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Four C's vs. Outliers

As I was doing some cleaning, I ran across this quote:

Somehow I can’t believe there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secret of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C’s. They are Curiosity, Confidence, Courage, and Constancy and the greatest of these is Confidence. When you believe a thing, believe it all the way, implicitly and unquestionably. – Walt Disney

I liked the quote back when I stumbled upon it and I still do. It also made me think about Outliers by Malcolm Galdwell.

While a great book, Outliers is tough to swallow. Boiled down, it basically says that the sole reason people succeed is based on the year and/or month they were born, their ancestry and the lucky breaks that occur. No more, no less.

While it’s hard to analyze your own life, I’ve tried to think of some personal experiences and boil them down to Galdwell’s theory. So, here’s a few that work and a few that don’t:

  1. Most swimmers are born in October. Not sure why. But, I’m a Libra through and through. I’m also a fish in the water.
  2. My quick Irish temper often gets me in hot water. I suppose if I wanted to put all the blame on myself (which I don’t), my “fiery” temper has been the cause of some major life changes.
  3. My brother is the real “Outlier”. Born in July, my parents, after much debate, started his schooling a year early. This meant he was almost a year behind all his counterparts. Still, he became a football superstar, got a college football scholarship and is wicked smart.
  4. I’ve never met so many young, married people in one place than in Minnesota. Vegas? Not so much. Maybe it’s something they put in the water there. Maybe it’s their Midwest upbringing.

And, while I liked Gladwell’s book and saw the merit in some of his theories, I like Disney’s idealistic quote better – if you’re nosy, confident, steady and have balls, you can accomplish anything :)

Posted by Vegasbab on January 25th, 2009 Posted in Event, Work

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