Incentive Lecture - Agnes Cancio

In this lecture, I thought that the “Losses Loom Larger Than Gains” was very relatable. As I saw the slide, I began to think that it really is true. The incentive loss feels and is greater than the value of a gain. It was also interesting to see how this connected with the Loss/Gain and Seller/Buyer Behavior. I agree that the more valuable incentives are connected to the descriptions of more, bigger, and better, while the less valuable ones are described as less, smaller and worse. I also agree that as the incentive value increases, your motivation increases. If you were paid $5 to read a book you hate, there is a less chance you would read it. However, if the price was changed to $30, it would probably be a higher chance you read the book.

Drug Lecture - Agnes Cancio

This lecture was informative and taught me that caffeine is a psychoactive drug. I never really thought of it as a drug, but now that I think about it, it really is. Many people, including me, need coffee to  brighten up their mood or even “feel alive”. It gives many of us energy to stay awake and to focus when in class. It is no shock when the lecture told us that the top frequently used  drug is caffeine. Another important part of this lecture was the drugs and natural incentive effects. From this, it really shows drugs are cravings and do not operate like food and water. We only enjoy them once they reach our brains’ pleasure areas.

Reproduction Lecture - Agnes Cancio

It was interesting to learn about how one’s personal characteristics can make him/her desirable to another person as a partner, also known as mate value. I enjoyed reading about the mate value inventory because I never would have thought to rate myself on these traits. There are some items in the inventory that I never would have thought first. The total of the items would be your mate value which was really interesting to figure out and learn. Another interesting element of this lecture was the male and women preferences. I learned that women usually look for a mate who has good financial stability, and are ambitious and industrious. I can see where this comes from because these traits can create a successful family. Men on the other hand prefer mates with good looks, which is “indicative of fertility”.

The Willpower Instinct - Agnes Cancio

The Willpower Instinct is written by an award winning, health psychology professor at Stanford

University, Kelly McGonigal. She wrote this book because she wants to help others manage stress

and create more positive changes in their lives. This book consists of various experiments, examples

and practices that can help improve our willpower which is also known as self-control. Each chapter

has different topics and ways we can improve our self-control. These chapters introduce a different

way of seeing things which is very eye-opening. She believed that our willpower was in the way of

our successes and wants us to understand and realize the biological functions, mental traps, and

outside factors such as society that affects our willpower. A big element she talks about in the book is

that willpower is split into three parts, “I will”, “I won’t”,  and “I want”. 

The first chapter that enjoyed reading was chapter 3, “Too Tired to Resist: Why Self-Control Is

Like a Muscle.” The author starts off by relating this chapter to finals week, and in Stanford it is

called “Dead Week”. This is their finals week where students cram what’s needed on exams, pull all

nighters, and basically lose their self-control over anything that is not studying. She explains how

students would smoke more cigarettes, eat unhealthy, and have more emotional outbursts. This all

connected to the idea that those who use willpower will eventually run out of it, “Researchers found

that self-control is highest in the morning  and steadily deteriorates over the course of the day” (56).

Researchers also compared self-control as a muscle. Self-control has limited energy and needs to be

trained, “It gets tired from use, but regular exercise makes it stronger” (80). Experiments in this

chapter consist of the “The Willpower Diet”, making sure you fuel your body with energy giving

foods, “A Willpower Workout”, by picking one thing to do or not to do, and lastly “Find your ‘Want’

Power”, by thinking about what gives you the strength when you feel weak, and think about it when

your self-control is draining. 

The second chapter I want to talk about is chapter 6, “What the Hell: How Feeling Bad Leads to

Giving In.” I related to this chapter because it talks about why stress makes us want things, and I am

someone who stress eats, “In moments far away from stress, we may know that food doesn’t make us

feel better, but this clarity flies out the window when we’re stressed out and the brain’s reward system

is screaming at us, ‘There’s a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ni the freezer!’” (136). This reminded me of the

feel good moment we talked about in one class. We do things in the spur of the moment to make us

feel good and we end up with the smaller sooner instead of larger later. Additionally this chapter talks

about how feeling bad leads to giving in, while dropping the feeling of guilt can make you stronger.

Some exercises in this chapter are “Stress-relief strategies that work”, where you actually do

something that relieves your stress, “Forgiveness when you fail”, where you are more compassionate

on your failures/setbacks, and lastly “Optimistic pessimism for successful resolutions” where you

come up with a plan to stop yourself when your self-control fails you. 

