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The opinions expressed herein are my own personal opinions and do not represent my employer's view in anyway.

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 Friday, November 16, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007 8:56:30 AM (Mountain Standard Time, UTC-07:00) ( General )

An article , that David Truxall was kind enough to leave a comment about, explains beautifully what I was trying to convey in my Tale of two sons story.

If you have a mentor, or someone you look up to as an expert in an area that you currently feel lacking. Maybe this article can give you some insight into the process that developed their abilities to the level you are aspiring to.

http://scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?articleID=00010347-101C-14C1-8F9E83414B7F4945

The following is one of my favourite excerpts from the article:

A Proliferation of Prodigies
The one thing that all expertise theorists agree on is that it takes enormous effort to build these structures in the mind. Simon coined a psychological law of his own, the 10-year rule, which states that it takes approximately a decade of heavy labor to master any field. Even child prodigies, such as Gauss in mathematics, Mozart in music and Bobby Fischer in chess, must have made an equivalent effort, perhaps by starting earlier and working harder than others.

According to this view, the proliferation of chess prodigies in recent years merely reflects the advent of computer-based training methods that let children study far more master games and to play far more frequently against master-strength programs than their forerunners could typically manage. Fischer made a sensation when he achieved the grandmaster title at age 15, in 1958; today's record-holder, Sergey Karjakin of Ukraine, earned it at 12 years, seven months.

As another commenter reminded me, Thomas Edison once said -

"genius is 99 percent perspiration and 1 percent inspiration"

Develop with passion!!

Monday, November 19, 2007 5:39:07 AM (Mountain Standard Time, UTC-07:00)
Interestingly enough there is a book by Josh Waitzkin, a chess grand master who obtained the title earlier than Bobby Fisher. His book , the Art of Learning, echoes the findings of the Scientific American article. It's good, quick read and fascinating as his learning process is similar to what we developers go through when acquiring new skills.
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