Scientific studies have found that, contrary to popular beliefs, innate abilities are not the major factor in achieving excellence in any sphere of endeavor. We are not born with predis positions to excel in particular skills; those are learned.
Even in the cases of child prodigies, studies have found that the predominant factor behind their exceptional skill was not a trait in the child himself. Those little “genius” became so because they had highly motivated parents that pushed them to achieve and to excel.
An excellent example of that would be Tiger Woods. He was introduced to golf by his father while he was still only 18 months old – and, from then on, encouraged by the patriarch to practice intensively. By the time he won his first major tournament, Tiger had at least 15 years of training and practice.
Excellence is the result of extensive practice over extended periods of time. Indebt studies on the subject have revealed that the minimum time required to reach the level of excellence is a minimum of ten years and could take as much as 30 to 40 years.
Not only does excellence demands a lot of practice and hard work, it also needs a very special mindset. There has to be a constant desire to improve on past performances. That special mindset is called, “Deliberate Practice.”
Deliberate Practice implies that, while at work, the person will constantly try to gather more information about the whole business, look at it from different perspectives and study how each component of that business fits into the overall process.
In other words, with Deliberate Practice, whatever work being performed becomes an active effort to improve the person’s ability and effectiveness.
Whether it is sports, business or the arts, the process to achieve excellence is the same. It is done through hard work, constant practice and unfailing diligence to improve the performances.
The interesting part of those studies on excellence is the fact that relatively no one is restrained by innate abilities to achieve excellence in any desired fields of endeavor. Of course there are limits. A rather small person probably could not excel in football and someone with the shape of a professional wrestler could not become a gymnast.
Other than that, the only limitations that exist are the ones that we impose on ourselves. Excellence is accessible to any one who is willing to pay the price and give the necessary efforts. The field is open to anyone who desires to reach the level of excellence.
In any skill that we want to learn, be it sports, business or the arts, the rudiments are the easiest and the fastest to learn. Once the essential elements are acquired, the learning curve slows down and eventually grind to a stop once near mastery is attained. It is at that level that Deliberate Practice becomes essential.
As an example, it is relatively easy to learn to play a musical instrument at the level of amateurs. The hard work begins at the stage when the amateur wants to play professionally. That is when the constant and relentless work and the earnest desire to improve are needed. The small distinctions that will add the finishing touch are the hardest and the longest ones to acquire.
Each one of us is born with the necessary abilities to excess in most any area of endeavor that can be found in sports, business or the arts. If we don’t reach the level of excellence, it is not due to a lack of talent. It is due to the unwillingness or the lack of desire to put in the necessary work and practice to achieve that goal. This fact has been scientifically substantiated.
Now that we have this information, we get to decide what we do with it. We can either ignore it and go on our merry way. Or we can use it to turn what we thought was impossible into the possible and transform our life into the fantastic success that we were meant to be. All that it takes is dedication and hard work. We already have everything else.