David and Goliath

Malcolm Gladwell is a tremendous mind, and has an interesting lens though which he sees this world. He has published many books, such as Outliers, Blink, The Tipping Point, and David and Goliath. I want to zero in on the latter. This video is 15 minutes long, but it’s well worth the watch. Enjoy!

What an interesting point of view! To the uneducated eye, this may have seemed like a miracle, and he highlights this in his underdog comments. When Gladwell starts to reveal David’s profession, it doesn’t seem so farfetched that he could do something like this. David has clearly dedicated his life to his trade of being a shepherd, and because of this unwavering dedication, has a particular skillset and doesn’t have any doubt of his ability.

I heard this talk and immediately thought of the clean and jerk and snatch. For a human to move 2-3X their body weight to an overhead position seems nothing short of a miracle. For the athlete that is capable of this, they have spent hours upon hours, days upon days, and years upon years doing exactly this day by day. Just like a shepherd protecting his flock, the athlete lives and breathes with the barbell. So a 400 pound barbell is not Goliath, it is a sitting duck, just like Goliath was to David. The armies were at a standstill on this battlefield for weeks, he says. This is very representative of the popularity of weightlifting. It took a small unassuming man to show everyone what was possible. Watch the Olympics and you will see the same.

Be proud of the skills you work on day in and day out in the gym. That barbell is your best friend. I hope you take down many Goliaths in your time. I definitely have my eyes set on some of my own.

 

Danny Lesslie

@dannylesslie