My first message is one that I am going to take from my Open Day Speech that some of you might have already heard. In that speech I said:
As a scientist, I like formulae, and the one that has stood the test of time for me is effort + time = success. For many years, people mistakenly held the belief that ability is innate – you either have it or you don’t: but in fact this is much better expressed as you have either practiced it or you haven’t.
I honestly believe in this formula, which is backed up by science. The science is that in order to form neural connections in your brain, you need to get neurons to fire (trying something) and then make those connections stronger and faster by repeatedly firing those neutral connections (practicing the same thing again and again). It isn’t complicated - practicing over time generates new pathways in the brain.
I do have two caveats here; not all people have the same starting point, and not all people make those connections as easily as one another. But the point is, if you want to learn it, you can, you just need to make the effort.
I think that the developing area of neuroscience has actually shown the human brain to be incredible in one sense – what it can achieve, but it has also shown us the brain’s limitations – it takes time for those connections to be made – it is not as sophisticated or speedy asuploading information on a computer or as you might have seen in the movie The Matrix, you have to keep repeating the same action multiple times over and over again.
I am sure you have all felt that at some point in your lives, whether it is learning a sport, mastering a technique, becoming fluent in a language, playing an instrument, or as I discovered over the holidays, solving a Rubik’s cube. When you get it, you get it – you feel it rather than think it, but whilst you are learning it feels difficult and frustrating.
I will just add here the note that the same is also true for developing bad habit – and repeating that bad habit reinforces that also, so be mindful of what you practice!
Aristotle was right when he said: We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
The need to repeat things multiple times, is known as cognitive load but probably better expressed as struggle – if you are doing something and it is easy, you are learning nothing, you need to find a point that is uncomfortable and get comfortable living in that space, and you need to repeat it again and again. This means that you can’t take shortcuts; no copying homework from a friend or looking at a mark scheme before trying a question or using AI to give you the answers. No skipping training for sports, or missing practicing in languages, music or drama. Learning is slow, repetitive, and yes - sometimes even boring… and there are no shortcuts - it requires discipline.
And that is my second message of the day. In order to make the effort that is required, you need to have discipline; the discipline to get up on time, to show up, to wear the uniform, to meet deadlines, to turn up for practice, to get to bed on time, to resist the shortcuts, and to do the right thing - even when no one is watching. Hard work is not glamorous nor is it excitingand there are many other easier paths to tempt you away from the work and even more these days with mobile phones and social media.
I heard a series of quotes on this topic recently that I think sum this up to me and they go like this:
• Everyone wants the view, but nobody wants the climb• People are jealous of what you have but no one is jealous of how you got it• People see the trophies but not the training ground
These are all variations on: it’s not the destination; it is the journey that matters. And indeed, the members of staff listening to this will note that this is the same message our INSET day speaker shared with us yesterday.
So, if you want to achieve something this year, to win on the sports pitch, to get exceptional grades, to lead performances, to support others, to be a better friend, to be healthier, or to just be better than you were the day before, hard work over time is the key to unlocking success. And the path is difficult, it is long, there are few cheerleaders on your way, and it takes discipline to stay on that path.
But when I look out at you all today, I see the ambition in your eyes – you are here because you want to achieve, and we are here to help you do so. But it is you that needs to put in the effort.
So that is my message for this morning, Effort + time = success.
Be disciplined, get the small things right from the start, and above all - don’t give up.
Mr Damian King
