Careful, Genius at Work
http://www.gladwell.com/2008/2008_10_20_a_latebloomers.html
Even if you don’t read it, the article speaks of precocity versus late bloomers, and mixes it with the success story of Ben as an author. You can replace writer with any job, and the article reads the same: breaking free from the routine paths of the middle class (lawyer, doctor, teacher, consultant) and starting something unique, such as writing or starting a company.
One of my questions is if we bloom late, how do we ever know if we’re going to bloom? How many people have succeeded after death? There is Vincent Van Gogh, to name a small example.
This seems like a miserable path to suffer through a life that should be full of happiness. What brings people to persist and continue in the search of a goal if the evanescent nature gives winning the lottery a hopeful ring to it?
Ben, the man of the article, on the contrary, probably enjoyed his life while he pursued a literary career. The process, which took him eighteen years before his big break, had to have been enjoyable enough for him to continue writing each and every day. How else could he have done it? I’ve heard of delayed gratification, but this is some serious patience.
With most people, and if that is to broad, at least I know waiting for a burger gets to be too long. However, to play devil’s advocate, if I look at it from a different angle, say Ben’s, he could ask me how I patiently waited out eighteen years at an adminstrative job. Ah…that hurts Ben.
Eighteen years. What is the bottom line if we’ll never know. Do something that we love? Does it fritter away to the basic concept of Republicans and 1950 cliche father’s? I don’t want to say it, but it’s said to be hard work. Pull your self up by the boot straps. Have some intestinal fortitute. Tough it out. Have some balls. Be a man. Grow some thick skin. Early bird gets the worm.
There are a million phrases in every language for hardwork.
How do you know if you’re a late bloomer? I don’t know, but I’ll leave you with my father’s advice: do what you enjoy, and you’ll hardly work a day in your life.
from
http://everythingfiction.blogspot.com/