The last chapter I enjoyed was chapter 8, “Infected! Why Willpower Is Contagious.” This

chapter talks about the social self and how the human mind is not one unified self. We have multiple

selves such as present self, future self, the self who remembers your goals, and etc. who compete for

control. It especially talks about the “should” power which happens when we contemplate a choice

which then provides a boost of self-control. All together, this chapter is about how social proof

influences self-control “...making both willpower and temptation contagious” (208). Some willpower

experiments in this chapter are “Strengthen your immune system” where you spend time in the

beginning of your day to think about your goals which avoids the contamination of other people’s

failures, “Catch self-control” where you think of a role model and ask yourself what would he/she do,

“The power of pride” where you bring and show  your willpower challenges to the public and think

about the moment when you succeed, and lastly “Make it a group project”, where you bring your

friends into it and create a willpower challenge! 

Overall, I highly recommend this book to everyone, especially those who need help improving

their self-control. I would definitely think of this book not as a book actually and more of an

experiment. As I was reading, it didn’t seem like I was being forced to read. The material given in the

“Willpower Instinct” is interesting and contagious which makes you want to learn more. My favorite

part of the book was the experiments. Even though I did not do most of them, it is good to know that

I have them in the back of my mind when I need them. 10/10 would recommend this “experiment”! 

The Influential Mind

The Influential Mind by Tali Sharot was one of my favorite books. I am not used to reading books likes this, but with every chapter I was hooked from the view that she explained things and an inside look of what really goes on inside everyones heads and how to influence how others. Over the course of the book Sharot explains different ways to view the mind from different points of view and how to understand the mind of others.

One of my favorite chapters of the book was chapter 7, which was titled Why do Babies Love iPhones? from the very title I was intrigued about what this chapter would be about. I soon found that when she spoke about her child grabbing at her phone was a matter of learning from others. I found this section very powerful, that we learn most from the people we surround ourselves with and these are what influences us most. Although we are all striving to be "different" we are all in fact pretty similar. As much as no one likes to admit it we watch around us how others act and we conform to others and learn from them as they do yourself.

Another favorite chapter of mine was, chapter 2, How we were Persuaded to reach for the Moon. When Sharot described a group of people in theater that are watching a movie have channeled their emotions all similar in a way that they will react the same. When watching a movie your emotions are so connected with what is going on in the movie, the same psychological state is also the same with everyone who is watching. This is the reason for how most people will interpret the story line in the same way. The way your emotions line up your brain by centering your attention on the same thing that others will interpret similarly, this allows for many people to view the world the same way. This was interesting to think about.

Although I found every chapter of this book intriguing the one that I found most interesting was chapter 4, How do you Obtain Power by Letting Go. During this chapter Sharot speaks about the way humans fear not being in control and what this does to a person. When stepping outside of your comfort zone your brain reacts in a way of fear. As she stated in the chapter about how you step on a plane your path is in the hands of the pilots and crew members. This really put into perspective what being out of control would be like. I understand the fear of giving control of your life to someone else, you are actually surrounded by situations like this even just getting in the car of someone else who is driving. Being in control give people the power over their own lives and this is what makes people the happiest, when they are in control of situations.



All in all, this book was one of the most interesting books I have ever picked up. I was drawn in from the very first chapter and found myself wanting to keep learning more the more I read. I would absolutely recommend this book to others, I have even already told my friends to try it out. I learned so much from this book and really think about things differently and go about situations in a different manner.

If I was in the book store and saw the book, the Willpower Instinct, I would never have picked it up. I had no real expectations for reading this book to see how I could change some of my behaviors. But as I read it more throughout the semester I found it to be very beneficial. The topics are relatable for every kind of person’s situation. Whether someone is struggling with addictions, procrastination, or feel that they cannot help but give in to their impulses, this book will give them realistic ways to fix their bad habits.

One chapter that really stuck with me was chapter 7; Putting the Furniture on Sale: The Economics of Instant Gratification. The experiment in the chapter to make precommitments to our future selves. The strategy to reverse my preference helped me more than I could have imagined. I put my alarm clock on my dresser across the room verse on my bed and it made it very inconvenient to hit the snooze button and go back to sleep. This helped me actually wake up with enough time to not rush around before work in the mornings.

