Quotes About Excellence

You never get to the face because the body's so good." (Referring to Steffi Graf)49

boldly summed up in a 1998 Southern Baptist resolution. "We implore our government leaders to live by the highest standards of morality both in their private actions and in their public duties," it read, "and thereby serve as models of moral excellence and character."5

Excellence does not begin in Washington.

Excellence is the result of caring more than others think is wise risking more than others think is safe dreaming more than others think is practical and expecting more than others think is possible.

Those eyes that hold the hand of every heart, Those hands that hold the heart of every eye, That eye, that hand, that wit, that heavenly sense, All these do show my mistresses' excellence.

Girls have to be dauntless," Mathilda said. "And twice as excellent

Genius is talent exercised with courage.

Neurotics, because of their willingness to assume responsibility, may be quite excellent parents if their neuroses are relatively mild and they are not so overwhelmed by unnecessary responsibilities that they have scant energy left for the necessary responsibilities of parenthood.

Majah, minah, and mediocah.

To become a chess grandmaster also seems to take about ten years. (Only the legendary Bobby Fischer got to that elite level in less than that amount of time: it took him nine years.) And what's ten years? Well, it's roughly how long it takes to put in ten thousand hours of hard practice. Ten thousand hours is the magic number of greatness.

the thing that distinguishes one performer from another is how hard he or she works. That's it. And what's more, the people at the very top don't work just harder or even much harder than everyone else. They work much, much harder.

The idea that excellence at performing a complex task requires a critical minimum level of practice surfaces again and again in studies of expertise. In fact, researchers have settled on what they believe is the magic number for true expertise: ten thousand hours.

Their research suggests that once a musician has enough ability to get into a top music school, the thing that distinguishes one performer from another is how hard he or she works. That's it. And what's more, the people at the very top don't work just harder or even much harder than everyone else. They work much, much harder.

The people at the top don't just work harder. They work much, much harder.

rep" squad—the all-star

But a belief in work ought to be a thing of beauty.

The idea that excellence at performing a complex task requires a critical minimum level of practice surfaces again and again in studies of expertise. In fact, researchers have settled on what they believe is the magic number for true expertise: ten thousand

los que están en la misma cumbre no es que trabajen un poco o bastante más que todos los demás. Trabajan mucho, mucho más.

lo que distingue a un intérprete virtuoso de otro mediocre es el esfuerzo que cada uno dedica a practicar. Y eso no es todo: los que están en la misma cumbre no es que trabajen un poco o bastante más que todos los demás. Trabajan mucho, mucho más. La

And what's more, the people at the very top don't work just harder or even much harder than everyone else. They work much, much harder.

Sus investigaciones sugieren que una vez que un músico ha demostrado capacidad suficiente para ingresar en una academia superior de música, lo que distingue a un intérprete virtuoso de otro mediocre es el esfuerzo que cada uno dedica a practicar. Y eso no es todo: los que están en la misma cumbre no es que trabajen un poco o bastante más que todos los demás. Trabajan mucho, mucho más.

Although the Hotchkiss website claims to have twelve Steinway pianos, the school's music director has said elsewhere that they actually have twenty—plus a Fazioli, which is the Rolls-Royce of performance grand pianos. That's more than a million dollars' worth of pianos. If you are playing "Chopsticks" in a Hotchkiss practice room, it's going to sound really good.

Malcolm Gladwell

Leaders who practice the Law of Victory believe that anything less than success is unacceptable. And they have no Plan B.