Build Your Table (At Work)

When new ideas invade popular culture, they tend to stick around for a long time. Even if they no longer make sense today.

10,000-Hour Rule

Take the 10,000-hour rule from Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers. The rule asserts that becoming world-class in any field requires 10,000 hours of deliberate practice.

Sounds good, right? Inspiring even.

But if you look a little deeper, you'll find that Malcolm's rule has been analyzed and critiqued numerous times since it was published in 2008. Ultimately, scientists found that, in reality, the 10,000-hour rule only tells part of the story of world-class mastery. 

Success with mastery only comes when practice meets talent and opportunity. And we all know how opportunities are doled out in the United States. 

Despite these critiques, people still refer to the rule like it's the gospel. They encourage anyone who will listen that all they need to do is put their head down, practice for 10,000 hours, and success is inevitable. 

Leaning Out

Another idea that h…