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Bounce: The Myth of Talent and the Power of Practice
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Review
‘A gripping examination of the hidden forces that come together in the making of a champion.' Michael Atherton, former England cricket captain
'A fascinating subject and Syed is a dazzling writer.' Owen Slot, The Times
'I love this book. A must-read if you have ever wondered what sets the super-achievers and the rest of us apart – in any field, not just in sport. I only wish I had read it when I was fifteen.' Gabby Logan, BBC presenter and former international gymnast
'Intellectually stimulating and hugely enjoyable at a stroke … challenged some of my most cherished beliefs about life and success.' Jonathan Edwards, triple jump world record holder
'Cutting-edge analysis and devastatingly argued.' Mark Thomas, Professor of Evolutionary Genetics at University College London
'Compelling and, at times, exhilarating – Bounce explains high achievement in sport, business and beyond.' Michael Sherwood, Chief Executive, Goldman Sachs International
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.Review
'A fascinating subject and Syed is a dazzling writer .' Owen Slot - The Times
'A gripping examination of the hidden forces that come together in the making of a champion.' Michael Atherton - former England cricket captain
'I love this book. It is a must read if you have ever wondered what sets the super achievers and the rest of us apart, in any field not just in sport. I only wish I had read it when I was 15.' Gabby Logan - BBC TV Presenter
'A cutting edge dissection – and ultimate destruction – of the myth of innate talent in the pursuit of excellence. Syed synthesises his evidence with the precision of an academic, writes with the fluidity of a journalist and persuades with the drive of a sportsman. Read this book now – before it’s too late.' Mark Thomas - Professor of Evolutionary Genetics at University College London
'Matthew Syed was an exceptionally fine table tennis player and he is an exceptionally fine sports writer.... In the end this book is about the human brain. It is funny and tragic, learned and urgent - the story of the extraordinary capacities we all possess, the irrationalities that drive us to succeed or fail, the opportunities we are given or miss out on.' Howard Jacobson – award-winning author of Kalooki Nights
'Intellectually stimulating and hugely enjoyable at a stroke... challenged some of my most cherished beliefs about life and success.' Jonathan Edwards - Triple Jump World Record Holder and Olympic gold medallist
'Compelling and, at times, exhilarating - Bounce explains high achievement in sport, business and beyond' Michael Sherwood - Chief Executive Goldman Sachs International
'When a book includes subject classifications as diverse as sport and outdoor recreation, Europe, mathematics and popular science, you know you’re not in for a run-of-the mill sports book. Indeed, it’s so wide-ranging that a chapter discussing motivation assesses strategies for understanding educational achievement, morphs onto an examination of Nick Bollettieri’s tennis academy and ends with an analysis of Enron’s hiring and promotion strategies (yes, really)... It’s impressively researched, forcefully argued and... extraordinarily interesting and thought-provoking.’ The Bookseller
'Everything Matthew Syed writes is worth reading' Lynne Truss, best-selling author of Eats, Shoots and Leaves
'Cogent discussions of the neuroscience of competition, including the placebo effect of irrational optimism, self-doubt, and superstitions, all lend credence to a compelling narrative; readers who gobbled up Freakonomics and Predictably Irrational will flock to this one.' Publishers Weekly
'A gripping examination of the hidden forces that come together in the making of a champion.' Michael Atherton - former England cricket captain
'I love this book. It is a must read if you have ever wondered what sets the super achievers and the rest of us apart, in any field not just in sport. I only wish I had read it when I was 15.' Gabby Logan - BBC TV Presenter
'A cutting edge dissection – and ultimate destruction – of the myth of innate talent in the pursuit of excellence. Syed synthesises his evidence with the precision of an academic, writes with the fluidity of a journalist and persuades with the drive of a sportsman. Read this book now – before it’s too late.' Mark Thomas - Professor of Evolutionary Genetics at University College London
'Matthew Syed was an exceptionally fine table tennis player and he is an exceptionally fine sports writer.... In the end this book is about the human brain. It is funny and tragic, learned and urgent - the story of the extraordinary capacities we all possess, the irrationalities that drive us to succeed or fail, the opportunities we are given or miss out on.' Howard Jacobson – award-winning author of Kalooki Nights
