In Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers, the author repeatedly mentions very successful people, from business, art, sports and music. All had two things in common: right place/right time and a tremendous amount of time spent honing their skills.
Bill Joy and Bill Gates both talk about spending thousands of hours working on computers; The Beatles, when they first started, would play 8 hours per day, 7 days per week for 6 weeks playing at a swank bar. Bill Joy relates his success to spending about 8 hours a day for about 6 years hacking away on a computer. None of these people started out as experts, but they dedicated themselves, with no guarantee of success.
If you want to be successful and a master at your chosen profession or sport, you must truly dedicate yourself to success. There is no guarantee, but never leave it to chance.
Don’t think your child can’t be a professional athlete, think “What can I do to guarantee success?” With the ever increasing cost of education, an athletic scholarship is a viable option. What do you have to lose? Even if you don’t achieve your ultimate goal, you will find success. Train hard and often.
By Krista Kurvits