Do We Really Need 10,000 Hours to Learn Something? Or 20 Hours?

Malcolm Gladwell, in his famous book, Outliers, talked about 10,000 hours to become an expert in a field. Malcolm looked at how many hours it took experts in the field to become and expert.

But how many hours does it take for normal people like us to become good in something? Do we also have to spend 10,000 hours?

No.

Josh Kaufman explains how to learn anything in 20 hours.

Reply-All, Microsoft and Bedlam3

I found this to be an interesting discussion and thought you might also enjoy it. You can find the original post here.

On the morning of October 14th, 1997 a Microsoft employee looked at their entry in the company Global Address List. They noticed that in addition to distribution lists for their team, their department and some social email lists, they were on a distribution list called “Bedlam DL3.” The employee was as mystified to the purpose of Bedlam DL3, or Bedlam3 as it became known internally.

They decided that they were not comfortable being on someone else distribution list. And they took the absolute worst possible action to address the issue.

To: Bedlam DL3

Subject: Why am I on this mailing list? Please remove me from it.

That doesn’t sound so bad does it? It wasn’t just bad, it was awful. Everyone on Bedlam3 got a copy of the “Please remove me” email.

Some of them hit Reply All.

Yeah, take me off too.

And that message went to everyone. And soon others were joining in.

Me too!

This is what’s known as a Reply All Storm. With Exchange 5.0 there was no way to stop it once it started.

Of course, the easiest way for it to stop it is if everyone will stop Replying All to the thread. So, several people started saying that.

Stop using REPLY ALL. You’re just making it worse.

And of course, these messages also went to everyone.

Bedlam3 generated a storm of epic proportions. It was one of four Bedlam distribution lists. Each Bedlam DL included the names of one quarter of all Microsoft employees. The Bedlam DLs were never intended to be used for email. They were set up by the IT department to map employees to Windows Server security groups, and as general catch-all groups. Bedlam3 had 13,000 names on it.

The storm quickly flooded the network and completely shut down the mail servers.

Before it was done, it’s estimated that over 15 million emails were generated in the space of about an hour.

The storm pushed 195 GB of data around the network during that hour. Most of it was messages saying “Me too” and “Stop using Reply All.

I wasn’t one of the 13,000 people on Bedlam3. So, I didn’t see my mailbox fill up with Replay All messages, but since I had to use the same email servers as everyone else, none of my mail was being routed either.

It took 2 days to clean up the mess. And, of course, this being Microsoft they had t-shirts made. The front said “I survived Bedlam3.” The back said “Me too!”

COVID-19 — We’re All Not In The Same Boat!

The following message came through WhatsApp today. The message is quite true. We’re not all going through the same thing.

WE ARE NOT IN THE SAME BOAT …I heard that we are all in the same boat, but it’s not like that. We are in the same storm, but not in the same boat. Your ship could be shipwrecked and mine might not be.

Or vice versa.

For some, quarantine is optimal. A moment of reflection, of re-connection, easy in flip flops, with a cocktail or coffee. For others, this is a desperate financial & family crisis.

For some that live alone they’re facing endless loneliness. While for others it is peace, rest & time with their mother, father, sons & daughters.

Some are bringing in more money to their households than they were working. Others are working more hours for less money due to pay cuts or loss in sales.
Some families of 4 just received $ from the stimulus while other families of 4 saw $0.

Some were concerned about getting a certain food for Buka Puasa while others were concerned if there would be enough bread, milk and eggs for the weekend.
Some want to go back to work because they don’t qualify for unemployment benefits and are running out of money. Others want to kill those who break the quarantine.

Some are home spending 2-3 hours/day helping their child with online schooling while others are spending 2-3 hours/day to educate their children on top of a 10-12 hour workday.

Some have experienced the near death of the virus, some have already lost someone from it and some are not sure if their loved ones are going to make it. Others don’t believe this is a big deal.

Some have faith in God and expect miracles during this 2020. Others say the worst is yet to come.

So friends, we are not in the same boat. We are going through a time when our perceptions and needs are completely different.

Each of us will emerge, in our own way, from this storm. It is very important to see beyond what is seen at first glance. Not just looking, actually seeing.
We are all on different ships during this storm experiencing a very different journey.

Learning Business Ideas from Shark Tank

You have an idea. But you need money to grow your idea. How do you pitch your idea to investors?

Shark Tank is an American business reality television series that shows entrepreneurs making business presentations to a panel of five investors or “sharks,” who decide whether to invest in their company.

Watch the clips below to learn how investors evaluate businesses and what you should aim for when starting on your adventure as an entrpreneur.

And just because you fail to get an investment from the sharks does not mean that your idea is a failure. Look at these entrepreneurs below.

Man’s Search for Meaning in Life

Viktor Frankl survived the holocaust.

His memoir has riveted generations of readers with its descriptions of life in Nazi death camps and its lessons for spiritual survival. Based on his own experience and the stories of his patients, Frankl argues that we cannot avoid suffering but we can choose how to cope with it, find meaning in it, and move forward with renewed purpose.

At the heart of his theory, known as logotherapy, is a conviction that the primary human drive is not pleasure but the pursuit of what we find meaningful. Man’s Search for Meaning has become one of the most influential books in America; it continues to inspire us all to find significance in the very act of living

People have voids in their lives is exactly what Frankl’s book deals with. Find meaning in what you do and always have something left to accomplish are just two of the ideas that speak across the years.

Wisdom from Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington is a great actor. He’s starred in good films — films that have meaning and are worth watching. Some movies make us laugh, some movies teach us a thing or two. Denzel’s movies tend to teach us things, at least to me.

The short video below is the commencement speech he gave last year. In it, he talked about his experience – from getting a 1.7 Grade Point Average (GPA) to the small success (he calls his success small).

He talks about setting daily goals, being prepared to fail, about not seeing a U-Haul behind a hearse, making a difference in life, the power of faith, the ghost’s at your death bed, …

I hope this video inspires you to make a small difference in this world.

How to Read Fast (and Understand)

In school, we were all taught to read aloud. This is good for pronunciation but makes your brain go asleep. Your eyes and mind are capable to grasping the words very quick if the audible part of the brain stays silent.

Howard Berg is the world’s fastest reader. Dont take my word for it, he really is.

In the podcast below, he teaches speed reading is a skill that we can all learn.