'Intellectually stimulating and hugely enjoyable at a stroke... challenged some of my most cherished beliefs about life and success.' Jonathan Edwards - Triple Jump World Record Holder and Olympic gold medallist
'Compelling and, at times, exhilarating - Bounce explains high achievement in sport, business and beyond' Michael Sherwood - Chief Executive Goldman Sachs International
'When a book includes subject classifications as diverse as sport and outdoor recreation, Europe, mathematics and popular science, you know you’re not in for a run-of-the mill sports book. Indeed, it’s so wide-ranging that a chapter discussing motivation assesses strategies for understanding educational achievement, morphs onto an examination of Nick Bollettieri’s tennis academy and ends with an analysis of Enron’s hiring and promotion strategies (yes, really)... It’s impressively researched, forcefully argued and... extraordinarily interesting and thought-provoking.’ The Bookseller
'Everything Matthew Syed writes is worth reading' Lynne Truss, best-selling author of Eats, Shoots and Leaves
'Cogent discussions of the neuroscience of competition, including the placebo effect of irrational optimism, self-doubt, and superstitions, all lend credence to a compelling narrative; readers who gobbled up Freakonomics and Predictably Irrational will flock to this one.' Publishers Weekly
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
108 of 115 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Bounce is a very interesting and thought provoking book. It basically argues that for any significantly complex human activity (especially sports like tennis, football and golf, and games like chess) natural talent is of pretty low importance because the wiring of the brain required to succeed can only be achieved through a massive amount of "purposeful" practice. The end result of this practice is often mistaken for natural talent, but in fact the trait most high achievers have in common is a willingness to work harder than their peers and a belief that this hard work will drive greater improvement and success, not a belief in their fixed superiority. There are a number of compelling and inspiring examples in the book, the most amazing of which is a family of Hungarian chess players whose story has changed the way I look at what is possible for any person to achieve. Woven into this argument are snipets of the author's own story as an internationally ranked table tennis player and Olympian. Although some of the material draws on the same sources (and also directly quotes) other popularizers like Malcolm Gladwell, I must say that having read the latter's books "Outliers" and "What the Dog Saw", I felt many of the key themes in "Bounce" are expressed in a very different way, and are in many ways much more compellingly argued. There are also whole sections on additional factors behind sporting success such as confidence, faith, nerve and even race, so that the overall sweep of the book's arguments is truly unique, rigourously argued and highly thought provoking. Although anchored mostly in the world of sports, it is hard to define this as just a sports book, as the ideas apply to many other walks of life as well. Highly recommended.
47 of 51 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Bounce is a remarkable book. Its central argument is that there is no such thing as natural talent and that top achievement is the consequence of huge amounts of a very particular kind of practice.
This may sound radical, but the evidence is compelling. The author shows how child prodigies are not quite what they seem and have actually clocked up quantities of practice that few of us achieve in our whole lives. He also shows how the extraordinary skills of elite athletes and other top performers in the arts and business can be explained by mental representations that all of us can acquire with practice.
When Roger Federer returns a fast serve he is not demonstrating faster reactions, but quicker anticipation. He is able to maker sharper and more accurate inferences about where the ball is going to go via the movement patterns of his opponent, so that he is in position almost before the ball has been hit. First class cricketers have figured out whether to play off the front or back foot 100 miliseconds before the ball has been bowled. The author demonstrates that these skills are not innate, but learned - and learnable by all of us.
Later chapters explore the importance of mindset and how parents and teachers can inculcate the "growth" mindset by praising effort rather than talent - this is of huge importance not merely to sport, but to education and life. There are also fascinating discussions of self belief, superstition, choking and drug taking. The final chapter provides a discussion of the reason for racial patterns of success and failure in sport and the wider economy.
It is absorbing, vividly readable and thought provoking throughout.