Another chapter that I felt influenced not only my life but my mother as well as chapter 6; What the Hell: How Feeling Bad Leads to Giving In. Essentially the theory is that when people feel bad, they tend to cave into doing things they do not necessarily want to.  My mother and I have the habit of agreeing to do things for other people even though we deep down wanted to say no. However, we feel extremely saying no or letting someone down who needs our help. I shared with my mother the exercises in the chapter, and the most useful one was saying no to people when they asked me to do something. It helped me from caving into doing things I did not want to do and also helped my mother start to do the same.

Overall this book was helpful for myself, and I find myself continuing the exercises explained within the chapters. I will tell other people to take this book and read it and participate in the exercises given. It has truly helped me improve my own personal habits and behaviors.

The WillPower Instinct Report

Julianne Santos 

Motivation 

Professor Berg 

May 1, 2020

The Willpower Instinct Report

The Willpower Instinct is written by a health psychologist, Kelly McGonigal. Her profession entails that she helps her clients deal and cope with their stress and make positive changes. In this book the main focus is willpower in which she divides into 3 different categories i will power, i won’t power, and i want power. This book provides examples and ways to use your willpower to self improve and reach long term goals you may have. Because a majority of times will power is used in a negative matter if perceived the wrong way. She basically states that you are the only person that really holds yourself back from reaching certain goals if you allow yourself too. 

One chapter that stood out to me was when she explained that we tend to have some times where we do “good” and have great will power. Or there are other times where we don't have as much willpower and do “bad.” However what we tend to do is justify our bad because we did good. I resonate with that because a lot of the times when I work out afterwards I would eat junk food and remind myself “it is okay, I worked out today” or “i will work it off tomorrow.” When in reality I should be glad I worked out because it is something I want to do as well as tell myself I will not eat unhealthy and have self control and willpower.  I need to stop thinking of things as rewards and rather continue to have the same mindset every single day and remind myself constantly why I am behaving “good.”

Now although i just explained that thinking of bad behavior as a reward this next chapter uses rewards in a positive way. For example when you think of future goals the reward you will receive is a positive reward. Hypothetically speaking if your goal was to get a specific job, the reward may be financial compensation. Financial compensation will be a positive reward because there was no “bad” behavior done to receive the reward. These benefits that you will receive once you reach your goal can serve as motivation to do “good” and have enough willpower. 

The last chapter to really catch my eye was chapter 8. Chapter 8 describes that the environment around you and the people around can have an affect on your willpower. It basically states that if the people surrounding you don't have as much willpower as you then you won't feel the need to have willpower either. This was really relatable because if you have friends who don't have any goals or anything going for them at all chances are you're not going to try and reach your goals you will just settle. That is why personally I like to surround myself with friends who have aspirations and have the willpower to get there. It may not have to be the same aspirations but if we are constantly motivating each other to reach our goals then chances are we will both achieve it. 

This book teaches personal ways to better yourself and i think it’s perfect for anyone who feels like they do not have any willpower to reach their goals. I wish i would have tried more of the experiments but from the ones i have tried they definitely do help. And even though the book is very relatable and we know when we have self control or lack it. It helps to understand why we do the things we do.  

Incentives Lecture

Despite the fact that I was confused by some of the terminology in this lecture, I found it to be very interesting. I particularly like learning about the concept that losses loom larger that gains. The example that losing money is more dissatisfying than gaining money is satisfying, is used. In the book, Influential Mind, I recognized that Sharot suggests similar findings. She discusses how as humans we will often try to avoid any negative or undesirable information even when it can be helpful. Sharot uses the example of a person who is at risk for disease choosing not to get tested because of the possibility of a negative outcome. I think this concept provides insight as to why people hold themselves back sometimes as they want to avoid any negative emotions. Furthermore, fear is not as an effective of a motivator as positivity, such as offering rewards.

           In addition, I enjoyed learning about delay discounting and preference reversal. This is the idea that people often prefer to wait for something if the future incentive is better. Nonetheless, at a certain point people rather just take the lower incentive than delay it any longer. Thus, this shows that the desire for specific incentives can be sensitive to time.

Performance Lecture

The performance lecture highlighted some key theories and brought up very interesting points about the nature of performance and motivation. In particular, the discoveries regarding arousal and behavior really stood out to me. I was very surprised to learn about the relationship between arousal and task complexity. According to the Yerkes-Dodson Law, for optimal performance, arousal should be lower on difficult tasks and higher on easier tasks. While at first I was a little confused by these findings, it eventually made sense to me because we are more capable of completing easier tasks than complex ones when our arousal levels are high. An example of a simple task could be taking out the garbage, while an example of a more difficult task could be a sporting event such as playing in a baseball game. As a person who has participated in competitive sports, I feel that these findings pertain to me. While some anxiety can be helpful in sports, being too anxious is debilitating. Ultimately, when athletes perform within their zone of optimal functioning, they are most successful.

