Much is made of Malcolm Gladwell’s “Ten thousand hours,” the thoughtful insight that to achieve proficiency, the equivalent of five years of full time work is a necessary condition–if not a sufficient one. The Beatles played clubs in Hambourg for ten thousand hours before appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show;
“I’ve changed, Mom. I’m not going to smoke pot any more or play video games either. I just need some money until I can get a job.” Tommy pauses as if for dramatic effect then plays the card that has always worked in the past: “I can’t believe you don’t
“It’s all your fault, Mom. You are the reason I don’t have any friends. All of the other kids drive nice cars, but you gave me this lousy car to drive. The other kids make fun of me. If you would just leave me alone, everything would be OK.” “But,
Envision vicious combatants locked in a zero-sum game in which only a small number can survive and only one can triumph. Imagine the contestants scratching, clawing, and punching one another for any and every competitive advantage. “Omni contra omni” wrote Hobbs. “All against all.” No quarter asked or given. Winner
Did you, by any chance, buy Qualcomm for two dollars a share in 1992? If you were that prescient, did you sell all your Qualcomm holdings eight years later for $75 a share? Because had you invested ten thousand dollars at the start of the run-up, you would have walked
“No hats on the bed!” A woman screams at a visitor. “Get that hat off the bed! Now!” “OK,” says the man. “But, by the way, why? Why must I take my hat off the bed?” “Hats on the bed are bad luck! Terrible bad luck! Years and years of
A buddy of mine explained the likelihood of getting a book of poems published. Consider all money spent in entertainment industry. Movies make up the vast percentage of expenditures; books are almost an afterthought. Of all the books that are published each year, most are non-fiction–calendars, cooks books, political biographies.
Bob Blitzer wasn’t just a great math teacher; he was a good man: my first openly gay professor–and this was the early 70s–he was a force of nature in the classroom. He drew an inverted parabola on the board. “‘Y equals negative X squared’ looks like a missile,” he began.
1) My six year-old daughter is having a birthday. What should I do? 2) My 14 year-old daughter loves animals, wants to see a bear in the wild. What should I do? 3) My 16 year-old son is the third chair out of three trumpet players in the school orchestra.
I’ve never asked Dennis and Joanie for money. But I could if I had to. If I couldn’t make a mortgage payment, I’d ask them for a couple thousand to tide me over and they’d say, “You’re sure you don’t need more?” That’s how close we are. That’s the kind
Copyright © David Altshuler 1980 – 2024 | Miami, FL • Charlotte, NC | (305) 978-8917 | [email protected]
