I recently surpassed the “10,000 hour rule” Malcolm Gladwell describes in his book, “Outliers.”  The video above is a brief description, in his words, about the rule and how it relates to becoming an expert.  

I’ve spent the last 5 years (2,000 hours per year x 5 years) leading membership development operations at three chambers of commerce.  Each assignment has been very different, despite the similar job function.  In those five years, I’ve managed over a dozen people, personally raised over $175,000 in new sales and had responsibility for millions in renewals.  Personally, my wife and I have had two children and I earned a MBA during those same five years.  Professionally, I now feel “comfortable,” as Gladwell references in the video.

In his book, Gladwell references theories and studies that support his rule in the field of expertise psychology.  However, his theory explained through his book doesn’t credit much of a person’s expertise after 10,000 hours of practice to mentors, specific experiences, further education and the life experiences you are bound to acquire in the 10,000 hours.  I feel all of these factors, in addition to my 10,000+ hours of practice, have gotten me to this point in my professional career.  (I’m planning future posts on mentors and my MBA experience)

Please leave a comment about your expertise journey.  Has the 10,000 hour rule held true for you?

I recently surpassed the “10,000 hour rule” Malcolm Gladwell describes in his book, “Outliers.”  The video above is a brief description, in his words, about the rule and how it relates to becoming an expert.  

I’ve spent the last 5 years (2,000 hours per year x 5 years) leading membership development operations at three chambers of commerce.  Each assignment has been very different, despite the similar job function.  In those five years, I’ve managed over a dozen people, personally raised over $175,000 in new sales and had responsibility for millions in renewals.  Personally, my wife and I have had two children and I earned a MBA during those same five years.  Professionally, I now feel “comfortable,” as Gladwell references in the video.

In his book, Gladwell references theories and studies that support his rule in the field of expertise psychology.  However, his theory explained through his book doesn’t credit much of a person’s expertise after 10,000 hours of practice to mentors, specific experiences, further education and the life experiences you are bound to acquire in the 10,000 hours.  I feel all of these factors, in addition to my 10,000+ hours of practice, have gotten me to this point in my professional career.  (I’m planning future posts on mentors and my MBA experience)

Please leave a comment about your expertise journey.  Has the 10,000 hour rule held true for you?