What makes people like Bill Gates, Wayne Gretzky, and Steve Jobs successful?
Is it inborn talent, a relentless work ethic, or something else?
I’ve always believed it was a little bit of everything (talent, hard work, luck).
In the book Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell, he goes in-depth into how successful people become successful, and it isn’t all about talent and work ethic, it’s also about timing.
What is the 10,000 Hour Rule?
The 10,000 hour rule simply refers to the fact that most people get really, really good at something after 10,000 hours.
That’s about 3 hours a day for 10 years.
Someone like Bill Gates had a passion for computers, but he also had the opportunity to put in 10,000 hours programming at a state of the art computer early in his teens.
Without that opportunity, he probably would not be who he is today. Those 10,000 hours allowed him to take advantage of another opportunity which was starting Microsoft when the time was right.
There are a lot of bricks that have to fall in place, but nothing happens if you do not practice.
Why Should You Care?
We all want success, and we want it now.
Have you ever wondered why some people seem to catapult themselves to success while others seem to linger in obscurity?
For example, younger generations tend to be much better with computers, which means they have an easier time learning how to make a living online.
This isn’t necessarily that they are smarter, they just have more hours logged in front of computers and playing with all those things that the older generations do not yet understand.
Does that mean that a construction worker should give up his dream of building a profitable website?
That depends on how much he or she wants to do this. If they’re just after the money, it might be best to find something else, because without that internal drive and burning passion, it will be hard to get through the humps.
The Difference Between You and Me
I have been playing with computers ever since I was 6-7 years old. I still remember the first computer we had in kindergarten.
You could play a game called ski or die on it, and some kind of math game. There was only one computer, so we had to fight for time on it.
When I was 13, I got my first personal computer, where I played games, fooled around with the software, and in general broke a lot of stuff by testing things out.
I created my first profitable website when I was 14, and I started playing poker at the age of 18. So as you can see, I’ve spent a lot of time in front of the computer and online.
And let’s not forget my English skills. I started watching English cartoons when I was 7 or 8, and I’ve since then watched thousands upon thousands of hours of TV and movies in English.
I’ve also played online games in English, and read hundreds of books in English.
This all comes together in my writing, which I have learned by writing thousands of articles and stories throughout my lifetime.
Are you starting to see how perfectly it all complements blogging and creating websites online?
How to Apply the 10,000 Hour Rule to Your Life
What excites me about the 10,000 hour rule, even if it isn’t 100% accurate is that it helps you set proper expectations.
If you’re just getting started online, and you’ve never touched a computer, you shouldn’t expect to be rocking it instantly.
Have patience with yourself, because even if you know what’s going on, it might take you a year or two to get the hang of things, at least that was the case for me.
I have a tendency to analyze successful websites and blogs. What I usually see in successful websites is someone who has been at it for at least 2-3 years, has been producing content consistently, and has been networking and letting people know that their website exists.
This takes time, but if you take one step each day, the results you can achieve are … incredible.
Photo by Mauro
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I learned a lot about this rule playing guitar.
I haven’t reached 10,000 hours of practice yet, (getting close! lol) but you can definitely see a “glow” or a special “rhythm” for a lack of better words, that the people have who’ve actually been playing long enough to reach 10,000 hours of practice.
Don’t let the number 10,000 scare you though, it’s only a generalization. It’s only suppose to symbolize that nothing comes easy. Everything that anyone has ever mastered has taken them a lot of hard work and determination, that nothing will stop them from achieving their goals.
Great article Henri 🙂
Exactly. It’s a great generalization that basically says “take it easy, keep working (and doing stuff you enjoy), and good stuff will happen” 😉
One important point is that it is not just 10,000 hours of exposure. It is 10,000 hours of deliberate and productive practice.
Surfing the web or playing video games, is not going to make anyone a world class web developer. You need to systematically learn and master new skills. Often coaching or training is a key component.
Three hours a day doesn’t sound like much, but three hours of deliberate practice is huge. I would say that it takes about 6 to 8 hours of allocated time to get 3 hours of deliberate practice. (Getting set up, breaks, distractions, travel time, fun practice, background research, etc. all take a lot of time.) I have been playing guitar for 25 plus years, but I estimate that I am only at about 2,000 to 3,000 hours of quality practice. I have many times that in fun, goofing around, but that type of playing doesn’t really help me improve that much.
A second point that I think is important, is that most people will never even come close to the 10,000 hours, and that is okay. I really enjoy playing guitar, but I don’t ever expect to become a 10,000 hour virtuoso. Sure I would love to be a world class rock star, but I have to be honest with myself and acknowledge that I am not willing to put in the time. If I played that much. It would stop being fun and I would lose my interest.
