“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” – Ella Fitzgerald *** Persistence and Motivation An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 9, Persistence, Motivation, and More About Your Path “Keep practicing no matter what. It will take years, you know this, so you have to keep practicing. You have to keep practicing getting better every time you practice. This is a very hard thing to do. You will get tired, bored, and frustrated. It is hard to keep your focus while practicing. I heard a story about John…

“Passion is born when you catch a glimpse of your true potential.” – Anonymous *** Passion, Persistence, Motivation, and the Development of Expertise An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 1, Passion and Interest “What is your passion? What are you passionate about? Are you passionate about a sport, say basketball, or surfing? Tennis anyone? How about art, or music. Perhaps you’re zeroed in on an academic field such as biology, or economics. Maybe you have a passion for exploring, with an eye on the Himalayas. Don’t have a passion, then what are you interested in? Interest and achievement go hand in hand. It is easier…

“Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.” – Anonymous *** Passion, Persistence, Motivation, and the Development of Expertise An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 1, Passion and Interest “What is your passion? What are you passionate about? Are you passionate about a sport, say basketball, or surfing? Tennis anyone? How about art, or music. Perhaps you’re zeroed in on an academic field such as biology, or economics. Maybe you have a passion for exploring, with an eye on the Himalayas. Don’t have a passion, then what are you interested in? Interest and…

“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”  –  Alvin Toffler *** How you learn something… An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 8, Deliberate Practice and Learning Learning “When you are trying to learn something new or you are teaching someone something new, it can be a very daunting task. It is difficult because learning something new is not easy, but it can be made easier if you understand how learning works. Learning can be divided into four basic parts: concepts (definitions and examples), processes (how it works sequences), principles…

“Your goals are the road maps that guide you and show you what is possible for your life.” – Les Brown *** An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 6, A Goal and a Plan “You need to have a specific ultimate goal. Let’s say you want to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming in the 200-meter freestyle. You have a specific ultimate goal, which is a good start because you know your final destination. When I was in graduate school in biology at UCLA one of my classes was a graduate seminar consisting of three students and two professors (George “Bart” Bartholomew and Thomas…

“Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.” – Anton Chekhov *** About Practice, Persistence, and the Development of Expertise *** An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 8, Deliberate Practice and Learning “To become the best takes practice, lots and lots of practice. I have mentioned the 10,000-hour rule. It takes about 10,000 hours of practice to get really good at something and not just any type of practice, but deliberate practice. Deliberate practice is practicing to get better. The classic example is a man who has gone golfing almost every weekend for the past twenty years. He has a great interest…

“In a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer *** How you learn something… An excerpt from How To Become The Best at Anything, Chapter 8, Deliberate Practice and Learning Learning “When you are trying to learn something new or you are teaching someone something new, it can be a very daunting task. It is difficult because learning something new is not easy, but it can be made easier if you understand how learning works. Learning can be divided into four basic parts: concepts (definitions and examples),…