat tip to my friend Dane for pointing me to this gem.
3 comments
Ben Brooks says:
January 23, 2013 at 5:25 pm (UTC -7)
Matt – not sure if I agree. Sure if you want to go “deep” in something, like becoming a really incredible ballet dancer or antique appraiser, I can see the 10,000 hour rule. But what about things that are multi-dimensional, conceptual and broad? They require a broad understanding of many things as a basic level, and the breakthrough happens when they are woven together.
Matt Corker says:
January 23, 2013 at 10:02 pm (UTC -7)
I recommend you read Malcolm Gladwell’s book ‘Outliers.’ It’s a great read and goes in to more depth about this concept. Better depth than I could sum up in this comment. Read it. You’ll enjoy it!
Ben Brooks says:
January 24, 2013 at 6:41 am (UTC -7)
Yeah I’m familiar with the book. Not sure if I agree. Have you read Daniel Pink’s “A whole new mind”? Or are you familiar with “T shaped” leaders? I just think we’re moving beyond deep specialization in the new economy. If you do something narrow really well, someone in India can likely do it too, but for a lot less!
I remember a story of a friend who met an eye doctor at a party. He mentioned an eye issue he used to have and the doctor quickly said “I’m not a retina guy, I’m a cornea guy.” To me that’s kinda BS…its an eye.
I’d rather be the conductor than play the flute really well.