Talent

I read a book a lot of other people read a couple years ago, it was called Freakonomics. It was written by economists Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner. I really enjoyed it, it was a great read on how to look at things from a different perspective. Now, my esteemed colleague Ryan Whitenack has sent me a heads-up on the sequel to this book called Superfreakonomics, Why raw talent and genius are overrated". I happen to agree that talent is overrated and that by working hard and working smart, you can overcome any lack of talent to be successful in any field you choose. I am just not a good enough writer enough to create a whole book about it.

But, I loved the short article Whitenack sent me, so much so that I will certainly purchase this book. (Hopefully it comes out in paperback!) It seems similar to Malcolm Gladwell's most recent book, Outliers, and how it equates hard work and dedication with being successful, not necessarily being "born with it". Actually, all of Gladwell's books are excellent reading, if you ever gt a chance to pick one up, do it! There is another newer book out there, called Talent is Overrated, by Geoff Colvin. This looks like it deals with a similar subject, hard work trumping talent, and I would like to read that one as well.

What I am trying to get to is that by working hard every day, doing the little things right, and staying focused on a goal, you will find success much more often than by hoping for the big opportunity and for your natural talent to take over. It has been proven time and time again, as evidenced by the above books, and that is how we must think and act in order to be successful in our own endeavors. That is why we must work hard and work smart every day, so we can be successful when the opportunity comes.

And, while I am pimping products, go to www.giantmicrobes.com. Quite possibly the greatest baby toys for geeky science families like my own! We got Chloe "penicillin" and she loves it!

SEP