If you’ve never heard of the concept of deliberate practice, then allow me to explain. This is an idea that appeared in a book written by Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool called ‘Peak,’ and they claim that this will change your life.
The idea is to step outside your comfort zone in a deliberate manner and try things that you know go beyond your normal abilities. This may sound uncomfortable, but it’s all about pushing your boundaries, which is never easy even though this is in a controlled manner.
While this may sound interesting, knowing how to make it work for you will be key.
When faced with something that is difficult or troubling, we tend to practice over and over again. This rehearsal is supposed to make things easier for us, but it’s stressful and it won’t always work.
The principles of the deliberate practice approach will involve you breaking down whatever is troubling you into smaller segments. Then, you practice the first segment one day, the second segment the following and so on. Once you have covered each segment, you practice the transitions between two segments.
By the time you have completed each part, you have a better understanding of what is required, and your confidence in achieving your goals also improves.
To help you avoid making mistakes, as Informeo advises, I’ve put together several important steps that will make life a whole lot easier.
No matter what you try to do, breaking it down into those small sections is important. This may take a few attempts for you to break things down correctly, but it changes the way in which you perceive the task in front of you.
The next step is to understand each part. Do your research. Study what others do in the same situation and copy their actions. Master each segment individually as this then makes the entire task seem more probable.
One thing I do recommend is the idea of getting an expert in whatever is troubling for you and get them to coach you. The important point here is to get some kind of feedback and to then take action on it. Feedback allows you to perfect those areas that are not up to scratch and to stop them from continuing as a problem.
The final step is to try to use a direct source as part of your deliberate practice. Imagine learning a language as an example. You could buy a program to learn and repeat those phrases back to yourself. Sure, you will learn it but it would sound fake and it makes it harder to move away from those set sentences.
On the other hand, you could speak to a native speaker of that language. They can correct you, make suggestions on the better way to say something and you will discover that you learn in a more fluid manner and in a shorter period of time.
Ultimately, deliberate practice is a focused form of learning. It removes the stress of looking at something as a whole. We make ourselves nervous when looking at the bigger picture and give ourselves a huge mountain to climb. Is it any surprise that we struggle?
This approach allows you to circumvent those problems. It allows you to learn in a more structured manner that is easier for us to remember. As each segment is perfected, we discover that our overall ability improves and nothing seems to be as complex as it once was. With this approach, you will see a major difference in how you tackle any issues.
Jeremiah Owyang is an entrpereneur