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The Story of Success.
Disclaimer: The 10,000-hour rule has been debunked by studies, one of which you can read here.
We’ve all heard the common narrative of success stories: from rags to riches. It’s a rather appealing notion to think about. But it is not that simple. Oprah Winfrey says that her biggest frustration with young people today is that “they think that success is supposed to happen” instantly. “They think that there isn’t a process to it. They think that they are supposed to come out of college and have their brand.” Instead, she says, brands, and careers, take time to develop. The amount of practice necessary for exceptional performance is so extensive that people who end up on top need help. They invariably have access to lucky breaks or privileges or conditions that make all those years of practice possible.
In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell gives the example of people born around the year 1954–1956. This was the generation that produced the Silicon Valley tech moguls; the likes of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. These people were born at the right time to take advantage of the computer revolution that took place some years after their birth. But there is a catch; they had to be prepared to take advantage of the opportunity when it arose. They had to have clocked in their 10,000 hours.
