Often, we hear that a friend we haven't seen in a while has achieved something new or completed a difficult goal, and we look upon them with admiration. We find ourselves sighing, "They're really excellent," "They're really amazing," and we become curious—why, given that we've had the same amount of time, haven't we achieved much? We can only lament about how unfair society is.
In reality, many talents and abilities are not innate. Rather, they come from people quietly working hard through "deliberate practice" and "committed change," which allows them to eventually share their hard-won results with others and receive recognition.
In the book Deliberate Practice, there's a concept called "goal-directed practice"—you must step out of your comfort zone or you won't progress. Goal-directed practice means improving bit by bit. For example, if our big goal is to "memorize 100 number sequences at once," we first set a deadline, then break the goal into smaller milestones. Maybe the first week is memorizing 10 numbers consecutively, then adding 5 more each week. When facing difficulties or plateaus, we change our approach—like using different codes to memorize numbers, or assigning meaning to them rather than treating them as mere digits.
The book mentions a graduate student who, during number memorization training, encountered a plateau but didn't give up. Instead, they changed their method and found an approach suited to themselves to achieve their goal. When others tried to follow the same method, they couldn't succeed. This tells us that each person has different personalities and modes suited to them. You don't necessarily have to follow the path others have walked or the methods they've developed. Sometimes, following what others think and say becomes a form of forcing yourself.
I bought this book not because it's famous or bestselling, but because a year ago, I stepped into a company I'd dreamed of since my student days. By coincidence, I gained such insights. At first, I felt overwhelming pain and immense pressure—I even cried openly at the company without regard for my image. When I got home, I needed time to adjust my emotions before I could regain my composure.
Now, a full year has passed. Throughout this process, my work—which was once criticized everywhere—has gradually become larger in scale and more substantial in depth. Of course, I'm not boasting about how well I've progressed or how flawless I've become, but through this process, I discovered that trying to get the same results using the same method is nonsense. At that time, a friend who was also lost on her journey asked for my thoughts, and I told her, "You have to deliberately change in order to make obvious progress." It's easy for others to see our flaws and areas for improvement. If we know the problems but don't take steps to adjust, we won't progress.
However, when we're in a period of transition, feelings of unease and uncertainty often accompany us. At such moments, we must make clear that when these feelings arise, "we are growing," and that's a good thing!
Though I've endured a period of insecurity and am now entering another phase of panic, with some discomfort both mentally and physically, I only need to think back to how I got through the past and how many people around me supported me, and I find myself growing braver and stronger.
↓ Let me share with you something I'm currently working hard on. I'm still a beginner, but I'm gradually improving.
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