The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle seeks to demonstrate that skills are meritocratic, they don’t care who you are or how you were born. Skills develop based on biological imperatives that allow anyone with dedication and consistent effort to become talented.
Although talent feels and looks predestined, in fact we have a good deal of control over what skills we develop, and we have more potential than we might ever presume to guess.
Daniel Coyle
Coyle describes how myelin, the insulation that surrounds our neurons in the brain, is the basis for human skills and that modern research into myelin provides new clarity on how skills are actually grown. Myelin grows in neural pathways based on two primary factors, how often you use the pathways and how challenging your practice is.
The Talent Code is an excellent read utilizing a compelling blend of biological science with historical case studies in order to demonstrate its key ideas. Here are my top three favorite ideas from The Talent Code.
What is This Myelin Stuff?
Coyle returns time and time again to the research of how myelin works in order to show how talent develops. The idea is relatively simple, our neural pathways are the portions of our brain that are used for specific tasks or set of tasks and myelin is the insulation for those pathways.
As the pathways are used our brains begin to build myelin around the neurons, similar to how a wire is insulated with an outside coating. Myelin slowly grows around our internal neural “wires.” As myelin develops it serves not only to protect the neural pathway, but it actually is able to increase the speed and ability with which we can activate it. More myelin results in greater control and greater results in the skill that we require.
Myelin is universal. One size fits all skills. Our Myelin doesn’t “know” whether it’s being used for playing shortstop or playing Schubert: regardless of its use it grows according to the same rules. Myelin is meritocratic: circuits that fire get insulated
Daniel Coyle
A myelin focused understanding of skills removes the classic emphasis on innate talent. It encourages a constant dedicated practice rather than a reliance on natural geniuses simply finding their niche.
Thinking that talent comes from genes and environment is like thinking that cookies come from sugar, flour, and butter. It’s true enough, but not sufficiently detailed to be useful.
Daniel Coyle
Our genes and environment play a role in our success, but the key driving factor, the recipe that brings the ingredients together, is the constant effort that creates the myelin we need. Now for my favorite case study in the book.
Soccer or Futebol? No Futsal!
Soccer serves as an ideal starting point for examining why certain regions excel in player development, owing to the sport’s global popularity. Historically, Brazil has stood out as a major hub for soccer talent, producing not only renowned players but also numerous professionals scattered across international teams. The country’s fervent soccer culture, characterized by extensive training facilities, prolonged practice sessions, and a desire for escape from poverty in favelas, contributes to its success. However, these elements aren’t exclusive to Brazil. Simon Clifford, an English soccer coach from Leeds, embarked on a journey to Brazil to unravel their distinctive approach.
During his expedition, Clifford observed that most young Brazilians engage in a game similar to soccer but played indoors on a smaller scale—Futsal. This version involves a ball half the size and twice the weight of a standard soccer ball, fostering heightened ball control. Players in Futsal spend approximately 600% more time handling the ball than their soccer counterparts due to these differences. The constrained playing space amplifies the importance of ball control. Intrigued by Futsal, Clifford returned to Leeds and established a soccer training facility, the International Confederation of Futebol, mimicking the Brazilian style. In a mere four years, his team of local kids triumphed over the Scottish and Irish National Teams, showcasing that Futsal proficiency isn’t exclusive to Brazil.
Photo by Pascal Swier
The advantage of Futsal training became evident for Clifford’s team, surpassing even the best players from entire nations. Futsal demands highly advanced passing and ball-handling skills due to the ball’s challenging nature and the confined playing area, where players have limited space between them. Essentially, Futsal provides an exceptional platform to refine the same abilities essential in soccer. A crucial revelation was that myelin, a neural substance, grows only under significant strain. Merely practicing isn’t sufficient; it’s about practicing at the edge of one’s capabilities while making mistakes. Futsal pushes players to operate at the brink of their ball-handling and passing capacities, reinforcing robust neural pathways for these skills. When players transition back to soccer, they retain the advanced abilities honed through Futsal, effectively applying them in the soccer arena.
Carol Dweck’s Ideas are Everywhere!
Coyle goes through case study after case study to show how excellent coaching, constant effort, and an internal willingness to persist through mistakes are ultimately at the core of talent. I find his work especially compelling when taken alongside the work of Carol Dweck, see my review of her book Mindset here. Dweck seems to come up in every book that I read which discusses motivation, success, or talent for her groundbreaking work on fixed vs. growth mindsets. The portion of her research that Coyle discusses relates to motivation and language.
Dweck has conducted a series of studies in which she tested youths on their ability to complete puzzles after being given different forms of motivational praise. In her groundbreaking study she praised one group based on their intelligence and the other group based on their effort, only a 6 word difference within the course of the entire study. What did Dweck find? The group that was praised for their effort improved in performance over the course of the study by 30%, the group who were praised for their intelligence saw their score decrease by 20%. The results of the study were so extreme that Dweck reran the study five additional times, all to the same result.
We are exquisitely attuned to messages telling us what is valued, I think we go around all the time looking, looking, trying to understand, ‘who am I in this setting? Who am I in this framework?’ So that when a clear message comes, it can send a spark
Carol Dweck
Dwecks work gets integrated into Coyles larger analysis when he discusses the power of ignition, the point at which people find the motivation to continue through failure. Coyle’s discussion of myelin shows that talent is acquired through dedicated, intensive practice but it also shows the impact that motivation can have on success. If you are willing to accept failure, to work hard through challenges, and continually challenge yourself the myelin will come, therefore the real challenge can often be inspiring the drive to keep going. Dwecks studies and work show the impact that quality praise can have on inspiring the effort that creates success.