Reproduction Lecture

      I found the lecture on reproduction to be very interesting and informative. Many ideas presented in the lecture, including mate value was very fascinating to me. I think it is common for people to either underestimate or overestimate the value of specific traits when looking for a mate. Despite the fact that some characteristics are more favorable than others, I think it is important to recognize that there are many aspects that come into play when selecting a mate. Prior to viewing this lecture, I did not realize the innate characteristics that people look for when selecting a mate. For instance, I learned that women often look for mates who have financial security and are ambitious, while men tend to look for mate based upon attractiveness. This is due to the fact that women generally pick mates that take into account the optimal chance of survival for their offspring and men look for mates in order to produce more offspring.

     I was also very interested by the Structural powerless hypothesis that suggested that the reason that women look for financial stability is the fact that they have less economic opportunity. However, I wonder if as equal opportunities between men and women increase, that idea will stay the same. In a link provided in the lecture entitled “Beauty Check,” it presents the notion that what is considered a beautiful figure for women has changed over time. It uses the example that being over-weight at one point was considered a status symbol. Thus, the more over-weight you were, the richer you were perceived to be since only the rich could afford to eat well. Nevertheless, in modern times in developed countries at-least, the case is the exact opposite as poorer people tend to eat more fast food which is linked to obesity. I found this information to be very significant especially when comparing it to the structural powerless hypothesis because I believe it suggests that some aspects of mate selection can be subject to change based upon societal conditions and the time period.

Against Empathy Book Report by Payton Marascio

Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion, is a controversial book written by Canadian American psychologist Paul Bloom who is currently a professor at Yale University. What makes this book controversial is Bloom’s targeting of the typically supported concept of empathy. The form of empathy that he is primarily interested in is “the act of feeling what you believe other people feel- experiencing what they experience,” (3). It is also important to note how Bloom emphasizes throughout the book that this is not an attack on empathy or an argument that people should act selfishly or immorally. Rather this is about how empathy can cause people to do more harm than good compared to if they acted without it. While this book is filled with thought provoking points, there are three chapters that truly changed my perspective on empathy. 

The first chapter that is important to discuss is the one titled “The Anatomy of Empathy.” As Bloom mentions in this chapter, many people look for scientific evidence, such as brain scans, before seriously considering a claim about things that affect the mind. For this reason, he not only describes how neuroscientists go about studying empathy, but he also gives examples of studies that have been done along with what they found. Bloom identifies three major findings of empathy research, the first being that an empathetic response to another person’s experience activates the same area of the brain that would be active if one were to have that same experience. This occurrence is due to what neuroscientists call “mirror neurons,” which became the subject of many experiments following the discovery. Another major finding was that empathetic responses are influenced by the empathizers thoughts of the person they are empathizing with and how they judge the situation that person is in. The last major finding Bloom mentions is the distinguishment between cognitive empathy, understanding another person, and emotional empathy, feeling what another person feels. This chapter helps the reader gain a better understanding of the science of empathy.

After supplying readers with various scientific studies on the way empathy affects their minds, Bloom goes on to explain how empathy works in different parts of people’s lives and how it can be problematic. One aspect of life he applies the concept of empathy to is politics. In this chapter, Bloom looks at how Liberals seem to possess more empathy than Conservatives because of where they stand on different political issues. He mentions various studies that have been done to test this correlation, such as an online study of about seven thousand people that found that liberals are significantly more empathetic than conservatives. Despite all the research Bloom brings up in this chapter, his purpose is to show the reader that these political affiliations do not depict difference in empathy but difference in who they empathize with. Even further, he points out that the politics of empathy “drives concerns about people in the here and now,” which can be beneficial in a short-term sense but not long-term (126). Rather Bloom suggests an analysis of moral obligation and possible consequences before making decisions for the future. 

The next chapter, “Intimacy,” had the most impact on my personal opinion of empathy. In this chapter, Bloom touches on how having too much empathy can affect a person’s relationships but also the person empathizing as well. One example he uses is that of a doctor/patient relationship, where he points out that while a patient would want their doctor to sympathize with what they are experiencing they do not want them to be too wrapped up in feeling what they are feeling that the doctor is unable to do their job effectively. Bloom also gave an example of how experiencing too much empathy may lead to what is called “empathetic distress,” which is suffering because of the suffering of others. Prior to reading this chapter, I was not aware of the negative effects that empathy could have, but it does make sense that experiencing too much of what other people are feeling could take away from our ability to help others or the quality of our own mental health. 

