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A review by nlfrey
The Talent Code: Unlocking the Secret of Skill in Sports, Art, Music, Math, and Just About Everything Else by Daniel Coyle
5.0
This is an absolutely fantastic book.
The premise of this book is basically that we give "talent" and "genes" waaay too much credit. Great artists, musicians and athletes aren't great because they were born that way - or even because they were born with some genetic advantage so they could more easily become great. Simply put, they worked their way to greatness. They put in hours of practice (the right kind of practice) and found ways to stay inspired and motivated.
I know that sounds overly simple. Trust me, it's not.
This book kinda blew my mind. It was also very empowering - skill is just that, skill. How good you become at something doesn't have nearly as much to do with your genes or "talent" as it has to do with how you approach learning that thing. How you practice and stay motivated and interested in whatever it is you're learning.
Also, as a musician, this is a great one for me to point people to when they start praising my "talent" too much and/or wondering why I don't do "more" with my skills. I get to turn the question around and let them know that they could be just as good as I am if they decided to - why aren't they doing more with their skills?
The premise of this book is basically that we give "talent" and "genes" waaay too much credit. Great artists, musicians and athletes aren't great because they were born that way - or even because they were born with some genetic advantage so they could more easily become great. Simply put, they worked their way to greatness. They put in hours of practice (the right kind of practice) and found ways to stay inspired and motivated.
I know that sounds overly simple. Trust me, it's not.
This book kinda blew my mind. It was also very empowering - skill is just that, skill. How good you become at something doesn't have nearly as much to do with your genes or "talent" as it has to do with how you approach learning that thing. How you practice and stay motivated and interested in whatever it is you're learning.
Also, as a musician, this is a great one for me to point people to when they start praising my "talent" too much and/or wondering why I don't do "more" with my skills. I get to turn the question around and let them know that they could be just as good as I am if they decided to - why aren't they doing more with their skills?