Deliberate practice is a purposeful action. It doesn’t involve blind repetition but unfolds around clear and definite goals.

For example, a chess player may aim to quickly find the winning strategy in complex endgame situations. To achieve this goal, he will specifically study various types of endgames and analyze the possible moves and their consequences at each step.

This targeted training makes each practice session a solid step towards the goal. Only by practicing with such clear goals can one accumulate effective experience and thus achieve a substantial improvement in ability.

Stepping out of the comfort zone is a core requirement of deliberate practice. The comfort zone is the area we are familiar with and can handle easily, but within this zone, the room for ability growth is extremely limited.

Take athletes as an example. When they maintain an easily achievable training intensity for a long time, it’s very difficult for their physical fitness and skill levels to improve further. Only by constantly challenging higher difficulties, such as a sprinter attempting a faster sprinting speed or a weightlifter increasing the weight of the barbell, can they break through their original limits both physically and psychologically through this deliberate practice.

Concentration is an indispensable element in deliberate practice. During the practice process, distractions will greatly reduce the effectiveness of the practice. True deliberate practice requires wholehearted dedication, with every movement and every thought closely centered around the practice content.

There should be feedback for each practice session. Based on the feedback, we can promptly adjust the practice methods, make up for deficiencies, and consolidate strengths, thereby making the practice more targeted and accelerating the pace towards excellence.

Deliberate practice is a long and arduous process, during which numerous setbacks and difficulties will be encountered, and it’s easy to give up halfway. This requires us to have continuous motivation, which can support practitioners to keep moving forward on the path of deliberate practice.

In various industries, we can witness the miracles created by deliberate practice. In the medical field, young doctors gradually grow into highly skilled experts through countless case analyses and surgical practices, saving countless lives. In the programming field, programmers continuously challenge complex algorithms and projects and improve their programming abilities by continuously enhancing code quality, contributing to the development of science and technology.

These outstanding individuals have proven with their actions that deliberate practice is a reliable path to excellence.

Regardless of the starting point, as long as we have goals, dare to step out of the comfort zone, maintain concentration, value feedback, and possess continuous motivation, we can embark on an excellent journey on the path we choose through deliberate practice and create our own glory.