Creativeness by Experimentation: A thought on Peak Performance & Worldly Wisdom
Genes help... But they are not your destiny !
Michael Phelps (1.93 m) is 18cm taller than Hicham el Guerrouj (1.75 m). Still, they wear the same length of pants!
How? One has unusually long, the other has unusually short legs.
They are both champions and multiple-gold medal winners at the Olympic games.
Both are uniquely equipped to dominate a sport: Peak performance in swimming benefits from a strong upper body and small legs, while a Marathon needs a light body with long legs.
Genetics make a great difference here, and they do so in all walks of life!
Genetics (and other things you can't - easily - control about yourself, like your culture), however, don't determine your destiny. Instead, they can determine your area of maximum opportunity...
Excellent outcomes are the results of selecting *your* best area, and doing enough hard work in it.
How do you find these areas of maximum opportunity?
We don't all have unusually long or short legs - the answers aren’t usually that clear.
You need to keep exploring, and trying, and failing. You need to get an appreciation for what feels easy and what feels good.. and seek the advice of those more experienced. You need to accumulate experiences and achievements, and always build on them.
This is one of the key components of practical (worldly) #wisdom .
The Atlas of Worldly Wisdom is an online course on seeking peak performance and finding our great work. It is an integration of many models and super ideas on success and personal growth: https://ahijazi.website/atlas-worldly-wisdom/)
(References for the above story: Atomic Habits & National Geographic https://nationalgeographic.com/science/article/olympic-gold-good-genes )