For example most professionals spend their 20s and early 30s mastering the technical aspects of their profession, and the next decade mastering management and business skills so that by the mid to late 40s they are at the height of their powers. This ties in to the power of ritual in performance, which is another fascinating subject and full of bizarre anecdotes. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average.

These people are lucky to some extent; the early availability of a superior coach, or a good environment, or an encouraging set of parents or teachers. Looking at controversial questions such as whether talent is more important than practice, drugs in sport (and life) and whether black people really are faster runners, the mind-bending Bounce is a must-read for the hardened sports nut or brand new convert. A paper lead-authored by Joyce Ehrlinger of Washington State University shows that students in a growth mindset have a more clear-eyed view of their ability, and are more able to incorporate failures into their thinking about their true abilities. How easy to assume that their success emerged from their superior genes when the final product looks so flawless and assured! I have just touched the surface of the numerous aspects of sports psychology and training that are discussed in this book.Over time, through constant repetition and deep concentration, the gap will disappear, only for a new target to be created, just out of reach once again. Compelling and, at times, exhilarating – Bounce explains high achievement in sport, business and beyond. I have to say that Bounce was a bit like taking a refresher course, having already read Geoff Covlin's Talent Is Overrated, Daniel Coyle's The Talent Code, and Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, all three of which Syed acknowledges as worthy predecessors.

Syed's writing style, a blend of engaging storytelling and thought-provoking analysis, held my attention from start to finish. Kenyan and Ethiopian runners come almost exclusively from 2 small areas that are insanely high altitude and where the kids have to run to school every day. By sharing stories and data on and how success really happens, and the challenges people faced on route to the summit, people develop a more authentic empirical conception of how to unlock their potential. He has written six bestselling books on the subject of mindset and high performance – Rebel Ideas, Bounce, Black Box Thinking, The Greatest, and his celebrated children’s books, You Are Awesome and The You Are Awesome Journal – and has worked with many leading organisations to build a mindset of continuous improvement. To become a world-class achiever in any field, it is not only the sheer number of hours of practice that is important; it is also the type of practice.Matthew Syed's words are a beacon of hope, guiding us towards a future where greatness is within our reach. This is why Dweck and other academics have been systematic in how they have studied the interaction of language and mindset. He also talks about myths and self-fulfilling prophecies around race and athletics that was extremely informative and also got me thinking about the issue in a new light. To put it another way, eureka moments are not lightning bolts from the blue, but tidal waves that erupt following deep immersion in an area of expertise”. He combines his own experience in his climb to champion status with the experiences of other champion sportsmen and celebrities, to come to some very interesting conclusions about what allows someone to excel to the top in a field.

Similar results have been found in multiple domains, including business (Sydney Finkelstein) and education (Dweck). Coupled with an examination of the growth mindset and the impact of self-belief (and it's not what you might think), Bounce had me fascinated from beginning to end.It has changed the way I think about encouraging my children and work teammates – praising their efforts and hard work rather than their innate "skill". The tales of athletes, musicians, and individuals from various fields who've risen through determination resonated deeply.

Wishbow of Carnegie Mellon University, more than 80 per cent needed ten years or more of sustained preparation before they started writing their most creative pieces”. The 2010 US Census lists as separate races: Samoan, Guamanian, Chamorro, Pakistani, Fijian, Cambodian, Hmong, Thai, Laotian, Tongan, etc! Though the book is divided into three sections namely The Talent Myth, Paradoxes of the Mind and Deep Reflections, I felt the book had a singular theme and that was the capacity of any human being to become the best of best if he was able to dedicate the time, effort, money and yes – his own life to one single cause with absolute excellence and commitment. In the 1980s and 90s, it was astonishing how often people would assert a genetic superiority when seeing one boy hitting a ball better than another, or one girl performing better at mathematics.The difference in standard at this level is so miniscule that it is almost impossible to perceive unless you are keeping score. Bounce is a fantastic read, taking Gladwell's 10,000 hours and unpicking it to reveal exactly what the book's subtitle promises - the power of practice. I guarantee that if you finish this book, and if you haven't come across any of these arguments or opinions before, then you will be looking at the world, and possibly yourself, in a different way from here on in.