The Talent Myth
“Basically, we’ve bought into several misconceptions about excellence, which are not only wrong but affirmatively counterproductive.” Peter Orszag on how to be successful.
“Too many of us believe in the ‘talent’ myth—that top performers are born, rather than built. But Syed shows that in almost every arena in which tasks are complex, top performers excel not because of innate ability but because of dedicated practice. In effect, the stars among us have practiced so much that they are better at what psychologists call ‘chunking.’ … Success in most arenas of life is thus not a reflection of innate skill but rather devoted effort. … If you’re going to get better at chunking, you can’t just go through the motions and punch time on the clock. You need to put your heart into it.”
