Summary

574 Words3 Pages
Summary of “What it Takes to be Great” What does it take to be great? Well in the article “What it Takes to be Great” written by Geoffrey Colvin, senior editor-at-large on October 19 2006 3:14pm, Colvin expresses his philosophy, that greatness is available to everyone as long as they devote many hours of deliberate practice, and are very dedicated their field. Other than explaining what it is that makes people great, Colvin also describes why it is that natural talent is irrelevant to people being great, and states that his reasoning can be accounted for with much research. The central focus of the article is the research done to find out what makes certain people so great in particular fields. Considering the research that was conducted, as well as Colvin’s own observations, he has come to the conclusion that greatness is available to everyone. He states that “Scientific experts are producing remarkably consistent findings across a wide array of fields” which is what leads him to believe that the research being done is accurate, proving his philosophy to be true. He also makes examples of people who are very elite in their field of expertise, such as Warren Buffet, the world’s premier investor, and explains that the reason for his success may be better associated with the hours he spends studying financial statements of potential investment targets, rather than a natural ability to succeed as a CEO, despite the fact that Buffet strongly believes that his success is due to an ability that he was simply born with. In the article Colvin also states that a critical factor in becoming great in nearly any field would be deliberate practice. But what is deliberate practice? It is an activity that is explicitly intended to improve performance, and according to Colvin it may also be the difference between never progressing in a certain field, and becoming great at it.
Open Document