Continuous Improvement by Deliberate Practice: the Key to Becoming a Master of Your Craft

“The key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not a divine spark. It's not I.Q. Instead, it's deliberate practice. Top performers spend more hours (many more hours) rigorously practicing their craft.”—David Brooks

It is almost impossible to see a valedictorian in any reputable institution of learning who didn’t go the extra-mile. For the most part, that special class of distinction comes to him or her as a result dedication and deliberately application. Every scholar attains the honour of scholarship largely due to devotion and concentration.

Likewise, becoming super successful in business would imply that you (as an entrepreneur) are far better than your competition in terms of the value you bring to the marketplace. This invariably requires some skill and unique competence.  And that exceptional skill rarely comes by chance, mostly; it comes as a result of devotion and dedication to be the best in the game. On this, Eric Butterworth the author of “Spiritual Economics” contends: “Behind every brilliant performance there were countless hours of practice and preparation.” 

Having highlighted the necessity of practice for high achievement, I still want to stress one important thing right now: an ultimate buff commits to practice far more deeply than others in the same field of study. And that’s why in the realm of uncommon merit, even legion of masters usually do have a grand master. That is, among first class students, one super-brilliant student usually stands above all others. And among blue-chip companies, one company usually stands taller than the rest. 

What I am getting at and what we want to examine today is the key secret of the most extra-ordinary performers in useful endavours of life. In other words, we want to learn how we can improve our own practice to join some of the very best in our special areas of interest. Kevin Maney, the author of “Trade-off” gets this and he writes: 

“Some people seem to have extreme natural wiring - a talent that seems to come out of nowhere. Like a music savant or prodigy. The uplifting news, though, is that many talented people don't have such natural wiring - but they forge a talent through thousands of hours of what's known as deliberate practice or deliberate performance.” This powerful skill is what we shall be studying shortly, and it is technically called: deliberate practice.

Deliberate Practice

What mainly differentiates self-made experts from the rest of us is nothing but committed, deliberate effort to improve functionality—relentlessly. On this intriguing subject, an American professor of psychology, Anders Ericsson, after decades of research wrote a book on the secret of peak performance, entitled, “Peak.” In the book, he reveals that as important as practice is to getting better at anything, he asserts that, it is not mere practice that moves aficionados to mastery and perfection but better practice is what does. 

In other words, how they practice is the real secret to their mastery, not just the hours they invested. According to Ericsson, they practiced with greater presence, more intensity, sharper focus and clearer sense of objective than many of their counterparts. And that’s why they are singularly better than the rest; they thoroughly employ the tactic of deliberate practice.

 

Consider this: many of us have been typing letters on the computers for quite a long period of time, but we are hardly professional typists, are we? In fact, some professional typists are not necessarily some of the best in their chosen business because, they are not really improving. They are only putting in the time. They are not deliberate enough in their quest to getting better. 

The above scenario is what the famous basketball player; Micheal Jordan was referring at one time. He said: 

“You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down (right) and the level of everything you do will rise.”

So now, since we know that practice is different from deliberate practice. Then what exactly is deliberate practice?

Simply put, it means practicing, rehearsing or working for growth with a clearly defined improvement goal in mind. 

And the simple litmus test for the effectiveness of this self-training is that after your practice session; ask yourself whether you have achieved your predetermined objective or not. If you haven’t, you have merely put in the time, and yes, you may have practiced, but you have clearly not done it thoroughly—deliberately enough.

Practical Example on Writing Well:

As a writer, you should set a goal for the month to learn and master a specific fundamental of your craft. Choose one: like a specific style or a particular punctuation. Mind you, it is easy to write for years without mastering this fundamental element of professional writing, and still consider yourself a careful writer. 

However, when rubber meets the road and you face the assessment of real pros, you will suddenly be convinced that you are merely a quack, an amateur and a dilettante. To be an authentic expert, you MUST learn and do what the true masters learn and do; there is simply no way around it.

The finest in the world have neither two heads nor anything supernatural, they have only learnt the key to becoming outstanding at what they do best. And that key is deliberate practice: thorough practice. It is the very essence of genius in all calling of value. 

