Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else

· Sold by Penguin
4.1
30 reviews
Ebook
240
Pages
Eligible

About this ebook

Expanding on a landmark cover story in Fortune, a top journalist debunks the myths of exceptional performance.

One of the most popular Fortune articles in many years was a cover story called What It Takes to Be Great. Geoff Colvin offered new evidence that top performers in any field--from Tiger Woods and Winston Churchill to Warren Buffett and Jack Welch--are not determined by their inborn talents. Greatness doesn't come from DNA but from practice and perseverance honed over decades.

And not just plain old hard work, like your grandmother might have advocated, but a very specific kind of work. The key is how you practice, how you analyze the results of your progress and learn from your mistakes, that enables you to achieve greatness.

Now Colvin has expanded his article with much more scientific background and real-world examples. He shows that the skills of business, negotiating deals, evaluating financial statements, and all the rest obey the principles that lead to greatness, so that anyone can get better at them with the right kind of effort. Even the hardest decisions and interactions can be systematically improved.

This new mind-set, combined with Colvin's practical advice, will change the way you think about your job and career and will inspire you to achieve more in all you do.

Ratings and reviews

4.1
30 reviews
EnergyPoint Research
January 5, 2013
I found this book to be interesting, informative and inspirational. In a world that's so focused on performance in the near term, it's a refreshing reminder that hard work, or what the book refers to as "deliberate practice", is still the primary prerequisite for achievement. I would recommend the book to anyone looking to understand what it takes to accomplish truly great things in their personal or professional lives. Although the author suggests how the book's principles can be applied across organizations, it's lessons are most applicable at the individual level.
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A Google user
January 10, 2011
Good, solid advice and insight. He seems to base most of his conclusions on research, and uses anecdotes mostly for demonstration purposes, not as sole proof of the concepts he describes. This book is not as easy of a read as many "self-help" books, and this is not a bad thing. This book is full of substance and low on sensationalism.
1 person found this review helpful
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A Google user
August 30, 2011
This book had me hooked being very sporty myself thought i could find the secret answers however, through some very lovely writing found that practise is the key. Very well written and structured book
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About the author

Geoff Colvin, Fortune’s senior edi­tor at large, is one of America’s most respected journalists. He lectures widely and is the regular lead modera­tor for the Fortune Global Forum. A frequent television guest, Colvin also appears daily on the CBS Radio Net­work, reaching seven million listeners each week. He coanchored Wall Street Week on PBS for three years. He lives in Fairfield, Connecticut.

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