It Takes 10,000 Hours
Did you know that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master something? Yes, you heard that right. It takes about 10,000 hours of practice to achieve a world class mastery of anything.
This information came from the book Outliers, and the author, Malcolm Gladwell, mentioned that talents are certainly a key ingredient in the recipe for success, but there is also another key which is practice.
In this episode, I’d like to share with you the perspective of why there’s no such thing as perfection. As it was said in the book, 10,000 hours is the minimum to be a master of something, and most of us will probably not have the time or spend this time to be an expert. And just like in parenting, we need to throw away this notion of being the perfect parent, instead we should replace it with progressing.
Focus On The Progress
There's no such thing as perfect, right? It's all about progressing. Am I progressing with whatever skill I have? Or am I prioritizing my parenthood journey right now? That's what's important. It's all about focusing on the progress. This took off a lot of pressure from the thought of having to be perfect all the time. There's no such thing as perfection but there is progress.
Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone
Comfort is such a good place to be in, a safe place in other words. But comfort doesn’t give you progress. And to progress means you have to constantly practice.
In my experience, I’ve been comfortable with my 9-5 job and my coaching business for a while. And before I got there, it took me a lot of personal development, I focused on boosting my confidence and then I invested in learning the skills. But after that I remained stagnant.
Because I was so comfortable, I haven’t really prioritized what I need to do to level up or grow more. With my two jobs, I was comfortable but I wasn’t in the place I really wanted to be. I realized I need to practice mastering the skill of how to present myself and tell better stories. That gave me the perspective that it's all about practicing.
It’s All About The Journey
Before, my destination used to be to become the perfect coach, perfect employee, perfect scientist, perfect mom or a perfect parent. But in reality, there’s no such thing as perfect, there’s only room to improve and the journey to take you there.
Aim to be better than what you used to be yesterday. It’s the you yesterday versus the you now. And as parents, it’s important for us to model this to our kids because oftentimes when they see us comparing ourselves with others or when they see us sabotaging ourselves, they get the energy.
It’s Never Too Late
Take this shift of perspective and practice. If you want to master a skill, you’re gonna have to invest about 10,000 hours if we want to master a skill. You might think it's too late now but it's never too late, start repairing. Same with parenthood, it’s never too late to sit down with your child and repair your relationship.
Nobody is a perfect parent, but all of us can be a better parent. Keep improving and you’ll get there. Remember, whether it's about parenting, career, or in life, all you have to do is practice. You don’t need to be perfect, you just need to be a better person each time.
Resource Mentioned:
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell