10-Thousand Hour Rule

photo source: ronitbaras.com

While surfing the internet this week I came across the "10-thousand Hour Rule".  Canadian Journalist Malcolm Gladwell set out to find what factors led to making someone world class in their field. The quick answer was 10-thousand hours of deliberate practice.

I was like... COOL! I'm going to get to practicing my craft so I can become WORLD CLASS!

Then I came across an article that basically debunked his theory.

Hmm... so what does it all mean?

Well, Gladwell actually went on Reddit to participate in an AMA (ask me anything) chat to clear his theory up and he said it was an oversimplification of his theory.

He said: "There is a lot of confusion about the 10,000 rule that I talk about in Outliers. It doesn't apply to sports. And practice isn't a SUFFICIENT condition for success. I could play chess for 100 years and I'll never be a grandmaster. The point is simply that natural ability requires a huge investment of time in order to be made manifest."

While many people may try to debunk Gladwell's theory- I am willing to give it some validation. There is NO way we can be great at anything if we don't dedicate ourselves to it. While many artists may burst on the scene, those who stay are people who dedicate themselves to their craft and work to get better, innovate and push the boundaries of the mediocre. 

Do you want to be world class? If you do- you have to work, work hard and believe in your ability and know it can take years to achieve your goal.... but you should still try.