By Greg Primm
I love stories about overnight successes. From out of nowhere, through sheer will, ambition, and intelligence someone makes their dreams come true.
Take Bill Gates. Brilliant young math whiz discovers computer programming. Drops out of Harvard, starts a computer company called Microsoft with a few friends. Before you know it, he builds it into the most important software company in the world.
Could there be more to the story?
I recently finished the book “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell. Gladwell is a bestselling author who wrote “The Tipping Point” and “Blink”. I’m fascinated by his writings because he attempts to explain stereotypes and common knowledge in a way that actually helps you understand the reasons behind them.
In “Outliers”, one of the topics Gladwell investigates is what goes into the making of an overnight success.
So . . . back to Bill Gates.
Bill was born into a wealthy Seattle family. Bored by public school, his parents sent him to an elite private school in the seventh grade. His school’s Mother’s Club held an annual rummage sale. With the proceeds, the Club would invest in various programs around the school. In 1968, the Mother’s Club used $3,000 to purchase a computer terminal and a block of time on a mainframe computer in downtown Seattle. This is 1968. Most colleges didn’t have computer terminals, but Bill Gates suddenly had unlimited access to one and he was hooked. He spent all of his free time on the computer. After the Mother’s Club couldn’t afford to purchase time on the mainframe anymore, Bill found out one of the mother’s had recently founded a firm that leased computer time to local companies. In exchange for helping de-bug software, Gates and his friends were given free programming time. Over the next few years, Gates bounced from company to company, racking up thousands of hours of free programming time. By the time he graduated high school, Bill Gates was an expert programmer.
So what?
Gates was able to take advantage of an unbelievable series of opportunities to gain approximately 10,000 of practice time to hone his craft. At a time when most people wouldn’t have access to a computer until at least college, Bill had already racked up thousands of hours of computer training for free.
In the book, Gladwell explains that evidence shows that it takes approximately 10,000 hours of practice (about 10 years) to gain the skills and knowledge necessary to be considered “world class” in almost anything. Not just ten years of casual practice when we feel like it. We’re talking about 10 years of dedicated, consistent, intense practice.
What does that mean?
When I go to the driving range, I hit a bucket of balls. Those who aspire to be world class track what percentage of their shots come within 10 yards of the target.
World class musicians don’t practice a couple of times per week when their schedule allows. That’s what I did when my parents made me take piano lessons! Instead, world class musicians schedule their time so there are 3-4 hours per day devoted to nothing more than training.
So what does this mean for you? Good question.
You may never be a world class golfer or start a multinational company. We all have something we strive for, though. Think about that thing you’ve been frustrated about because you haven’t made progress. Whether it’s something in your career, a hobby, your family, health related; there’s something with which you haven’t moved beyond amateur status.
Have you thought of it yet?
Now, have you really dedicated enough time to make the progress you desire? Be honest. The answer for most people is probably no.
Looking to improve your relationship with your family? It takes time. Intentional, focused time. How long? Not days or weeks, but months and years.
It’s the same at work. If you need to develop a new skill set, you better be investing time on a regular basis to improving yourself.
When thinking through this post, I first thought that it would be nice to have some shortcuts through the process. Wouldn’t it be nice to cut the time by 90% so we can become an expert in just a few short weeks?
There’s an interesting thing about the 10 year rule. In the process of accruing the 10,000 hours necessary to become experts, only those with the passion for their craft make it to the end and gain truly world class status.
Those who put in the effort, who make the unbelievable sacrifices it takes to become better; those are the people who make a difference.
Photo credit: torli
