Happy Birthday to This Outlier who "Payed Her Dues" and some: A Mythological Legend in Our Time.

        Malcolm Gladwell’s explorations on the 10,000 hour rule discussed in his#1 bestselling Outlier can be applied to an Iconic figure who has been in the public since her youth.  Gladwell gives evidence as to why Paul McCartney & the Beatles and Bill Gates were bound for their respective successes.  My concept of Opportunistic Emergence which is in concurrence with Gladwell’s ideas that talent and “Genius” is important but the blend of the talent with circumstance, luck or synchronicity play a necessary part in reaching the top of excellence.  I would say that other life or God-like forces and history play a part in the advancement of greatness.  But what is so obvious and often forgotten is the 10,000 hours that is required before reaching true success.

        It isn’t just “payin’ your dues” but there is actually scientific data supporting that the human brain needs approximately 10,000 hours of a specific craft, or mastery of skill to arrive to the precipice of that craft.  Because of this needed time the scale frequently tips to the side of the rich or privileged.  If the talent has parental or community resources to support him (or her) during these prerequisite hours he can go far (piano lessons or gymnastic classes can be financially costly! – and can a parent and child invest that great deal of time and incorporate it into their daily living?).  If you follow the beginnings of most Outliers you find that they

Angle's Share and the Urban SES struggle in LA: Is there a connection?

So the film Angel’s Share is deceptively charming and is much more complex than the mythology of the Angel's share ritual. You go through the movie rooting for Paul Brannigan, the protagonist or new “it” boy of Cannes and Hollywood, all the way through the story.  In fact, one reputable review gives the film an unprecedented 95% approval rating.  Unquestionably a must see film. So, what makes this a social and psychological discussion instead of a cinematic or pop culture discussion?  Actually, the film left me with a feel-good-up-beat-life-is-great-bowl-of-cherries-let's-do-some-shots-at-a-pub kinda fell. Here is where it gets complicated.

Look Ahead Baby Boomers: There is a colorful mosiac blending in America's tapestry.

Look Ahead Baby Boomers: There is a colorful mosaic blending in America's tapestry.

—By 2039, racial and ethnic minorities will make up a majority of the U.S. working-age population, helping to support a disproportionately elderly white population through Social Security and other payroll taxes. More than 1 in 4 people ages 18-64 will be Latino.

Several years ago I stated in a graduate paper “The metaphorical catching of the big fish has a process that can only happen after the relationship between the elder and youth symbolically become meshed.”  Taking this thought into a global mindset leads us to question the benefit of community. Yesterday I was reading Malcolm Gladwell’s #1 best seller Outliers in which he chronicles Roseto, Pennsylvania, a small town of Italian immigrants, in the late 1800’s. What made this town/group so fascinating was that they were all dying of “old age.”  There were no heart diseases or illness. Why? Their community was close, and their support system, extended families, and third generational bonds within nuclear families, created such a strong bond in the communal relationships that people were not just functioning better but they were happy – imagine?  What an idea! After reading an on-line article that is laced with statistics on immigration and Baby Boomers and the new face of America a thought crossed my mind.  Regardless of one’s beliefs, or politics on immigration and different cultures in the United States, we, as a country, can not move forward in a positive until we move forward with an open mind; an appreciation of our TRUE history; an appreciation for difference; an appreciation for the amends that must be made (which might be nothing more than an acknowledgement that there is noting that can be done while recognizing the past);  and a realization that “change is gonna come.”

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St. Partrick's Day: A Celebration or a Prelude to Motor Vehicle Crashes, Sexual Assault, and Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Sunday was the annual celebration of St. Patrick’s Day in Los Angeles  -- some claim as the drinking holiday of the year.  Each year during St. Patrick's day of rituals and merriment of the Irish comes the partying, the binge drinking, and the short term lack of responsible thinking.  It seems that the green beer

Duty to Protect and Modern Technology: Forget HIPPA! Now texting and social media is the new stressor for clinicians!

Client/Therapist confidentiality is complex at best.  In the 1970’s there was the now famous Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California which shifted the discussion of the client’s privilege in treatment. What followed was more critical thinking along with a list of legal defines of “duty to warn” that resulted from Tarasoff-type questioning.  These law and ethical stressors that therapists face, throughout their careers, continues to open the clinical envelope.  Most recently, we have child abuse and teenagers and internet issues meshed in the new public court system.

The Downfall of a Adolescent Sports Star Without Mentors, Support, and Structure

This story of a sports star who "could have been" great is all too common. The San Juaquin Valley of California had an agriculturally grown high school basketball star golden boy.  Robert Swift was swept up and thrown in the big leagues with big money; sadly, he was swept away from his support system and comfort zone of hometown .  Capitalism and money instantly deemed him a commodity, a product.

Divorce: Easy, Difficult, Death, Rebirth and the Process Many of Us Go Through.

The theme of ending relationships is an ongoing discussion in the divorce paradigm of contemporary America. 

Each generation has a different discussion and moral ideology about divorce and remarriage as evidenced by research and data that is available.  On a lighter note,

The Perfect Bliss: Let's talk about Michael Moss and Coca Cola

Many of us now know about sugar and its affects on behavior and its harmful ways in some to self-sooth.  And let's not forget about the country's growing addiction to caffeine. If you have a chance, I would recommend Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Michael Moss' new book Salt Sugar Fat as he explores Coca Cola's secret formula.


 

Quiz: The DSM IV Code 305.10 stands for?

There is something about smoking that seems "Kewl" or "Kool" or edgy.  For many years Philip Morris' stock was listed in the Montley Fool top ten stocks for good returns and longevity.  Even Audrey Hepburn has an iconic photo smoking in the classic 60's film Breakfast at Tiffany's.  Our baseball heroes chew tobacco regularly on and off the field.  And even our president and most powerful leader of the free world has been known to indulge as evidenced by photos that surface despite his clandestine style to the habit; or must we say, addiction.  The tobacco industry doesn't seem to  promote the everyday Debi's of the world.

So, why am I bringing this up?  Just because.  For the general population your cigarette smoking, and its related habits, might be causing functional impairments.