I like these gifts but they apply to most successful people and ultimately can't be proven as necessary or sufficient. The successful folks are often those who wouldn't give up. That may be a signal of dumbness as much as brightness. What you speak of is problem solving. But what of problem making? The former requires stamina but the latter requires curiosity. I'll go further. Curiosity involves make believe, the "what if?" obsession. And the what if, is the as-if, and that surely takes an agile brain, and a somewhat peverse enthusiasm.
Again, it boils down to what the society favors. If it's diligence and mental stamina then that'll be a signal of greatness. If it's shamanist magic, then that will be the thing. Etc. WC --- On Tue, 12/30/08, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote: > From: [email protected] <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: Malcolm Gladwell > To: [email protected] > Date: Tuesday, December 30, 2008, 1:20 PM > In a message dated 12/29/08 9:22:19 PM, > [email protected] writes: > > > > I doubt that there will be a definitive recipe for the > > components of achievement much beyond submissions > we've read already on the > > list. > > > I'll submit two candidates. They are both gifts that, > it seems to me, one is > either born with or not, and there's no > "acquiring" them. (Though one may not > be aware of having them until the need/opportunity to > exploit them arises.) > > The first is mental stamina -- the ability to hang in there > alertly on a > "project" far long longer than most. > > The second has already been touched on, perhaps: The > capacity to be > "interested". I'd call it > "curiosity", but it's more than that. And it > does not > automatically come with smarts, talent, or stamina. > It's its own gift. > > > > ************** > One site keeps you connected to all your email: AOL Mail, > Gmail, and Yahoo Mail. Try it now. > (http://www.aol.com/?optin=new-dp& > icid=aolcom40vanity&ncid=emlcntaolcom00000025)
