Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise

Instead, what distinguished the most successful spellers was their superior ability to remain committed to studying despite the boredom and the pull of other, more appealing activities.

More generally, look for anything that might interfere with your training and find ways to minimize its influence.

The key change that occurs in our adaptable brains in response to deliberate practice is the development of better mental representations, which in turn open up new possibilities for improved performance.

deliberate practice can revolutionize our thinking about human potential.

the importance of engaging in purposeful practice instead of mindless repetition without any clear plan for getting better.

Pianists who win international piano competitions tend to do so when they’re around thirty years old, and thus they’ve probably put in about twenty thousand to twenty-five thousand hours of practice by then; ten thousand hours is only halfway down that path.

Another key motivational factor in deliberate practice is a belief that you can succeed.

What factors shape motivation?

deliberate practice. It is the gold standard, the ideal to which anyone learning a skill should aspire.