Peak WEEK1（Ch1-Ch2）

SUMMARY

Ericsson and his co-author Robert Pool are good storytellers and they pepper their ideas with several studies and examples from musicians to London cabbies. 

Ericcson provides compelling evidences showing the conventional view that genius cannot be cultivated is wrong.You are supposed to be an extraordinary man through deliberate practice.

Before he expand on the concept of deliberate practice, he bring the idea of purposeful practice. What is purposeful practice？It’s much more purposeful, thoughtful, and focused than naive practice，and in a nutshell has four characteristics: well-defined, specific goals, focus, feedback, getting out of one’s comfort zone.

What is behind the amazing sorts of improvement that are possible with the right sort of practice? The answer is the adaptability of the human body and brain. In the brain, the greater the challenge, the greater the changes. When the naive practice is doing the same thing time after time to reach one's capacity, deliberate practive is going to build one's potential. 

感悟

这本书事实上就是教普通人如何成为杰出人士的方法论。作者通过例举多项科研结果来证明天才并非完全是天生的，刻意练习完全可以使你在某个领域成为顶尖人物。

作者在前两章仍然没有具体说明何为刻意练习，但是详细解释了不完全体的刻意练习——有目的的练习，并提出了它的四大特点：1.明确的目标；2.专注力；3.及时有效的反馈；4.走出舒适区。缺一不可。大多数人原地踏步的原因不是到达了极限（尽管你十分努力），而是从未走出舒适区，人总是下意识地待在让自己舒服的环境里，逃避感到困难的事情，不是拖延症发作就是轻言放弃，嘴上还要抱怨两句“我已经很努力了，实在是能力有限啊”，说句鸡汤点的话，你根本不知道你能力的极限在哪里，你不过是到达了自己以为的极限而已。

“大多数人的努力程度之低还轮不到拼天赋”，这句话从生理角度来说也是正确的。作者在文中提出，后天的练习可以增加大脑神经元之间的连接，加快了大脑处理信息的速度，以及各种其他功能，使得人在某方面的能力得以提升。事实上，大脑的神经元无法再生，从出生起我们的神经元就在减少，但是通过增加神经元之间的连接突起，增加脑灰质和脑白质，我们的大脑还有很多的发展空间，这大概就是所谓的天赋，而人类才开发出大脑的百分之多少呢？总之绝对没有百分百。脑科学家都不知道人类大脑的极限到底如何。

所以，我认为人还是有“天赋”的差别，但不是“大脑的天赋”，而是“开发大脑的天赋”。作者目前都没有提到的是，即便人们可以通过他说的方法，比如其中之一的专注力，来突破舒适区得到提升，但是每个人的专注能力是不一样的，比如多动症儿童，他们的注意力就是比正常小孩要差些。而小孩子的高度可塑性使得他们比成人拥有更高的“开发大脑的天赋”。尽管大脑可以改造，但是你不得不承认各方面因素限制了你改造的能力。

当然，本文还是给读者在自我提升方面提供了正面能量。尽管我“吹毛求疵”了一大段，但大多数人的努力程度之低还轮不到拼“天赋”。认真贯彻作者书中所说的方法，我相信大家总会有进步的。期待后续对deliberate practice的详细说明。

word and expression

note

to mention sth because it is important or interesting

• 指出；特别提到:▪ [V that]

»It is worth noting that the most successful companies had the lowest prices.

vigorous

very active, determined or full of energy

»Take vigorous exercise for several hours a week.

每周做几个小时剧烈运动。

strenuous

adj. needing great effort and energy

»Avoid strenuous exercise immediately after a meal.

刚吃完饭避免剧烈运动。

vigorous和strenuous都可以用来形容剧烈运动。

catch

[C, usually sing.] a hidden difficulty or disadvantage

• 隐藏的困难；暗藏的不利因素:

»All that money for two hours' work—what's the catch?

干了两小时的活就给那么多钱——这里面有什么鬼？

ramp something up (或 ramp up)

- (especially in reference to the production of goods) increase or cause to increase in amount

（尤指商品生产）（使）扩大生产

up (或 raise) the ante

- increase what is at stake or under discussion, especially in a conflict or dispute

（尤指冲突或争议中）加大赌注，冒更大风险

» he decided to up the ante in the trade war.

他决定在贸易战中提高要价。

» So to keep the changes happening, you have to keep upping the ante: run farther, run faster, run uphill.

albeit

conj.• (formal)although 尽管；虽然:

»He finally agreed, albeit reluctantly, to help us.

可以用来代替although。

gloss over sth

• to avoid talking about sth unpleasant or embarrassing by not dealing with it in detail

• 掩饰；掩盖；把…搪塞过去:

»to gloss over a problem 表面上应付问题

原文：we need to address an issue that we have glossed over in this chapter.