Patsy Terrell

Lived fully, laughed loudly, gave generously

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April 15, 2010 by Patsy

10,000 Hours

It takes 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert at anything. This has been proven over and over again – sports, music, whatever – the 10,000 hour figure remains constant.

For some perspective on 10,000 hours, one year, around the clock, 24 hours a day for 365 days is 8,760 hours. So, obviously, you’re not likely to become an expert in a year. So, if you want to go for something more reasonable, and become an expert in five years, you’ll need to practice more than five hours a day, every day. You don’t get weekends or holidays off. If you want to stretch it out for a decade, you’ll need to practice about 19 hours a week – essentially a parttime job for ten years.

Obviously, becoming an expert in not easy. I guess that’s why there aren’t a lot of prodigys and experts in any field.

I’ve been thinking if there’s anything I’ve spent 10,000 hours on this far into my life. The only thing I can come up with is writing. Working in my favor on that one is that I started keeping a journal when I was very young, so I got a head start.

What have you spent 10,000 hours practicing?.

In the Dark

Words That Soothe

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Epitaphs for Patsy

In a document she left behind for a good friend, Patsy listed five possible epitaphs that could be used at the time of her passing.

  • ‘Lived Fully. Laughed Loudly. Gave generously. Gone.’
  • ‘Lived, Laughed and Loved. Continuing that elsewhere.’
  • ‘Lived fully every day. No regrets now.’
  • ‘The journey continues It has been magical.’
  • ‘A magical journey so far no regrets.’

An Editorial Tribute

An Editorial Tribute

Image courtesy of Richard Crowson

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In memory of Patsy Terrell • Curated by Greg Holmes • Website by Rosemary Miller