This may sound radical, but the evidence is compelling. The author shows how child prodigies are not quite what they seem and have actually clocked up quantities of practice that few of us achieve in our whole lives. He also shows how the extraordinary skills of elite athletes and other top performers in the arts and business can be explained by mental representations that all of us can acquire with practice.
When Roger Federer returns a fast serve he is not demonstrating faster reactions, but quicker anticipation. He is able to maker sharper and more accurate inferences about where the ball is going to go via the movement patterns of his opponent, so that he is in position almost before the ball has been hit. First class cricketers have figured out whether to play off the front or back foot 100 miliseconds before the ball has been bowled. The author demonstrates that these skills are not innate, but learned - and learnable by all of us.
Later chapters explore the importance of mindset and how parents and teachers can inculcate the "growth" mindset by praising effort rather than talent - this is of huge importance not merely to sport, but to education and life. There are also fascinating discussions of self belief, superstition, choking and drug taking. The final chapter provides a discussion of the reason for racial patterns of success and failure in sport and the wider economy.
It is absorbing, vividly readable and thought provoking throughout.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
At the heart of Syed's brilliant book is the concept that 'purposeful practice' tops talent (whatever that might be) any day of the week. The author draws on examples from various sports such as golf, basketball, table tennis and (if you call it a sport) chess. Combining those learnings with other very interesting academic, medical and psychogical studies, he puts a really persuasive case that purposeful practice (as opposed to low-level repetition) and good old fashioned hard graft are the key to success.
Two thoughts: 1) Syed stood as a Labour Party candidate in the general election of 2001 in an unwinnable seat. If he'd won in a safe seat, just think what he could have become as a Sports Minister who actually understands sport, has played it to an international level and is a radical thinker. 2) How on earth did Brian Moore's interesting-in-parts but slightly dull biography beat this for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2010? I demand a recount!
Two thoughts: 1) Syed stood as a Labour Party candidate in the general election of 2001 in an unwinnable seat. If he'd won in a safe seat, just think what he could have become as a Sports Minister who actually understands sport, has played it to an international level and is a radical thinker. 2) How on earth did Brian Moore's interesting-in-parts but slightly dull biography beat this for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2010? I demand a recount!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Bounce
Book arrived promptly and was veyy good value. It really does make a coach re-evaluate their thinking and ithis is not just limited to sport!!!
Published 9 hours ago by Clive Henderson
Cracking read
I found this book to be very well written and very entertaining, as well as making complete sense. Check out Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell if you enjoyed this.
Published 7 days ago by Rupert Dickinson
Bounce
This book was recommended by a friend and as it's not really my kind if thing, I was glad I found it here! Fantastic condition and service. Would definitely do business again. Read more
Published 20 days ago by Buttley
Bounce, the myth of talent and the power of practice
Brilliant book, I completely agreed with every word written in it. To identify talent you practise first not the other way round.
Published 1 month ago by Daniel
Bounce
Bounce is superb at demolishing the ideas of "innate talents" and "genetic endowments and "racial characteristics. Read more
Published 1 month ago by J.Yasimoto
Fabulous book
Great book, really thought provoking, well informed, couldn't put it down. Interesting insights for parents, coaches, sports people, teachers and business. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ian H
Practice Practice!
Confirms everything I suspected about sport and career. Everything else outside of dedicated training is a waste of time in both. Just get dedicated and do it!
Published 2 months ago by TPW
Fascinating book
I really enjoyed reading this book and whilst I was reading it, I couldn't help but keep quoting sections to friends and colleagues. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Wide reader
Poor book
This book exemplifies what is wrong with a lot of "scientific" literature today. First off the author attempts to explain the flaws of the genetic argument for sporting success... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Michael J Johnston
Outstanding read
Great case study and fact based journalism from Matthew Syed.
Interesting insight into why "blacks" are good at running (long distance and sprints)
Explored... Read more
Interesting insight into why "blacks" are good at running (long distance and sprints)
Explored... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Vinoth
Listmania!
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