You learn enough to be good and earn a satisfactory living or even just keep it as a hobby without being world class.
Hey John,
Excellent, excellent points.
We don’t always have to become “the best” at something. The example with your guitar playing was great.
I actually did just that with my guitar playing. I was 16, and I put in so many practice hours that I finally got sick of it, and I haven’t regained my interest since then. Oops!
When it comes to something like writing, for me; I love it, and I will probably put in well in excess of 10,000 hours during my lifetime, but I am in no rush to get there.
It’s a great goal to aim for, but we all still live in the present, and we always will.
Hilarious guitar theme to the comments thus far–and I want to chime in and say that I’ve pushed beyond the 10,000-hour threshold with 16 years of guitar playing under my belt, and there is definitely a huge difference between actually doing the work and just messing around, having fun, etc. Practice is an entire artform unto itself–whether we’re talking about guitar or online business or anything genuinely challenging.
I reached a point about 4 and a half years ago where I decided I WAS going to go for the 10,000-hour mark (as a metaphor anyway), so I studied with two different teachers for a while and practiced my butt off, and then I simplified my life and moved back to Tennessee where I could practice 6 hours and up per day. I did that for three years, and now here I am across the 10,000-hour threshold, and all that intensity was worth it! (Though it also feels like I’m really only now actually getting started…)
With all of this guitar work behind me, you’d think I would have noticed the fact that online business requires a similar patience and timeline, but I’m really only getting that now thanks to the way you put two and two together in this article, Henri. Thanks for that.
Also, it’s easy to read Outliers and feel bad about yourself because you didn’t get started early enough or have the right conditions helping you along in your chosen endeavor. 10,000 hours is hard to wrap our heads around–3 hours a day for TEN YEARS?!?!?! The 10,000 hour idea is helpful if it leads you to bust ass with patience, but it can be really unhelpful if it starts feeling like an impossible weight. It isn’t helpful to compare myself to others, and it isn’t helpful to compare my current number of hours with 10,000. One day at a time, one step at a time, one moment at a time. Life is good.
Nice synchronicities happening here with all the guitar stuff!
For the longest time, I was constantly disheartened because I didn’t get started early enough, but to me the 10,000 hour rule just shows you that it’s vital to choose something you actually enjoy.
If you aren’t interested in what you are doing, then you will never put in the 10,000, so you have to find something that you really like, and even if you don’t know, start with something you like the best.
We all go through phases in our life, and it’s funny how they sometimes come together.
Keep the rock up, Matt (literally)!
Inspiring article, Henri. I really like that concept too, and I like how it sets my eyes on the right sort of time frame. Thanks a lot for the tip, and keep on rocking.
Andrew 🙂
You too, Andrew!
Exactly! Every hour we spend at our passion increases our chances of success.
I’ve read that book and found it fascinating–and true! I’ve worked with computers every available moment since I touched my first one in 8th grade (back in the 1980’s), which gave me a head start on my contemporaries. When they were playing with their Simons and their Rubix cubes, I was writing programs in BASIC–while they were mowing the lawn I was writing page after page of stories and journal entries. While they hung out with their buddies I was at home reading books, playing on the computer and writing.
Now most of them work in factories and restaurants with a few in professional fields. I earn my living entirely from home now–on a computer. I write about computers and can either build, maintain, upgrade or repair them as desired–and made a considerable amount doing that at home until it became boring.
In essence, what I did most as a kid ended up becoming the basis for a wonderful, pleasant income as an adult–but it would not have done so if I had not spent countless hours pursuing my passions.
I’m honestly not sure how many hours I’ve spent writing or working on computers. I’ve been writing copiously since 4th grade and have been known to spend days glued to a keyboard since I got my first computer in the 8th. I’ve even called in “sick” to work when I was forced to work a public job–just to work on computers, so I can estimate that it is a lot.
This is the one thing that people seem to forget when they desire success–it actually takes a lot of work to get there! Great post on an excellent book Henri!
It takes a ton of work, but the good news is that when you love the work, it seems to happen all by itself.
Sounds like you know quite a bit about computers. Awesome! Keep that sweet sound of keyboard keys continuous 😉
Henri, I loved Outliers. Gladwell may be one of the most insightful thinkers of our time. I loved his take on Bill Gates, Bill Joy, and the Beatles. It’s true, that much effort and practice will make you a pro at what you do. Thanks for sharing!
Yes sir! Thanks for reading 😉
Henri, I’ve been a big believer in the 10,000 hour rule. It’s so funny that when someone “suddenly” finds “overnight” success, it’s due to the fact that they put in years and years of practice and preparation before the “big lucky break” came!