Throughout his book, Bloom explains the many reasons behind why he refers to empathy as being biased, parochial, and an overall bad guide of morality. He does so through the means of copious experimental research, humor, and sensible reasoning. At no point was Bloom attacking the concept of empathy, as clearly shown in the conclusion of this book where he touches on multiple pleasurable aspects of empathy. This book did not make me view empathy in a negative light, but instead it opened my eyes to the assortment of alternatives that do not carry the same consequences of empathy. Paul Bloom forced me out of the idealistic bubble that often surrounds the concept of empathy, hopefully it does the same for others who read this book.

Willpower instinct

The willpower instinct by Kelly McGonial is a book for anyone looking to better their self-control. Throughout the book Kelly explains ways to take control of your own willpower and why we do the impulsive things we do sometimes. She is very vivid with her examples, and self-questions she has throughout the book. Through her explanations of will power she explains why temptations sometimes gets the best of us. Throughout the book there were many experiments to help better your self-control. It is a very helpful book that helps take control of you willpower.

The first chapter of the book is the – I will, I won’t, I want, what willpower is and why it matters. This was a key chapter in the book because it fully explains all the categories of will power and what each one is. The I will and I won’t are the two key important sides of self-control. Your I will power is what motivates you. So for example if you have a goal there are things you need to do to achieve it so you have to be willing to do these things to achieve that goal. Having that I want willpower will keep you on track. The I won’t willpower is what will help you keep away from temptations that can steer you away from your goal. The I want part of your will power is that long term goal you are hoping for.  Every time you want something all three are essential for you to achieve it. In this chapter she explains how you can train your mind to keep your willpower strong, and also gave a very good experiment to notice every decision you make throughout a day and relate it to your own personal willpower challenge.

The second chapter of the book is your body was born to resist cheesecake. I found that in this chapter I could relate to it so much. She starts off by talking about cravings how you know you want something but you just cannot have it because of that goal you set for yourself. For example if you are on a diet and are offered sweets you know you want it, but you also know you should not have it. Your brain and your body are trying to have self-control and they just keep going back and forth with each other. Your brain wants you to say yes right away, but this is when you have to implement your self-control. You have to pause and plan what is the right decision, it is an internal battle with yourself. When you are feeling like you have this inner battle going on in the experiment she gave she gives you many exercises that can be done so you can boost your self-control. Things like just stepping outside for fresh air or listening to your favorite song.

The forth chapter is license to sin why being good gives us permission to be bad, this was a chapter that I could relate to so much. This chapter explains when you are feel like you are doing something good it gives you the permission to do something bad, because you understand that since you have been doing well for such a long time or even for a short amount of time you can reward yourself. She gives an example that when a shopper does not buy anything they are more likely to go home and eat something that is tempting. The shopper is rewarding themselves for their good behavior of not giving in. I feel like so many people do this including me. For example if I am trying to eat better and work out and I have a week that I do good, and maybe I see a chocolate bar I will feel like I deserve the chocolate bar because I have been staying on track. Being good gives us an impulse to lose our self-control and give in to bad things.  

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone struggling with self-control. It is a very helpful and interesting book.  She gives so many examples that you can relate too, and experiments so you can better your self-control. This book has helped me in my personal life because self-control sometimes is something very difficult to manage. There was not anything I did not like about this book, she kept it very interactive and interesting it was a very good read.

Peak Book Report: Rebecca Mauro

Peak

By: Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool

Intro: Peak is a book written by a psychological scientist and a science writer. The two have done countless research and studies focusing on "expertise science." Their goal was to find how experts and the best of the best got to their leading position. They discuss their theory of deliberate practice, the main theme of the book. The book breaks down the steps of deliberate practice and how it is set above the classic methods of repetitive practice, alone. Using examples of some of the greatest figures in fields from chess to London's taxi drivers, they solidify how forms of deliberate practice were used to get them to the top, or peak success.

