The rule of 10,000

At dinner last night one of my friends introduced the concept of the 10,000 hour rule. Basically the idea is that it takes 10,000 hours to master any particular skill. The examples given were Paula Radcliffe and Bill Gates. Obviously very different in their disciplines, but studies have shown that they each had to apply 10,000 hours before achieving the kind of success they're known for today.

Astonishing.

I had a little think this morning about the number of hours that I've been alive for. I have to admit, it was quite a humbling experience to realise that I've only been alive a paltry 262,800 hours (give or take an hour or two). Surely it must be in the millions by now! But what this does mean is that to be a master of any skill, I would have to have spent 4% of my life doing it. And sadly I think the only thing that comes close is sleep. I am a master of sleep! Bring on the sleep olympics.

So what am I trying to say? Well, firstly I like the idea of the 10,000 hour rule. I like the idea that through dogged hard work alone, you have a real chance of achieving great things.

Secondly, I hate this rule. Why on earth didn't I know about it sooner? It's going to take a hideous amount of time and effort, well, approximately a whole whopping 10,000 hours of it, if I'm even going to get close to being an olympic athlete. I'm just not convinced such levels of application are right for me. It's just a nagging thought.

The moral of this rule (if there can be such a thing), for us plebs who like to have a bit of work-life balance, is that hard work does get you somewhere. It can't get you everything, because luck, natural ability and 'sod' will get in the way at some point, but it's always worth a go. You never know where you might end up.

Enjoy your Friday everyone.