For those of you who are seriously interested in becoming great at something, I've decided to post the 5 things you should keep in mind on your quest to greatness (according to David Shenk in his book
The Genius in All of Us):
1. Practice changes your body.
Researchers have recorded a constellation of physical changes (occurring in direct response to practice) in the muscles, nerves, hearts, lungs and brains of those showing profound increases in skill level in any domain.
2. Skills are specific.
Individuals becoming great at one particular skill do not serendipitously become great at other skills. Chess champions can remember hundreds of intricate chess positions in sequence but can have a perfectly ordinary memory for everything else. Physical and intellectual changes are ultraspecific responses to particular skill requirements.
3. The brain drives the brawn.
Even among athletes, changes in the brain are arguably the most profound, with a vast increase in precise task knowledge, a shift from conscious analysis to intuitive thinking (saving time and energy), and elaborate self-monitoring mechanisms that allow for constant adjustments in real time.
4. Practice style is crucial.
Ordinary practice, where your current skill level is simply being reinforced, is not enough to get better. It takes a special kind of practice to force your mind and body into the kind of change necessary to improve.
5. Short-term intensity cannot replace long-term commitment.
Many crucial changes take place over long periods of time. Physiologically, it's impossible to become great overnight.
(p. 55)
And now get to work! ;-)
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