Summary of Anders Ericsson & Robert Pool's Peak offers practical, evidence-based insight into what creates top performers and experts across a wide range of disciplines.

There is no such thing as a natural prodigy. Even children who display seemingly advanced abilities owe their skills to many hours of practice and effort. Mozart, for example, the quintessential child prodigy, was likely the product of a very early, immersive education in music as prescribed by his father, who was also a musician. This type of purposeful effort aimed at developing expert ability is called "deliberate practice." Mozart was indeed young when he first demonstrated his superior abilities. But he already had several years of deliberate practice-based music education under his belt by the time he was even six or seven years old and thrilling audiences around Europe.

The expectation that a child or a novice should show exceptional early abilities in order...