Review Coyle, Daniel. The Talent Code. Greatness I

Aleksandra Makarenko
Denise Comer
English Composition Class I
26 March 2013


Chapter I "The Sweet Spot". New York: Bantam, 2009. 11-29

   The word ‘talent’ is more or less shaped for all of us. Mostly we think about it as a gift in certain field of expertise. But there is another opinion, that talent is  “… a slightly different way, experiences where you’re forced to slow down, make errors, and correct them . . . end up making you swift and graceful without your realizing it.”(18) This is the main topic of Daniel Coyle’s “The Sweet Spot” from “The Talent Code”.
   In this chapter, based on his research, conducted in different places of the world and with different people, Daniel Coyle shares with us an idea, that the talent can be developed. “The people inside the talent hotbeds are engaged in an activity that seems, on the face of it, strange and surprising. They are seeking out the slippery hills.”(14) He shares several examples of his observations and gives us possibility to follow his research towards the main conclusion, that talent can be developed.
   On the one hand, believing in the “concept of deep practice” (16) has a rational root in it. Everyone knows the proverb “Practice makes perfect”. So, I think the same rule works here. The only difference is that “… you can capture failure and turn it into skill.”(19). Author is concentrating on mastering abilities by inventing or changing approach after analyzing reasons of a failure.
But “How does screwing up make one better at something?” (14). It is easy, and to illustrate the main concept, the reader can take part in an experiment on the page 16 where you need to memorize words from two columns. Column A is fully written; in column B you have gaps in words. And you are offered to recall as many words as you could after reading them trough. I must confess the majority of words I remembered were from the column B. So, exactly as Coyle claims, I “experienced a microsecond of struggle”(17) reading words from B column and, as a result, it made me  pay more attention to it and recall more words at the end.
  On the other hand, as reasonable readers, we cannot fully rely on the data within the chapter. To the contrary, natural criticism cannot make me believe that everyone will be a success. I assume that by repetition you are improving your skills, Coyle is right, it goes without saying. But at the same time to master your own way that is where you need to be creative, thus talented.   
  In summary, Daniel Coyle is very much excited to inspire us with examples of the “deep practice”. His language is easy to percept and to think over. Moreover, his idea is familiar to all of us and relevant to many life situations. Mr. Coyle shows a wise approach to the question “How do you get good at something when making a mistake has a decent chance of killing you?” (20) The author says “… idea of deep practice makes perfect sense in training for dangerous jobs like those of fighter pilots and astronauts.”(24) Additionally, Mr. Coyle gives us an example of a success on pages 28-29, sharing the story of Simon Clifford, who trained a team of soccer players according to the Brazilian futsal practices and was a success.
   In a conclusion, I would recommend this book for reading. The idea to work with different parameters of your failures and mistakes, vary them differently in order to achieve better results appeals to me greatly. And, I am sure, The Talent Code it is able to provide you with some food for meditation, if not to show you the way.

Word Count: 627

References:
Coyle, Daniel. The Talent Code. Greatness Isn’t Born. It’s Grown. Here’s How. Chapter I "The Sweet    Spot". New York: Bantam, 2009. 11-29