Whenever I’ve learned a new skill—whether it was writing, coding, or songwriting—there’s a formula that always worked better than brute force. It’s simple: Focused Practice → Feedback → Iteration.
Here’s how it works:
Focused Practice
Most people scatter their effort. They jump from random tutorials to scattered practice sessions. Instead, zoom in on one core skill at a time. If you’re learning to write, focus on crafting better openings. If you’re learning coding, focus on building a small feature, not an entire app.Feedback
Without feedback, you’re just reinforcing mistakes. Share your work with a peer, mentor, or even use AI tools to spot patterns. Feedback closes the gap between what you think you’re doing and what’s actually happening.Iteration
Here’s the key: don’t just take feedback once and move on. Cycle back. Try again. Improve one aspect at a time. Tiny iterations compound into fluency faster than sporadic “all-in” bursts.
Want to test this out? Pick one small skill this week. Dedicate 20 minutes to practice, ask someone for feedback, and then repeat the next day. Do this for five days straight—you’ll notice a shift.
Learning isn’t about talent. It’s about systems.
This 3-part formula makes me realize I’d grow much faster as a painter by focusing on small pieces, like perfecting my shading or experimenting with brushstrokes and then asking for feedback before moving on. Breaking it into this cycle makes the process feel so much less overwhelming. This is a great companion piece to your ebook that I’m about halfway through. Looking forward to putting all these helpful techniques to use Idris Elijah!
I recently launched a new X page and this process makes so much sense for content creation too. Instead of worrying about every aspect of growing, I’m going to focus on mastering one thing at a time, like stronger hooks, ask for feedback, then refine. Small cycles of progress feel way more achievable than trying to nail it all at once.Michael Jackson used to say he wanted every song to be like a short film. Reading this made me realize I want my X page to feel the same, where every post is its own performance. Thanks for these easy to follow tips Idris!