10,000 Hours

There is a universal life rule out there that too few people know about.

One can start by finding it in the first verses of  Galatians 6. It starts off with  "whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap".  A little further down there is an additional exhortation "...let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not"

Personally, I love those verses. In my life, I have undertaken so many goals that seemed so far away.  And when I'm sitting there doubting myself, I take a moment and remember that I've gotta' keep sowing, and that I will most definitely reap what I've sown.

But it's the due season part that gets me.  How long is a "due season"?

Turns out, its about 10,000 hours long.  I happen to re-stumble across this concept when doing research about computer programming. 

As the article on the link above points out, most musicians, programmers, researchers, inventors, sports stars - you name it - had around 10,000 hours invested before the hit their break-out, world- reknown status.  As someone who keeps an eye on the current job market, I've noticed that most ads for mid-level jobs require at least 5 years of employment in the field.  You do the math.

Now as Early to Rise points out, you can likely achieve your first level of competence at 1000 hours.  
But to achieve mastery, one must spend - at a minimum - about 5,000 more hours to master the subject.

But, knowing the rule can be greatly empowering.  Learning a new skill can be overwhelming. Especially once you are several hundred hours in .   And, while long road trips (or boat trips, or airline trips or self-improvement) can be a bear, its encouraging to know exactly how much further you have to go. 

And to wrap things up, I would be remiss not mention the article on new Year's Resolution by Paul Tripp, brought to my attention by my mother-in-law. 10,000 moments is a great (short) look at this subject from a different angle