Chapter 3, Mental Representations: The authors stress the significance of mental representations over and over again in the book. They often explain that working with and strengthening one's ability to mentally represent a task is one of the key pieces to becoming an expert. As I mentioned in the first paragraph, many studies have looked in the brains of London's taxi cab drivers. Since their job is so lucrative, the career is competitive. These "cabbies" have to pass an extensive test to be licensed for the job including memorizing landmarks, streets and best possible routes. Those studying for the test have to form a mental representation of the streets of London, and almost recreate a mental map, becoming a human GPS. The body's adaptability is astounding and is a concept covered in the book as well. Mental representations are also covered using the example of a blind-folded chess player who created such significant mental representations of the game, he could win without seeing the board. The most interesting example used to solidify mental representations was in the medical field. The best surgeons often use mental representations before performing an important surgery. They practice every step of the surgery in their head to identify potential problems they could encounter to plan strategies if the problems were to occur in real time.

(This is a quick example of mental representations)

Chapter 4, The Gold Standard: This chapter dives into the dimensions of deliberate practice. In the chapter prior to this one, the author discuss the concept of purposeful practice. Although this concept is interesting, it lacks some aspects which define deliberate practice as "the gold standard." The chapter is very important to the rest of the book as it lays groundwork for understanding the ways deliberate practice can be applied. The chapter even includes a list of characteristics of deliberate practice. I will list some of the characteristics to give an idea of what makes deliberate practice so special and groundbreaking:

1. Takes place outside of one's comfort zone, requires a student to constantly try things that are just beyond his/her current abilities
2. Requires full attention and conscious actions towards a well-defined specific goal
3. Involves feedback and modification of efforts in response to the feedback
4. Building upon previously acquired skills by focusing and working on specific aspects which call for improvement

The authors stress further that a student needs a teacher who is familiar with the skills for expertise in a specific field. The feedback someone with extensive knowledge of the field is important because they can modify the learning structure to fit/improve on the student's abilities. Stepping outside of one's comfort zone little by little is something everyone knows is vital to improvement. For example, when one is training with weights, they can feel when it is time to shift out of the comfort zone of a specific weight size and increase it to improve their skills.

Chapter 7, The Road to Extraordinary: This chapter looks at defining moments on "the road to extraordinary." In this chapter they conclude there are 4 major milestones to becoming an expert and what age a student usually is at the time of the milestone. The most important theme of this chapter is all about timing. They also circle back to the concept of the brains adaptability and its relationship to development. The authors include a story about a researcher who decided to test some theories he had about expertise. He had 3 daughters and decided to all play around with the theories to making them become chess champions. The daughters changed the way women were involved in international chess competitions! Two takeaways from this example was that starting a child at a young age is a must. Creating a sense of enjoyment using play at a young age can motivate them to want to pursue the task, in this case, chess. Another takeaway, and shown in this example, was the youngest child usually becomes the most successful. This can be because the parents modify their methods and because the youngest child looked up to the older sisters interest and involvement of the task. 

(Another interesting point in the chapter was certain actions can only be obtained through practice at a young age because the body can only develop it to a certain point. They even included bones can adapt if practiced in a specific manner, helping the student more than if they waited until full development to practice a certain movement. The body is crazy!)

Chapter 8, But What About Natural Talent?: I found this chapter important because natural talent is an argument of so many when countering the extent to which a person can become an expert through deliberate practice. The researchers/authors of this book studied so many child prodigies including Mozart and found they were able to accomplish things at younger ages because there was sufficient evidence to show they spent long hours practicing. They cover that there are indeed innate characteristics which can contribute to expertise, such as height, weight, and pure enjoyment of a specific task/field. Some of these, such as IQ, can have advantages when first learning a skill, but can only get a person so far without deliberate practice. Often this phenomenon of "natural talent" is self perpetuated. If someone is initially good at a task, it is noted. They go on to receive more focus, extra attention and opportunities than those who were not initially good at a task. This leads them to more practice which, of course, can allow them to advance to expertise.

Conclusion: I absolutely would recommend this book. It offers a lot good information about the research. The subjects and concepts never get boring or too wordy because the authors offered wildly interesting examples. The examples given blew my mind at the adaptability and capability of humans. They note that expertise is also something not everyone can achieve simply because of the lack of resources. The time consumption and expense of travelling, tournaments, and especially hiring of a teach is extremely costly. These things are definitely a privilege, but the authors hope that one day deliberate practice can become a norm in the educational system. This could help reach all audiences and expertise could be more accessible if taught in school. The implications provided in this book sound utopian, but maybe one day society could get there. This book was educational, informative and very entertaining!