One of the recurring themes of this blog is to become an expert at something, you not only need to practice; you need to think about how it went and make adjustments. Doing something 1,000 times the same way does not make your performance better, but doing something 1,000 times and thoughtfully varying how you do it over time will.
Kevin Eikenberry (hat tip
Stephen Smith) suggests a way to do the "think about" part is to keep a journal:
"Asking yourself the right questions – and answering them – creates the lessons and insights; writing them down in your journal solidifies them and makes them yours forever. Ask yourself questions like:
- What happened?
- Why?
- What is the lesson?
- How can I apply this to another situation?
- What could I do differently next time?
- How could this problem/challenge/issue be solved/removed?"
You may, as Kevin notes, think that journaling is something teenage girls do. If it makes you more comfortable, these questions are very similar to those used in an
After Action Review, a debriefing approach originally developed by the
US Army and now used throughout our Armed Forces. If the technique saves lives, it can probably improve your performance too.
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