Benjamin Bloom was a renowned Educational Psychologist who made important contributions in the area of exceptional talent research. He conducted a study on 120 young men and women, to understand why were they successful in the own fields. The fields that they were successful in are Olympic Swimmers, concert pianist, World Class tennis players, Sculptors, research neurologists and research mathematicians.
The men and women selected for this study met certain criteria. Experts in their field were consulted for what is deemed exceptional, for example having received prestigious and highly competitive fellowships or prizes or awards. Being members of the US Olympic swimming team, having ranked in the Top ten for tennis players, or having their research papers being cited often by other research papers which lend them credibility.
The children who excelled in sports have had supportive parents who held athletic achievement in high regards. They will assist their kids in this area by driving them to competitions and to training on a very regular basis. The initial coaches for swimmers and tennis players would have sparked their interest. When they had reached a plateau they will be moving on to another coach who would help refine their techniques and cater to their individual training needs. At a final stage, they would have decided they would want to go professional.
Parents of the mathematician and research neurologist valued academic achievements. They will have plenty of books lying around the house and the kids would read for fun. Whenever the kids were to ask their parents questions, they will reply them like adults, perhaps breaking down the answers in layman terms. The parents had encouraged them to adopt a diligent learning attitude like them.
The environment the parents provide will mould the type of adults. It takes time for the parents to think what they valued in life and kids in their initial years will seek their parent's approval. After which they will decide on their own what are their values.
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