Comments on: Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers and the Real Reason You Are a Successful Writer

By: V Kandasamy

V Kandasamy — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:10:55 +0000

Something very similar to Korean Airlines experience happened at Pan Am about 30 years earlier, despite the very different cultural background. The airplanes were Boeing 707. If you are interested, please read Gandt’s “SkyGods”.

By: life's uncertainties

life's uncertainties — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 03:37:45 +0000

All of us are gifted and we have our own talents to show off. But sad to say, not all of us knew that gift. Anyhow, you were very right in saying that it takes practice, timing, have the right upbringing, correct adherence to culture, and taking the rare opportunity to uphold the said talent/gift in order to reach success.

By: Whitney

Whitney — Tue, 26 May 2009 20:59:46 +0000

While I think Gladwell’s book is something that should prompt some self-reflection about our careers, I — like Anindita — don’t agree with his take on natural talent either.

Rather than bog down your comments section with a long response, I wrote it at http://www.stc-lonewriter.org/index.php/blog/article/contemplating_natural_talent.

By: Why Not to Charge $197 for your sales copy... Or pay it, either.

Why Not to Charge $197 for your sales copy... Or pay it, either. — Sun, 24 May 2009 13:59:51 +0000

[...] each day (8 hours a day, 7 days a week, for a good chunk of the year) before they became famous. — Malcolm Gladwell�s Outliers and the Real Reason You Are a Successful Writer When interviewed, most American students make the argument talent fosters good grades, so [...]

By: Sticking it Out « The SharePoint Contender

Sticking it Out « The SharePoint Contender — Sun, 17 May 2009 17:58:43 +0000

[...] · No Comments This is a great post from a former teaching colleague of mine, Tom [...]

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 14 May 2009 17:56:31 +0000

Anindita, you have a good point. I didn’t include a discussion of this in my post, but certainly some of Gladwell’s theories wouldn’t fit into some religious contexts. A colleague reminded me that, as Latter-day Saints, we believe in gifts. For example, in the Old Testament, Joseph of Egypt had the gift of interpreting dreams. Where did he learn or acquire that? I can see how Gladwell’s theories need to account more for unexplained natural abilities.

By: Anindita

Anindita — Thu, 14 May 2009 17:42:02 +0000

Um, I am not quite sure I agree with the Outliers theory.

My parents gave me and my two siblings the exact same upbringing and opportunities. Still, I was the one that grew up to be the writer – not because they plied me with literature (oh, they plied us with all kinds of stuff, including athletics which I hate) but because I have the gift of the pen.

The trick, I think, lies in parents catching on pretty early what their kids are “really” interested in, and then encouraging them to put in that 90% of hard work (the 10% is talent. It has to be there).

By: Rachel

Rachel — Thu, 14 May 2009 13:56:52 +0000

They make a Roomba that mops. Just sayin . . .

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 14 May 2009 13:44:48 +0000

Okay okay, so I should have said “take out the trash” rather than mop the floor. I’m not a good mopper. Perhaps if I put in 10,000 hours of mopping practice …

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 14 May 2009 13:43:38 +0000

Rachel, 10% talent and 90% work aligns with my experiences as well. It’s interesting to look back and see these points of connection. I like softball too, and am decent, but it’s in part because I had a childhood full of little league baseball and a father who loved to play catch with me.