On Being Smart (2009) [pdf]
There&#x27;s a lot here that resonates with me beyond matters of intelligence.<p>In my spare time I&#x27;m a contact juggler. If you don&#x27;t know what that it is, it involves rolling balls around the body. David Bowie in Labyrinth is usually a good reference point.<p>And I&#x27;m good at it. I&#x27;m good at it because I&#x27;ve been doing it for nearly a decade and I&#x27;ve put in the hours. I don&#x27;t think I learned particularly quickly, or even particularly well, but I stuck with it and worked hard to improve. I&#x27;m not shy about telling people that, but many still seem to assume it&#x27;s some form of innate talent, no matter how much I reassure them otherwise.<p>It&#x27;s as though people would rather accept their own status quos rather than believe that effort and commitment is enough to improve their lot. Yes, it might take years to reach a level of skill in a given discipline, but those years will pass anyway. Wouldn&#x27;t it be nice to have something more to show for all that time than a depression on the sofa in front of the tv?