Some people believe that we have the ability to forge our own successful destinies, while others believe that a successful destiny is predetermined by our natural abilities. Who is right? Two authors, David Epstein and Malcolm Gladwell, take two different positions on this subject. The author of The Sports Gene, David Epstein, concludes that innate physical ability is an advantage over athletic practice. Malcolm Gladwell, the author of Outliers: The Story of Success, argues that preparation is more important than innate talent. With strong evidence and logical reasoning, Gladwell builds a more convincing argument to support the claim that humans forge their own successful destinies through hard work and practice than Epstein does to support
…show more content…
Epstein then transports readers to the 2007 World Championship, where the “cool” and casual Thomas competed against the disciplined and “laser-focused” reigning Olympic champion of the high jump, Stefan Holm. Epstein relates the dramatic events of the competition, at the end of which Thomas “was crowned the 2007 world champion” and came close to breaking the world record for the high jump. Epstein describes studies conducted on Thomas at the Neuromuscular Research Center at the University of Jyvåskylå in Finland, in which scientist Masaki Ishikawa noted that Thomas “was gifted with a giant’s Achilles tendon.” He then quotes exercise physiologist Gary Hunter as stating, “The Achilles tendon is very important in jumping.” Epstein concludes that Thomas’s Achilles tendon gives him an advantage over Holm, even though Holm had much more practice. “The tendons are one puzzle piece that helps explain …show more content…
In Outliers: The Story of Success, Gladwell describes the results of a research study conducted by psychologist K. Anders Ericsson and two colleagues in an attempt to measure innate talent and its relationship to overall success. In one portion of the study, he explains, violinists at the elite Academy of Music in Berlin were divided into three groups and asked to report the number of hours they had practiced violin since their first childhood encounters with the instrument. As Gladwell notes, “. ..by the age of twenty, the elite performers had each totaled ten thousand hours of practice. By contrast, the merely good students had totaled eight thousand hours, and the future music teachers had totaled just over four thousand hours.” Gladwell determines, “Their research suggests that once a musician has enough ability to get into a top music school, the thing that distinguishes one performer from another is how hard he or she works. That’s it. And what’s more, the people at the very top don’t work just harder or even much harder than everyone else. They work much, much harder.” To further support his claim, Gladwell then quotes neurologist Daniel Levitin, who states, “The emerging picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert—in
Epstein then transports readers to the 2007 World Championship, where the “cool” and casual Thomas competed against the disciplined and “laser-focused” reigning Olympic champion of the high jump, Stefan Holm. Epstein relates the dramatic events of the competition, at the end of which Thomas “was crowned the 2007 world champion” and came close to breaking the world record for the high jump. Epstein describes studies conducted on Thomas at the Neuromuscular Research Center at the University of Jyvåskylå in Finland, in which scientist Masaki Ishikawa noted that Thomas “was gifted with a giant’s Achilles tendon.” He then quotes exercise physiologist Gary Hunter as stating, “The Achilles tendon is very important in jumping.” Epstein concludes that Thomas’s Achilles tendon gives him an advantage over Holm, even though Holm had much more practice. “The tendons are one puzzle piece that helps explain …show more content…
In Outliers: The Story of Success, Gladwell describes the results of a research study conducted by psychologist K. Anders Ericsson and two colleagues in an attempt to measure innate talent and its relationship to overall success. In one portion of the study, he explains, violinists at the elite Academy of Music in Berlin were divided into three groups and asked to report the number of hours they had practiced violin since their first childhood encounters with the instrument. As Gladwell notes, “. ..by the age of twenty, the elite performers had each totaled ten thousand hours of practice. By contrast, the merely good students had totaled eight thousand hours, and the future music teachers had totaled just over four thousand hours.” Gladwell determines, “Their research suggests that once a musician has enough ability to get into a top music school, the thing that distinguishes one performer from another is how hard he or she works. That’s it. And what’s more, the people at the very top don’t work just harder or even much harder than everyone else. They work much, much harder.” To further support his claim, Gladwell then quotes neurologist Daniel Levitin, who states, “The emerging picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert—in