I think every previous study of this topic has determined that the best programmers are those that can keep more layers of abstractions in their heads (I'll add

I think every previous study of this topic has determined that the best programmers are those that can keep more layers of abstractions in their heads (I'll add a citation when/if I find it). For me, there are days of brilliance and days of complete distraction. I won't call myself a 10xer but I think much of my success has come because I truly love what I do. EDIT - I couldn't find a reference to the study I was remembering, but Steve McConnell of "Code Complete" fame has written a blog post describing how flawed the studies he's reviewed have been - http://forums.construx.com/blogs/stevemcc/archive/2011/01/09/origins-of-10x-how-valid-is-the-underlying-research.aspx http://forums.construx.com/blogs/stevemcc/archive/2011/01/09.... There are links to a lot of interesting sources and he clearly isn't arguing against the idea of dramatic differences in programmer ability ... just sayin'.