daily reflections: practice does not make perfect

We learn from young that practice makes perfect. But that’s not always the case. For the past three years, I have done over 100 social media videos and I don’t think I’ve gotten much better. Maybe slightly better, but nothing close to being good at it. And I hate that.

It’s tough when you keep putting in the work and get nothing out of it. And I know it’s not limited to my experience. You’ve probably seen from people around you how some really hardworking people struggle to achieve significant results. But why does this happen?

So I went to dive deeper into it and find out why this happens…

What I discovered was that practice alone isn’t enough. The right practice matters. So why do people often say “get your first 100 reps in”? Because most people struggle to even practice, and this is often quick advice tailored to the masses.

But the truth is that practice alone is insufficient. If it was, experts would be those with years of experience but we know that even with age, some people are more skilled than others.

Deliberate practice 
Or how to actually get better

Deliberate practice is a focused, structured, and intentional approach to skill improvement. It involves activities specifically designed to improve performance, often guided by feedback and repetition.

• Specific Goals: Set clear, measurable, and actionable objectives to address areas of weakness or gaps in performance.

• High Focus and Effort: Engage in practice sessions with full concentration, avoiding distractions to maximize effectiveness.

• Immediate Feedback: Seek timely feedback from coaches, peers, or self-evaluation to identify mistakes and make adjustments.

• Repetition with Refinement: Repeat tasks while making incremental improvements. It’s not about doing the same thing over and over but refining techniques and strategies.

• Challenging Tasks: Practice at the edge of your current abilities to push boundaries without overwhelming yourself.

• Mental Models: Build a deep understanding of the skill or subject, identifying patterns and anticipating challenges.

• Consistent Practice: Maintain a regular schedule for practice to reinforce learning and sustain progress over time.

The most important trait of deliberate practice is this: it has to be mentally and/or physically demanding. Why? Because that’s a clear sign that you’re learning, growing or going out of your comfort zone.

Of course, you want to be progressing in the right direction - and that requires a coach, or a clear objective for each training session that aligns with your long-term goals.

Think about those times when you were practising - were you just going through the motion? Or were you actually fully-focused on how to get better and achieve your objective?

Make it count 
Or not at all

The times when I improved the most was when I had a clear plan for practice. I was studying for a big exam and had only two months left to catch up on nearly the entire syllabus. So I wrote each day which concept I would study, and more importantly, how I would test myself to figure out that I’ve actually learnt that particular concept — or more commonly known as feedback.

I would spend 8 hours a day at school, remove all distractions and just put my head down to study. It was crazy tiring and draining but I got into the habit of doing it over and over again. And thankfully, I had the support of my family and friends. It also helped that I knew how to study.

But rarely was there a second time I did something like this - whether for learning a new sport or figuring out content creation. And on hindsight, the reason why I couldn’t get better was that I was missing at least 5 of the elements of deliberate practice mentioned above.

And precisely because it’s hard, you can’t do it for long.

It’s not about the hours - it’s about the quality of practice. Of course, more practice is always good but if you were to choose between 2 hours of deliberate practice and 4 hours of mindless practice — go for the former.

This is also why doing a bit daily beats doing a lot on just a few days. And also why it takes a long time.

So here’s how to get started:

1. Identify a specific skill you want to improve.

2. Break it into smaller, manageable components.

3. Develop a structured plan for practice.

4. Track your progress and adjust based on feedback.

5. Stay patient and consistent—deliberate practice is a long-term process.

Training like an athlete 
Or the value of patience

Practice has been used so often that sometimes people think it’s just doing. So think of deliberate practice as a form of training — where there is usually a goal for the training, a clear plan on how to achieve the goal, and a review afterwards on whether the goal was achieved. In addition, training often requires focus and concentration, and ideally feedback is provided throughout the session.

The reason why sports training is so easy for us to grasp is because the objective and measurement are often quite obvious:

• Objective: to win — whether it’s running faster, lifting heavier, or beating the opponent

• Measurement: how to measure progress, or winning

But we often can’t measure as easily when it comes to starting a business or creating great content. There’s a lot of reasons why:

• How much the result is within our control

• How long the feedback loop is

It feels harder because the result feels further away from our conscious control, and there’s more factors at play such as other stakeholders, external influences and more. It becomes more of a game of probability, where one keeps doing and getting better until it finally works — or the tipping point.

And no one can be sure where this point is. Some people find it earlier while others later. It may or may not mean that those people are more capable.

Either way, the training process is the same — keep doing it, and get better each time. Those who win are simply those patient and discipline enough to repeat the whole process until it works. Because it will. Unless you quit.

And that’s it for today. Thanks for reading.

You can’t lose if you don’t quit,
Joesurf