A neuroscience lecturer I listened to once asked, "which 90% of your
brain do you mind us cutting out?" Me, I'm happy to keep what I've got.
The 10% thing was apparently also heavily popularised by the self-help
movement waaaay back in the 19th century, because it suggested to
people that they have a lot of potential for the future, that everyone
has the brain of a genius which is, somehow, not yet tapped. It's a
form of 'golden future' promise. It resonates nicely with the American
myth of working yourself up by the sweat of your brow to become
lengendarily successful. You work hard, unlock your potential, and
achieve something outstanding.
Me, I don't buy it. I think if you want to improve, you need to retrain
what you've got. If you want to improve your mind, read lots of really
hard books, talk to people who are really good at what they do, think
hard, offer your ideas up for criticism, and you'll improve - slowly.
It's not much different from physical training. Stress your muscles to
the point of damage, over and over again, and over the course of years
you'll develop an exceptional body. Same with the brain. It's slow and
hard work.
I think one thing that the 10% myth suggests, actually, is that we
somehow have capacity for so much more if we'd only grasp it. This is,
I think, actually damaging to most people, because many people try to
take on more and more things. There's a kind of faith that the brain
can keep up, but it really can't - people get burned out because that
extra capacity doesn't come on-line as expected.
I think, then, if we see ourselves as working near our actual capacity,
other evaluations become necessary. If you're at 95% of our capacity,
and you want to take on something new, you absolutely _must_ drop other
things. You need to sacrifice to advance. You can't take on new
projects without (a) doing everything slower, or (b) doing everything
worse.
Anyway, I'll shut it, now. ;)
