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Syed took a lot of research carried out in the field of success, especially success in sports, and compiled it into a very readable book which is all the more interesting because its author isn't a scientist, but someone who has put the science he writes about to use: He's a Table Tennis Olympian. Syed's writing style is clear and enthusiastic, and he has a lot of personal experience to brighten up the hard facts. There's a lot of eye-opening and downright useful information in the book. It's also heartening to read not only about the successes of the successful, but also their failures, and why they happened.

For most of the book Syed hammers home a fairly simple message, backed up by studious research, that success is much less a matter of genes, and far more the result of hard work, focused training, and understanding what it is that makes us tick. If we can master ourselves, we can master anything. No matter which side of the nature/nurture argument you fall on, it's good advice for self-help or bringing up kids, and not just in sport but any field. Syed opens our eyes to the accepted wisdom of the talent mindset, where only the naturally talented succeed, and shows us how behind every naturally talented individual is years and years of effort. About ten years seems to be the magic number.