Geoff Colvin's Talent Is Overrated

Explain what Colvin means by the title Talent is Overrated using information from Chapters 1 and 2. Do you agree or disagree with Colvin? Can you think of a personal example from your own life or from popular culture that Colvin DOES NOT mention? Does this example prove or disprove Colvin’s theory?
In the novel, “Talent is Overrated”, Geoff Colvin says specifically that talent has been praised too highly regarding personal success and that there are other factors that are important. Geoff Colvin particularly states, “The factor that seems to explain the most about great performance is something the researchers call ‘deliberate practice’ ” (Colvin 7). This conveys that talent has been overvalued and that the key for great performance is not actually talent, but an aspect called deliberate practice. I actually agree with Colvin’s ideas and think that talent has been attached too much importance to and that there are other influential things that are important

However, there are people that Colvis does not mention, such as Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs was adopted as a child and he grew up in a neighborhood of engineers working on electronics and other technical things in their garages on weekends. This shaped his interest in the field as he grew up. This highlights that Steve Jobs was not influenced by talent when he was achieving great performance, but deliberate practice because he did not possess any innate abilities. This is also shown when compared to Bill Gates. Colvin emphasized that , “It’s clear that Gates’ early interests led directly to Microsoft. The problem is that nothing in his story suggests extraordinary abilities” (32). Steve Jobs put in alot of hard work because he knew what he was trying to accomplish not because he was borned with extraordinary skills. This particular example proves Colvin’s theory of great