Finally, it can be quite tempting for us to rest on our laurels, never opting for the discomfort of growth. But if we strive to move out of our comfort zone and commit to deliberate practice, even if it means we have to risk and redefine failure on our own journey towards mastery. We can experience the fringe rewards reserved for the truly exceptional masters of their crafts as described by the American writer, Julia McNair Wright. She concludes that: "Reaching toward perfection in any one thing should lift us higher in all things; it should beget a habit of application and thoroughness."

Starve Procrastination with Salami-Slicing Tactic

“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest of diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy.”—Wayne Gretzky

Once, I had a personal project to accomplish within a relatively short period of time, brimming with gusto I made a public announcement to family and friends; I to them to hold me accountable for the self-chosen deadline.

However, after few weeks of animated work, my motion waned. I was suddenly inundated with distractions here and there. So I put off the task for while. Eventually, the initial deadline turned out to be a line in the sand—it was blown away; it was missed.

The above silly story illustrates what the psychologists call procrastination. And I want to guess that every one of my readers has experienced something like that, in at least a single area of their lives.  There is hardly any human alive who is completely free from the threat of procrastination; however, the trick of proactive doers is that they know how to starve it before it could get the best of them. And that’s what I want to share here today.

On my earlier narrative, as you would expect, the task became much more difficult than it actually was. And, that experience proves the words of Charles Kingsley, the English historian and novelist, perfectly. Charles said: “Every duty which is bidden to wait returns with seven fresh duties at its back.” 

Now, if procrastination is this degenerative, wouldn’t you agree that we should learn every tactic of execution in town to stifle this insidious enemy of productivity? I think you would.

 To do that, let’s take a look at a roll of Salami.

Salami Slicing

To tackle procrastination, I tried a method of work that is simple and effective at getting stuff done—whether big or small. It is called Salami slicing technique. 

If you are curious to know the meaning of Salami itself, it is an Italian sausage made of beef and the process of eating it involves slicing them into pieces, after which you take it, one slice at a time. Even a full order of Salami—just like a loaf of bread—will be consumed by us (I mean, me and you) in no time, if we take it, one slice at a time.

Actually, the term is a real concept in the art and study of execution; it is not something I coined by myself. I read it first in Brian Tracy’s book, “Eat That Frog.” In the book, he said that it is always easier to complete any huge task when you “Salami slice it,” and tackle it, one at a time.

Tracy explains:

“One technique that you can use to cut a big task down to size is the ‘salami slice’ method of getting work done; with this method, you lay out the task in detail and then resolve to do just one slice of the job for the time being.”

In the art of war, it is also a warfare strategy that uses a systematic process to divide an opposition into slices and then tackle the division, slice by slice. Before your opponent realizes what is happening, you have already gained the upper hand. You have won. 

Therefore, through this approach, you can conquer a gigantic task (or opposition) by slicing it into manageable pieces and taking it down, piece by piece until the monstrous challenge becomes a walk in the park. Trust me, this method works. 

Ostensibly, a huge task can be somewhat dreadful and that is invariably, one of the most common causes of procrastination. But the thing is when you fail to start your work on time because it is hard, does the delay make it any easier? Of course not, the wait does quite the opposite.  It only makes the task harder than it already is. And that is the last thing you want. On this, the French poet, Charles Baudelaire agrees. He said: “The task on which one dare not start… (soon) becomes a nightmare.”

Break It Down, Focus and Act

Salami slicing is very effective and it is one of the key tactics used by many highly successful people in the world. They do the tasks the rest of us habitually put off because they know how to get started, they know how to get going, and most importantly, they know how to get things done. And all through these stages of work, simplification through slicing is the trick. 

On this surprisingly powerful skill, the American novelist, Mark Twain had this modicum to add. He said:

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small, manageable tasks, and starting on the first one.”

From the foregoing, it is clear that to overcome the inertia which a complex task may bring, just slice the major job into smaller portions and tackle it all, one portion, at a time. 

Whether in school at work or even at home, always use this technique to break the crippling spell of procrastination and see yourself among the elites of super-productive people who can accomplish anything they set their minds to. Truly, if you can defeat delay, you can join the best global professionals in your field.

