Why do people believe that if you practice something enough you will become a master of the activity?
When in reality there are individuals that have access to better help and are surrounded by a more fortunate environment. Someone who is born from a luxurious family will have benefits that others cannot afford. Athletes with money will have access to professional trainers, equipment and supplements. On the other hand, individuals with a lower financial status cannot afford these privileges and will have to work with what they have. This changes the level of practice because better resources will produce positive results faster. In the novel “They Say I Say” written by Gerald Graff, he states, ”Performing this activity, in other words, depends on your having learned a series of complicated moves-moves that may seem mysterious or difficult to those who haven’t yet learned them”(page 1). I believe that it is difficult for people to learn these complicated moves because they do not have the resources to get the correct information on how to practice an activity. People with money can buy professionals that will show them the correct way to train. Everyone else, for example, may use the internet which can sometimes mislead the person from actually learning how to master the activity. Referring back to athletics, professional trainers are specialized in their career and will guide one to become fit. While someone else might be practicing the wrong exercises or going on a diet that does not work towards their goal.
I agree with the basic premise of your point. When it comes to success in athletics, it is obvious that areas with more readily available resources will tend to have more success. That is true now, and will remain so in the future. However, I believe this issue can be tackled another way. Children who come from impoverished households and/or areas struggle to obtain other, more important things than personal trainers, equipment and supplements. As it turns out, it is the lack of academic resources that is the biggest barrier to lower income student-athletes. Students from impoverished areas often fail in the classroom, because those school districts simply do not have the intellectual and physical resources to set up students for success. According to Forbes, “. . . the other side of the NCAA tightening academic requirements is that it squeezes out athletes from poorer backgrounds who, with some guidance at the college level, could improve their status and become products students and athletes” (Cook). I think this shows the same problem, but potentially offers a different solution. By stressing academics, young student-athletes have a better chance of making a name for themselves, rather than becoming just another statistic.
Although I agree that the lack of personal trainers, equipment and supplements can be a barrier to performing at the next level, I do not think that the lack of these resources is the end of the world. When it comes down to achieving athletic greatness, putting in hard work is far more important than the availability of certain resources. This is why I think the lack of academic resources and clear mentors to look up to is the main thing that stops young student-athletes in less fortunate environments from performing at the next level.
I agree that many people grow up in situations in which they are unable to have access to the resources that allow them to become specialists at certain things. This is especially true when it comes to having the resources for a good education to allow for mastery of writing and other academic skills. However, the point Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein were making was that we all, no matter our access to resources, have found activities, whether they be “cooking, playing the piano, or shooting a basketball,” that we have routinely practiced so many times that they become second nature for us (“They say, I say,” page 1). If this is true, no matter the resources we have, with some hard work and perfect practice, we can in fact “master” something. Throughout this entire book, Graff and Birkenstein are trying to provide the reader with the resources to practice a new skill, in this case writing, so that it becomes more of a routine.
In your example of athletes, while having the best personal trainer and equipment can make it easier to succeed, it has been seen that there are other factors involved in mastery and success that can be even more influential such as mentality or intelligence. For example, it is more important that an individual sets goals, visualizes success, stays positive, and are hard workers than it is to have the best trainers and fanciest equipment (The Effects of Psychology on Athletic Performance, 2015). Those with less resources may have to work harder and practice more to become proficient in something, but that hard work will create a mentality that will lead them far in life and will pay off.
In fact, this is quite a deep and interesting topic that we can talk about for a long time. It’s not always labor that can elevate you to those who were born with talent. Of course, with practice you can only get closer, but you cannot reach the top. For me, this is best seen in the genre of comedy and humor in general. Even did an analysis in the form of an essay pulling useful tips from ready-made examples of why someone becomes the idol of many and someone just shot one day and forgotten about. It’s the same with movies, music, etc., wherever you can’t do anything without talent.
thanks for tips
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