Great article. Reminds me to keep writing, every day. One day I’ll get good at it!
It definitely helps me calm down (I’m usually very impatient) when I realize that success comes slowly, or fast, but only after a lot of work (i.e. overnight success after 10 years).
Read the book. Wasn’t too thrilled about it at first, but when I came to 10,000 hours, I had a breakthrough. I looked at activities and thngs I have been going consistently for a long time and got the connection, I realized why I was so good at those things.
The best part, though, is that it made me aware of the things I was best at which we usually aren’t. I was able to look at my strenghts through another set of ideas; it wasn’t about being analytical, communicative or emphatic and then figuring out what that means, it was seeing the result and then maybe figuring out what got us there if we needed to.
I would use this rule in business. One of “my things” turned out to be marathon inline skating. I’m not going to tell you how good I am, but let’s put it this way; if I were to skate with pros, I would feel like the fish in the sea. I never trained professionally and I only realized that when I measured my time for fun a couple of years ago. I’m sure all of us have something the have been doing for a very long time and that love beyond comprehesion which doesn’t even feel like something we need to do. It’s a part of who we are. So when you’re wondering what business to start, go for the one related to that, not some random idea you read on a blog somewhere.
Marathon inline skating? I’ve never heard of that. Interesting stuff!
I couldn’t agree with you more. If you can’t start a business on the topic you love, pick something that’s close.
Fantastic post Henri,
I think it is easy to put in, what we think is, ‘a lot of work’, but not see the results we expect. 10 000 hours puts it into a different perspective and allows us do a gut-check on how committed we are to our goals. It also shines a light on why it is so important to have passion for what we are working on, otherwise burn out is inevitable. Talent is Overated, is another fantastic book that puts this into perspective in an inspiring way.
Thanks again!
Thanks for the book tip!
It’s so easy to start anything nowadays that people just jump in, but they forget to do that gut check to see if they’re committed.
However, sometimes it’s fun to jump around 😉
Hello Henri,
I love Rodney Dangerfield’s comment on hard work and practice – “It took me 20 years to become an overnight success.”
Riley
Good quote!
Hi Henri, enjoyed the post and it made me think. In a world where a lot of us are used to instant gratification in many forms, to begin embracing an idea that worthwhile things, like having the option of working for yourself online, takes many years of hard work and passionate drive, can be daunting and sometimes discouraging. But if you begin to take a look at what you already have under your belt or things that you are already good at, you may be further along than you think.
I have been guilty in the past of just wanting it and wanting it now, but since I discovered my passion for blogging and internet entrepreneurship, I have found a strong and abiding willingness to buckle down, accept that it’s going to be a long, challenging, but fulfilling journey and focus on a long-term commitment to it.
I believe that one tell-tale sign that you are onto your passion, or part of it, is that willingness to dig in and fight the good fight! Thanks for your encouragement to keep on keeping on! If you love it, if you stick with it, you will be successful at it! Ciao
Sounds like you’re on the right track. Remember your own words in this comment when you feel like you can’t go on anymore. That’s where your passion and drive will pull you through.
Rock!
I totally agree with the 10,000 hours rule. It makes a lot of sense. It’s been said that an overnight success usually takes 10 years!
Outliers is a very interesting book by the way. Although you might not agree with every thing written there, you’ll find a lot of useful insights about the STORY OF SUCCESS.
I think a lot of people are missing the point of this book. Malcolm Gladwell was trying to debunk the idea of self made men. He tried to show in his examples that the people had a lot of luck along the way in order to get their 10,000 hours of practice and then they were in the right place at the right time to benefit from it.
I don’t agree. If you take the case of Bill Gates for instance, at every stage there were other people who had the same opportunties he did. He was the one who took them.
Yes, he was around just at the beginning of the home computing boom, but he saw that opportunity and dropped out of college to go and start his company. It is not having the opportunities but seizing them that makes the difference.
Rich
Yup. Couldn’t agree more with you there, Rich.
I don’t think Gladwell was trying to debunk the idea of self-made men. He was arguing that talent is not innate. It takes hard work AND luck to be world class. Gates had the good fortune of being born at the right time and having a mother that fought to give junior high school students mainframe computer access. It was this luck plus that fact that he spent all his free time in the lab that lead to his future success.
Gates was probably one of maybe 10 teenagers in the world who had that much access to a world class main frame computer at the time. Then it was Bill Gates’ work ethic that had him put in his 10,000 hours before he hit university.
There were only a handful of people in the world that had that much computer experience and certainly none at that age. That is precisely why a corporation like IBM was willing to license Basic from a young university dropout.