"Talent is overrated" - Geoff Colvin 10,000 hours practice

[SammyLee]

Colvin also did a study of super star hockey players birthdays. 70 + percent were born in such a month that had them start school 4 to 9 months earlier than other students.  Not a big deal at 20 but when you're 12 years old and teams are selected, it seems to be. You're older and bigger.  Those selected and did well, were afforded coaching opportunities others did not have.  By the time they were 20, they had been on superior teams for a decade.  Sometimes it's not talent so much as random chance.

Be lucky.  Be in the right place at the right time.  Spend 10,000 hours doing what you seem to do well anyway and your chances of success approaches 100%.

I've been fishing since I was a toddler but never really hard core.  Now that I have discovered bass, the 10k hours doesn't seem overwhelming.  As soon as I got home, I changed clothes and hit the lake.  I did not catch anything but learned just the same. (lessons on unsnagging a worm)  And maybe were and when not to fish or when to move.  Plus of course, a couple hundred casts.  (gotta change the reel settings when changing lures!)  Two hours of practice, not one minute repeated 120 times.

I was born with average intelligence and physical abilities.  If my determination continues, I'll become a successful "expert" bass fisherman.  No doubt in my mind.

[Blue Streak]

Good luck with your approach. I am sure you will either become a real expert, or another of the many self proclaimed experts.

[Mattlures]

I dont think there is such a thing as "talent" in bass fishing. Ok maybe a tiny bit but 99% is knowledge. This is not football where the biggest,fastest, strongest guys have a huge advantage. This is a sport that anybody who is phyiscaly able can become a pro. It is all about time on the water and how well you interpret what is going on around you. In many field the 10000 and 5000 hours are great examples. It also works in fishing, however the more intelegent an angler is the faster he learns. So maybe a guy with below average IQ might take 20000hrs to learn what a genious can learn in 2000hrs. it all depends on how fast you learn and how you "practice" I used to play pool at a high level. just hitting balls in and playing is a very bad way to practice. sure you will get better but at a very slow rate. Use the same amount of practice time and shoot drills and and work on your weaknesses in a cunstucted practice session and you impore 10x faster.

[Dan:]

I dont think there is such a thing as "talent" in bass fishing. Ok maybe a tiny bit but 99% is knowledge. This is not football where the biggest,fastest, strongest guys have a huge advantage. This is a sport that anybody who is phyiscaly able can become a pro. It is all about time on the water and how well you interpret what is going on around you. In many field the 10000 and 5000 hours are great examples. It also works in fishing, however the more intelegent an angler is the faster he learns. So maybe a guy with below average IQ might take 20000hrs to learn what a genious can learn in 2000hrs. it all depends on how fast you learn and how you "practice" I used to play pool at a high level. just hitting balls in and playing is a very bad way to practice. sure you will get better but at a very slow rate. Use the same amount of practice time and shoot drills and and work on your weaknesses in a cunstucted practice session and you impore 10x faster.

That's exactly what I was trying to say except I don't necessarily think it's necessarily a high "IQ" as much as other types of smarts...I hope that makes sense.

[Dan:]

Aaron, as a young boy, had autistic type behavior, stuttered speech, hyperactive, unorganized, extremely shy and color blind. Like Tiger Woods who could hit a golf ball at age 3, Aaron could cast and new where the fish should be, instinctively.

Aaron to his credit has overcome a lot of his handicaps, he still can look at water and know where bass should be and what to use. If you ask Aaron why he choose whatever lure, he tell you honestly he just knew.

WRB

And autistic children also have characteristics that make them better than "typical" children at some things. Autism often includes the ability to identify patterns, great memory, and the ability to think "outside the box." The way their brains work can give them characteristics that separate them from other people. Maybe he can't articulate why he chooses certain lures or spots, but that doesn't necessarily mean his brain hasn't processed the information in a certain way to give him those answers whether he is actually autistic or not.

[kms399]

I have around 23 years of fishing experience, but I have only 6 of solid, hard core, focused bass fishing experience. I am the best bass fisherman I know and that is the problem. in my very small group of friends (I am pretty antisocial) I am the only one who is constantly trying to improve my self. so I feel I have reached a plateau in my learning. I recently fished with a tournament guy I work with and I felt like an idiot. I caught 1 to his 4 and his were all bigger. I learned a ton from that 1 trip but there it stops again. so if you have people you can learn from it will take you less time to learn vs doing it all alone.

[tnbassfisher]

I think the old saying "perfect practice, makes perfect", instead of "practice makes perfect."

[Fishing Rhino]

"Talent" is more than an innate physical ability.  It also includes mental attributes.

