Unlike naive practice, it requires clear expectations and total focus. It involves getting outside one’s comfort zone to learn a new skill in a focused way, with clear goals, a plan for achieving those goals, and a way to monitor progress over time. Purposeful practice is focused on the achievement of specific, well-defined goals. In some cases, depending on the pursuit, their skills may even decline slightly over time. As a result, they see little to no further improvement despite continuing to play the game for years. They no longer focus on developing specific skills and instead settle into a comfortable routine. However, it’s at this point that most people hit a plateau. That’s the level at which they feel comfortable playing with their peers. From there, they may aim to shore up a few weaknesses to reach an acceptable level of performance. When first setting out to learn a new skill, such as playing basketball, people often focus on the basics, like dribbling, shooting, and passing. Naive practice is built on the misguided belief that time-spent leads to mastery. So, let’s quickly explore the basics of all three approaches. Furthermore, they clarify how the approach of world-class performers differs from that of mere hobbyists. In doing so, they dismantled the idea that all forms of practice automatically lead to skill advancement. In Peak (2016), Anders Ericcson and co-author Robert Pool explain three common approaches for engaging in practice.

Unfortunately, not all forms of practice are equally effective for developing a skill. Instead, many of the examples covered in Outliers gave the impression that any time spent engaging in the goal activity would lead to further improvement, which contradicts Ericcson’s research. Put differently, Gladwell failed to address the unique approach that the students in the study used to upgrade their skills. He goes on to explain, “Gladwell didn’t distinguish between the deliberate practice that the musicians in our study did and any sort of activity that might be labeled ‘practice.’”

“There is nothing special or magical about ten thousand hours,” according to Anders Ericsson, the Swedish psychologist responsible for the research on which the 10,000-hour rule was based. In it, Gladwell suggests that the key to becoming world-class at something, such as playing chess or performing with a musical instrument, is to spend 10,000 hours engaging in the activity. The 10,000-hour rule was made famous by author Malcolm Gladwell in his best-selling book Outliers (2008).

The green glass sea by ellen klages