We recently had a little water fountain chat in the office about what it takes to be an expert. Someone brought up that Malcolm Gladwell in “Outliers” makes the case that it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert in anything. I haven’t read the book, but I have respect for Gladwell and his 10,000 hours comment passes the “feels right” test with me.
When we talk about experts, I think there are very few on the planet collectively. Naturally, that means there are few experts in any given topic. I think some areas have more experts than others, given the economics of the topic, but generally most “experts” aren’t real experts. Their practitioners passing themselves off as experts through opinion, a PR campaign, etc.
I love guitar and guitar players. I live in a state that is home to a number of guitar companies and my dog is named after one of them (Gibson). I’ve learned the basics of guitar, and I enjoy picking around… but I’m not even good enough to qualify as an amateur. My brother, on the other hand, plays the guitar, piano, drums, etc. He is no expert, but he has the natural talent and skill to become one if he wanted and had the discipline. That is the difference between us in the guitar playing arena… I have passion, but he has passion + skill.
To take it one more step, Stevie Ray Vaughn is a phenom on guitar. Arguably, he is one of the best ever. Before he passed away, I think we can claim that he had become an expert at guitar. How did he get there? When you watch him play, you know he loved it… so there is the passion. He does things that are amazing, both technical and innovative playing… so there is the skill. And I once heard a story about how he played so much that they had to super glue the calluses back on the tips of his fingers… so there is the commitment. Want more proof of commitment, just look at his guitar (Lenny)…
Passion + Skill + Commitment = Expertise
The question I want answered– will I ever be as good at something at SRV was at playing the guitar? Watch the video below… He was really amazing.
