a tendency to assume that some people have a talent for something and others don’t and that you can tell the difference early on. If you believe that, you encourage and support the ‘talented’ ones and discourage the rest, creating the self-fulfilling prophecy. … The best way to avoid this is to recognize the potential in all of us — and work to find ways to develop it.

“deliberate practice.”

ind a teacher who has been teaching other people to reach the level of performance that you want to attain. This basically means that teacher will be able to tell you the most effective ways to improve. A good teacher will also be able to find suitable units of improvement, so you don’t push yourself more than you can do.

start out, 15 or 20 minutes [a day]

think of something you want to attain and then get the help of teachers and parents to start you on the path of creating that

But you haven’t simply been waiting around for something that would allow you to instantaneously become good because that’s never happening.

You can improve your performance more in those one or two hours with a coach than in 5 to 10 years of regular practice with your friends.

you’re really trying to help the child develop this ability and become increasingly more able to monitor their own learning so they will eventually become independent

there is a way of helping a child get enjoyment from the mastery and the development of an ability.

before a public performance a child is much more motivated to practice and work on things that will translate into a better performance.

When that becomes important, you’ll have the motivation and willingness to do the training that will allow you to reach a high level of proficiency.

with certain kinds of math activities it’s hard to see how they will actually benefit you as an adult. So, I think education can be transformed into being more skills-based, where students will be able to see how, by learning certain skills, they’ll be able to do things that they couldn’t do before.

understand and integrate that knowledge in a way that allows you to use it.

I could infer and relate things that were related to me in a meaningful way.