But with just 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice, you can go from knowing absolutely nothing to performing pretty well. Here’s how:
Step 1
Deconstruct the skill. The more you can break down a skill into parts, the more you can find the most important bits to practice first.
Step 2
Self-correct. Use reference materials to learn just enough that you know when you’re making a mistake and can correct yourself.
Step 3
Remove barriers to learning. Identify and remove anything that distracts you from focusing on the skill you want to learn. Don’t procrastinate on Wikipedia.
Step 4
Practice for 20 hours. This equals about 40 minutes a day for a month. “I don’t have time” just got blown out the water.
What was the last thing that you taught yourself?