The science of deliberate practice

#learning #productivity

Author: Anne-Laure Le Cunff
Source: https://nesslabs.com/deliberate-practice

Summary

Don’t be afraid to fail many times over and make sure to create feedback loops so you can make the most of deliberate practice. If you can, find a mentor who can guide your learning process. The road to mastery will be shorter, and, most importantly, the hours you spend practicing will actually help you progress towards expertise.

Takeaways

The innate nature of talent is in contrast to skills which are purely gained through learning.

....we argue that the differences between expert performers and normal adults reflect a life-long period of deliberate effort to improve performance in a specific domain ^[1]
K. Anders Ericsson

Deliberate practice is focused, systematic, and purposeful. It’s enhanced by active coaching to generate continuous feedback.

• An enhanced, continuous feedback loop is important is achieving improved performance. This can be achieved when you learn to Fail like a scientist
• Iteration = Mastery, but iterating the correct way is more important than iterating repeatedly for no deliberate cause.
• The 3 M's of deliberate practice
  • Measurement - track and measure your progress. "You cannot manage what you cannot measure."
  • Metacognition - make space for self-reflection. e.g. journaling
  • Mentoring - have a coach or teacher to improve the impact of deliberate practice