Norman Vincent Peale, the best-selling author of “The Power of Positive Thinking,” described those proactive doers as people, “who have broken the chains of procrastination, those who find satisfaction in doing the job at hand… (they are) full of eagerness, zest, (and) productivity.” And he enthusiastically concluded that, “You can be, too.”

Yes, we can also become proactive doers for life because we now know how to simplify, focus and act.

Instead of Engaging in Arguments, Respond with a Sublime Example

"It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument."--William Gibbs McAdoo

There is one thing emotionally intelligent people really understand that a lot of people do not, and it is this: life is too short to engage in any form of fruitless arguments. If you think carefully about it, you will realize that most of our arguments fall into that category. And with this understanding, people with high emotional quotient conduct their affairs differently from the way many of us do. 

In order to encourage us to think and act like people with high EQ, I have decided to write this article to express a decent way to handle discussions including—or especially—the sensitive ones, both at home and in business. 

On that, I have consulted the work of Dale Carnegie, the author of, “How to Win Friends and Influence People." Evidently, Carnegie was one of the best masters on positively influencing people. In the book, he gives us many tips on how to relate and work well with others. Out of those priceless gems, I want to borrow just two rules for the purpose of this topic. 

And they are:

Rule One:  "The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it."

Rule Two:  “The best argument is that which seems merely an explanation.”

Now let’s examine them in broader details.

Rule One: Avoid Arguments

Make it a personal rule to never, ever argue with anyone. If you consider the fact that arguments are rarely fruitful, and sometimes they can degenerate into very costly distractions, this idea makes sense. With that in mind, I think, a more matured way to engage in conversations is to present your views; state what you know with sincerity for the purpose of true enlightenment. And if another person shows up with something better than what you stated; be humble, acknowledge the truth and salute the other person for his or her superior understanding. Don’t be the unreasonable one—never argue!

But if another person fiercely opposes you with a full load of baloney— and let’s be honest here, sometimes it is obvious what nonsense is, even to the stubborn “nonsense” peddler— remember rule one at once and merely smile and let things be. Just hope in your mind that he thinks again by himself to comprehend what he must have missed. You can’t force anyone to do this—it is an inside job.

Subdue your ego and never argue; know that you can’t win an argument with obstinate folks. You will only waste your time in unproductive discussions. This is why the British writer and Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli said, “Never argue. In society nothing must be; give only results. If any person differs from you, bow, and turn the conversation."

Rule Two: Be Constructive and Tactful

Joseph Grenny, the New York Times bestselling author of “Crucial Conversations” and the cofounder of VitalSmarts says that our ability to manage moments of conflict determines to a great extent, our maturity and the level of respect we can earn from other people. This is a big deal to truly successful individuals. Grenny says: 

“Conflict typically boils down to crucial conversations—moments when the stakes are high, emotions run strong and op­­­­­­­inions differ. And you cannot master crucial conversations without a high degree of emotional intelligence (EQ).”

And here is where the second rule of civility comes in. Even though, we have decided never to argue, yes. But in the real world, some situations will drag us right into the center of tension for a while, before we can consciously call ourselves back to order. Practically, those are the moments you need to apply rule two quite tactfully. 

You do that by simply presenting again and again, a constructive and humble explanation of your position to calm tension and let the other parties feel appeased. In that way, you can create serenity in the hall, and likely earn the respect of other people. On this, the wise Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of United States said:

 “Those disputing, contradicting, and confuting people are generally unfortunate in their affairs. They get victory, sometimes, but they never get good will, which would be of more use to them.”

In Conclusion

When you apply these two rules of engagement with people in day-to-day living, you will literally take on a new identity. You will become someone who is always dealing with people by looking at things from their own points of view; someone who is always willing to keep quiet for the sake of decency, even when you know you are right. 

You will become someone who is always willing to let people win, even when they have irrationally played to lose; someone who understands well the advice of Marcus Aurelius, and uses it daily in all his or her relationships.  And the counsel of the last of the good Roman emperors was: "Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one."