Don't know if they still have them in school, but back in the day, we took "aptitude tests", which guidance counsellors used to help us make career choices. It could be further education in college, vocational education, and what we were best suited to pursue.  It could be engineering, teaching, nursing, etc, etc, etc.

It may be semantics, but I equate "aptitude" to talent, though aptitude is often equated with mental potential.

It has to do with our ability to assimilate, comprehend, and process data on a given topic.  

Some kids assiduously apply themselves in school, yet struggle to get passing grades in some or all topics, while other breeze through.

Contrary to the noble concept, all men, and women, are not created equal.

[cart7t]

You either have a knack for something or you don't.

Even among the "knackers" :-? there are those special few that operate on a higher plain than others without the extra effort that others would have to expend to reach that level. Those are the truely gifted, it's something you're born with and not something that can be learned.

Tiger Woods, Mario Andretti, KVD, Michael Jordan, Albert Pujols are just a few of those gifted. They are also an exception. Many are just below their abilities and can only reach that performance level through hard work.

[Paul Roberts]

Sammy, my Brother-in-law recently told me about Colvin's books. Very interesting, and probably very much on the mark.

Not having read them yet I can't offer much the discussion here. Intelligence likely plays a role, but Colvin's point is that most of us are pretty close in that department. Drive plays a huge role, and accounts for the necessary hours. Would be interesting to actually tally up hours like you did.

[shootermcbob]

To Quote Lance Armstrong as he was winning his 7 consecutive tour de france bike races....They ( mostly the French) want to know what I am "on". I'll tell you what I am on....I disagree is on my bike...working harder and longer than anyone else to be the best.

I think most anyone can do what they want, they lack the drive and in this sport, maybe the time and money. Commitment, dedication, desire are words thrown around easily because less than 1% of our society live by these words. Does anyone really think Tiger Woods was "born" to play golf? He has worked his *** off for many, many years to be the best. Let me tell you, he just missed the cut on the British Open and I can promise you he is out practicing, trying to get better as we speak. Practicing with a purpose, not just hitting golf balls. That is the difference. The drive to be the best...to do what needs to be done, not what you want to do.

[Rhody]

funny that this is posted, me and my fishing buddy talk about this all the time. he feels strongly pro author point of view and i qm more of a naturally gifted and "god" given talent kind of person, makes for a good debate

[Catt]

In Tiger Woods 13 year career he has 121 wins; As of July 12, 2009, Tiger Woods is the No. 1 ranked golfer, and has spent the most consecutive weeks (264) and most total weeks (556) in that position.

Y'all really believe you accomplish those stats by simply practicing? :

[Busy]

I think this 10k hour mark is more correlative than causal.

Give me ten-thousand hours scuplting clay and I still won't be the best sculpter.  I'm not an artist.  Period.

Passion lays close to talent.  You find something you are passionate about, you should find talent there within you.  Unless you're passionate about a woman.  Then you're screwed and no amount of practice can help you.

[WRB]

If you have the desire to bass fish for thousands of hours, then you have the desire to learn how to bass fish and become a better fisherman. Like Little league or soccer, starting to fish as a youngster helps tremendously to develop skills. However if the child doesn't have good and to eye coordination and the determination to learn, he or she may never become a top player or fishermen because they become disinterested and stop fishing or playing.

KVD is a good example of early learning, desire to be a top fishermen and the physical and mental skills to make it happen. KVD falls into the more he practices the better he gets group. Aaron Martens started off at a much higher level of fishing talent then KVD and hasn't gained a lot of new fishing skills. Aaron has developed life skills and self confidence from thousands of hours of practice and interacting with others, where KVD was born with that talent.

Would 10,000 hours of fishing practice make everyone a good bass fisherman? NO! Some have it and some never will.

WRB

[shootermcbob]

Not saying that it is practice alone. I believe most people have talent, much more than they realize. But , unfortunately for most of us, we just don't work hard enough to put the talent that we have to use. I think that Tiger Woods biggest advantage is not physical, it is mental. Where does that come from??? One could say it is a gift. One could also say it comes from thousands of hours of practicing correctly, practicing to improve weaknesses, practicing to the point where he has total confidence that he is going to nail the next shot because he has practiced it thousands of times.

[Catt]

To the average Joe all you has to do is spend thousands of hours of practicing correctly, practicing to improve weaknesses, practicing to the point where he has total confidence that he is going to nail the next shot because he has practiced it thousands of times.

Do this and we (they) guarantee you will denominate like Tiger, Jordan, or KVD

The mental aspect is a big part of talent, so big it can carry some physical inadequacies; physical talent can not carry mental inadequacies.