Jasmine's Place Issue No. 8 - November/December 2013 | Page 36

Obviously it takes time to get to that level where you known. A lot of us give up even before we begin. The initial stage, which could be termed as the “silent years”, would involve you doing some research, developing, learning and reinventing your gift. A good friend was telling me the other day that she has been reading and researching a lot and not doing much in the area of her gift. She felt she was wasting time. I encouraged her and told her she was not wasting time. She is simply in the process of developing and building herself! Have you ever heard of the 10, 000 hour rule? Malcolm Gladwell mentioned this rule in his book Outliers: The Story of Success. The rule says: that in order for an individual to master any complex skill, be it brain surgery or playing the cello, he/she must put in 10,000 hours of focused practice. For instance, it would take 10 years of practicing 3 hours a day to become a master in your subject. It would take approximately 5 years of full-time employment to become proficient in your field. So this shows that anyone you see today who is successful, didn’t suddenly get there. It took time of practice and persistence. The more hours you put in working on your gift. every day, the better you will be at it. Like they say "practice makes perfect". The rule says: that in order for an individual to master any complex skill, be it brain surgery or playing the cello, he/she must put in 10,000 hours of focused practice. For instance, it would take 10 years of practicing 3 hours a day to become a master in your subject. It would take approximately 5 years of full-time employment to become proficient in your field. JASMINE'S PLACE 36