Greetings to all who came over from Puttylike. You should enjoy this. You can never learn too many skills, right?

One day I was visiting several booths at a wellness fair. One guy was showing his mental exercise program which was supposed enhance skill and productivity for careers and businesses.

He had me do an exercise where I twiddled my pointed fingers from both hands in a circle. Then had me circle them opposite directions. This was the challenge. I really had to slow down for a few seconds and patiently focus, but then eventually got it.

He was amazed that I had caught on so fast, and I told him I’d studied music and martial arts, both of which break down a skill and force you to start the mental processes at the beginning in order to accomplish difficult techniques later on. Somehow I’d patiently broken down the skill in my brain and it came fairly soon.

Natural Talent? Overrated…

There seems to be a common viewpoint that skills are for “naturals”. You know certain sports are for “athletic” types, programming is for “smart people” and learning an instrument is for “creative” types.

People say I have great rhythm. What they don’t know is how bad my rhythm used to be and how many hours I spent in front of a metronome at a very slow pace to get it right.

Do you think that Arthur Rubenstein just sat at a piano and immediately played Chopin’s Polonaises? You can bet he put his time in.

Believe it or not there was a time when Chuck Norris first learned to kick. Chuck Norris puts his pants on one leg at a time just like the rest of us, but then, he kills people…

So just like I solved the finger exercise, when learning a skill, slow it down and focus. Believe it or not, you can learn a skill faster this way, rather than getting frustrated.

This works best with skills like music, mathematics, fitness activities like running or weightlifting, martial arts, and grammar. You can even apply it to social skills. Practice smalltalk with strangers every day and you’ll find yourself more and more outgoing with time.

Usually the main conventions for learning will be ideal. But it’s not set in stone. If you figure out an easier way to learn technique, keep excellence, and would be able to to apply that same technique to grow further than you are right now, then by all means go for it. You developed a hack. Please share with the rest of us. I’d like to know!

There’s all kinds of resources to help you as well. I’m constantly listening to audiobooks and podcasts of something I’m trying to learn while I do something else. The library has books, dvds, audio and whatever format works best for you.

Most of all develop a hunger for learning. Be so hungry you’ll devour the knowledge.

So hey, don’t use the “natural talent” excuse. Now you can do this yourself!