Comments on: 10,000 Hours of Taiko

By: Margaret

Margaret — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 08:33:09 +0000

Hey Kris – Just read Talent Is Overrated by Geoff Colvin…interesting book about high-level performance in many fields (sports, chess, music, etc.). Summarizes research showing that deliberate practice is the common denominator to all kinds of world-class performers. Iffy on the pro-business tilt (e.g., do we want or need more Rupert Murdochs?), but tackles interesting questions about what motivates people to practice and about the benefits of deliberate practice for organizations as well as individuals.
Then, once one’s convinced that talent is overrated, what happens? (a) Bubba Watson wins the Masters, claiming he’s never had a golf lesson in his life nor even watched his swing on video, and (b) Timothy Doner (age 16) demonstrates fluency in 23 languages, self-taught, starting with Hebrew just when he was getting ready for his bar mitzvah. Huh?

By: Kris

Kris — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 12:20:20 +0000

I would guess that Kenny has 10,000 hours. He’s really consistent with the kind of personal practice that counts according to my tracking criteria. Kelvin, Shoji, and Maz are probably close also, considering the length of time they’ve been playing. It looks like it’ll take me about 30 years start to finish, so the other guys are probably right around 10,000.

By: Katherine Bradtke

Katherine Bradtke — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 16:47:10 +0000

I love reading your ideas on practice! I love
too that you’ve set a measurable goal as
of 10,000 hours. I know this might seem like
a silly question but It was wondering using
the 10,000 hour model and the parameters on
what constitutes practice, how many masters are there
in North America today and who are they? I’m sure
many of us have ideas of who we consider
masters…I’m just wondering if they would likely
meet and/or exceed the 10,000 hours of practice?

By: Sarah Bergstrom

Sarah Bergstrom — Thu, 12 May 2011 23:08:34 +0000

Hey I just wanted to note that I recently read the outlier chapter referring to the theory of 10000 hours of practice being the key to mastery in my high school senior english class and then came upon your site here… the whole concept sounds very appealing to me and seeing your progress as an individual working towards your goal is encouraging for the rest of us with dreams and goals. I personally don’t really know much about taiko, and I have never practiced an instrument before today for several reasons, but just learning about this theory and reading about your diligence makes me feels intrigued and challenged. I have been contemplating learning to play an instrument for some time now, and although I am somewhat financially challenged, I feel more inspired to start up a goal such as yours sometime in the near future. Thank You for being a model and inspiration for others and keep up the good work, surely in the end it will pay off.

By: imwired

imwired — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:07:46 +0000

This is incredible. I’ve had the idea of starting up a blog, but the staggering number of 10,000 proved to be quite the deterrent.

Congrats and I look forward to the day you attain the grand title of… Master

By: Wanda Welbourn

Wanda Welbourn — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 03:51:23 +0000

Kris Maz…put a link on my facebook page of the family photos of Shasta Yama. Thanks to you both for all of the hard work and play you brought to the performance.

By: Margaret

Margaret — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 01:08:28 +0000

A happy coincidence, I have to say. :)

I’m intrigued that the proportion of what you consider real practice time has shrunk because you don’t count the time you spend generating source material to practise; I wonder if that’s being too purist. Does it make sense to discount the time it takes to realize that one lacks a skill and figure out what practice will develop it, counting only the practice by which one acquires that skill? Aren’t all of those steps essential to progress?

I think intention is critical to progress generally, but what about unintentional skill acquisition? In other words, could you develop skills other than the one you meant to develop while practising? (Or is that just the flip side of acquiring inadvertent bad habits?)

Luckily, running out of obvious technical challenges to focus on is a purely theoretical risk for me for the foreseeable future. :)

Cheers & please keep us updated in Year 2! And please say more about your basic kata philosophy….

By: kris

kris — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:23:44 +0000

Thank you very much for the anniversary note, Margaret! How did you know it’s been exactly a year this morning?! I’m moments away from publishing my thoughts on the last 365 days of practice…

By: Margaret

Margaret — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 09:03:44 +0000

Humble congratulations from afar on completing Year 1 of this great experiment. Has your philosophy of practice changed in any way as a result?

By: Nicki

Nicki — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 17:05:13 +0000

Love this and love your thoughtful tabulations. It’s surprising that in a year you might only have 316 hours (2001, for instance), less than an hour a day. I’m trying to think of all the conclusions that can be drawn from this: that sustained, concentrated practice is extremely difficult; that “work” is not the same as “practice”–for instance, you could not count a 40-hour work week for fifty weeks a year as somehow 2000 hours towards mastery of your job; how very few available hours there really are in a year; how I’ve got to get cracking at becoming master of something :) , though right now I feel like I’m on my way to being master diaper-changer. Must get some more rest before the next round of nursing, diapering, rocking the baby to sleep gets underway. Way to go, Meat.