It isn’t 10,000 hours, but 10,000 iterations.

It isn’t 10,000 hours that creates outliers, it’s 10,000 iterations.

It isn't 10,000 experiences that creates wisdom, its 10,000 reflections.

We want the invention without the iteration, wisdom without the wrinkles, the triceps without the try...

10,000 hours with the wrong approach is a vanity metric.

And what happens when you focus on the vanity metrics?

Observe this problem magnified on an institutional level. We value clicks, likes/retweets over privacy. President values ratings over public health.

We’re driven by lagging indicators & then debate if it’s the 🐓 or the 🥚

Agreed. It's a shame that likes ect are portrayed as being valuable. They reflect your reach but not your character.

Unfortunately it's reach and not character that institutions will typically reward with status, perpetuating a cycle of chasing and promoting vanity metrics

It isn't 10,000 books that creates knowledge, its 10,000 interpretations

you can have 10K experiences without that much reflection and that's the delta.

Reflection, crucially, is about observation before judgment.

It isn’t 10,000 hours or experiences, but 10,000 reflections iterated.

It’s both experiences and reflections. Stop saying things that sound profound but aren’t

Reflection is embodied.

"I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has 10,000 legs." - Bruce Lee

Mindless practice is time wasted.

Mindful practice is happy time.


As someone who has tried to learn music this way, I agree wholeheartedly. Without mindful and clear observation and practice, we don't complete the vital feedback loop required for effective learning.

Practice done for practice's sake is futile.

In order to learn from experience, two ingredients are necessary:

- Frequent practice
- Immediate feedback

Look for feedback loops to make adjustments and thus improve.

I see you make music:
- Put your ideas on the internet, even if they are not finished
- Ask for opinion
- Networking and send them your recordings
- Self edit and publish demos
...

It is not the hours of the work but the work in the hours.

Iterate, don't repeat.

What if you can find the answer in 5000 iterations, are you lucky?

No you're not. You learned fast

If there's only one answer, then no, you just learned faster.

If there's more than one answer, you are learning fast but keep going.

... Keep going anyway.

You probably know the answer! Genetics, quality of coaching, social support, and health habit factors.

Human performance is what I do.

You have to approach perfection to realize you cannot approach perfection.

Perfection is a resolution fallacy, and resolution is experience.

This is why visualizations are so powerful. Can conceive many of the iterations simply mentally.

Visual simulation

10,000 mindful iterations to mastery

Iteration >>>>> mere repetition

(Where iteration = repetition * feedback)

Once had a wrestling coach tell me, 'It's not practice that makes perfect, perfect practice makes perfect.' Not how I would put it, but it makes sense. You don't get points for showing up, you must apply yourself

Learning about some of the ways a system fails will help reveal the importance of foundational components within the way(s) it can succeed.


Hit. Fail.
Hit. Fail.
Hit. Fail.
... (9996 more times)
Hit." Eureka Eureka"

No luck.
Only work

'Isn't always 10,000 iterations. In Standup comedy we do the same set over and over for an extended period of time. In fact it's doing exactly the same thing over that installs it in our heads allows experiment and a new bit comes spontaneously the 101st time. More like 1000*10

It isn’t a number. It’s sustained, deliberate practice. Ericsson>Gladwell