“How do I do so-and-so?“
• “Good advice ain’t free, and free advice ain’t good.”
• “There’s a right way, a wrong way, and my way.”
• “I could tell you, but I’d have to kill you.”
• “Figure it out yourself. I had to.”
• “Wouldn’t YOU like to know.”
Acquiring knowledge, fast-food style.
Gaining access to technical information used to be time consuming, but not anymore. Compact videos referred to as shorts, snippets, and reels offer up plenty of information. Sometimes the info is spot-on, but other times, not so much. An endless supply of written advice is also available, via online communities, chatrooms, and groups. These outlets typically include comments that are loaded with clashing opinions (e.g., “Do not do what this guy says to do!”)
Experience the thrill of learning.
“Just show me the basics. I can figure out the rest.” Learning by doing delivers maximum retention of one’s newfound knowledge, and is critical to improving dexterity (manually accomplishing a task). A can-do attitude is to be applauded, and besides: not every task requires a craftsman’s touch. So don’t be scared– give it a try! Over the years, I’ve persuaded hundreds or thousands of guys & gals to polish their car’s paint, and with some hearty advice, only a very few instances of damage or disappointment have occurred.
Knowledge + Experience = Skill.
In its most basic form, knowledge paired with experience equals skill. And while an argument could be made that ambition and talent should be entered into the equation, I would categorize ambition as one’s willingness or desire to attain skill, and talent as an extraordinary knack or ability to grasp a concept, play an instrument, parley words into stories, etc.
“How will I know when I possess the skill to take on difficult tasks?”
Although the following tale doesn’t answer the question exactly, I think most of you will get the point. After all, it carried enough wisdom to cause me to tear the page from the magazine, which remains in my desk, to this day.
During an interview, a reporter asked the bank president for the secret of his success.
“Two words.”
“And what are they?”
“Right decisions.”
“How are right decisions made?”
“One word.”
“What is that?”
“Experience.”
“How do you get experience?”
“Two words.”
“What are they?”
“Wrong decisions.”
Taken Readers Digest, Laughter the Best Medicine.