Bounce

Bounce is a sports science book written by a former British table-tennis Olympian, Matthew Syed. Syed argues that world class skill is not the result of natural talent. Rather, it is the product of many hours of practice from an early age. What this means for all of us is that ability is not predefined at birth and we could all strive to be better if we foster a “growth mindset” rather than a “fixed mindset” (growth vs. fixed mindset is actually a theory developed by Carol S. Dweck, an American psychologist at Stanford University — I’ve seen Carol’s work reference by several books.) Syed’s thesis has implications for me as a lifelong learner, but also for how I teach my kids and coach my soccer teams. For example:

1. Praising children’s intelligence or talent harms their motivation and harms their performance. We should praise effort, not talent, to encourage a growth mindset.
2. The best athletes learn from repeated failures.
3. Syed reiterates Malcom Gladwell’s well-worn 10,000 hours-rule, acknowledging that those 10,000 hours must consist of deliberate, purposeful practice. We should ensure that practice is deliberate and purposeful if we want to improve.
4. Age cut off dates can make a significant difference statistically. We should adjust for them, especially for younger athletes.
5. To improve as young athletes, kids have to internalize the motivation — it cannot be forced upon them from the outside.