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mike · 5028 days ago · link · · parent · post: Can 10,000 hours of practice make a PGA-grade golfer?
I have little physical talent. I have good fine motor skills but my gross motor skills are below-average. I am uncoordinated and inflexible. If you know me, you wouldn't believe it, as I was a professional juggler for years and performed with three different circuses for various lengths of times. But, it took me longer than anyone I know to learn to juggle, and for the first couple of years there was much more struggling than juggling. I've never tried to calculate the hours I put into learning, but I bet it was close to 2000 hours the first year. I was obsessed, and that was key.
I think it's a great experiment Dan's doing, and if he can remain obsessed I think he'll do it. Being public about it is a good motivator, but that has its risks. (By the way, did I mention I'm teaching myself to sing right now? If you know me, you wouldn't believe I would even bother trying, but let's talk about 10000 hours...) What would you like to be an expert in? Six years is not such a big deal. As Dan writes, "Time has a way of getting away from us." Yes it does.