Mundanity of Excellence

“I’m not a great programmer; I’m just a good programmer with great habits.” ― Kent Beck

Daniel F. Chambliss in his paper “The Mundanity of Excellence: An Ethnographic Report on Stratification and Olympic Swimmers” studied and examined the swimmers in their natural social settings, in order to understand their culture and practices.

He found that the key to excellence in swimming is not just natural talent or intense training, but also the development of certain “habits and routines” that allow the swimmers to consistently perform at a high level. Chambliss found that these “habits and routines” were often mundane and unremarkable, but they were crucial for maintaining the discipline and focus needed to succeed in the competitive world of Olympic swimming.

Overall, excellence in “any field” a combination of <talent, hard work, and the development of habits and routines> that allow individuals to consistently perform at a high level and produce excellent results (of great quality). The important key is to: recognize the mundane aspects of excellence, as they can be just as important as more visible factors like talent and training.

If you are interested in the paper follow this link