How To Successfully Work On Becoming An Expert At Your Craft
Written by our professional Digital Nomad, David Heiling. (Yes! he lives the life!)
Digital Marketing Expert?
Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat - I am not claiming to be an expert at my craft (which, as you may have figured out, is writing). That being said, I believe I know how to continually improve upon my skills to become better and better each day.
If you get one percent better every month, you can become an expert in multiple crafts before it’s all said and done. No, this doesn’t mean you have to go to your online shopping app and find the thickest, densest textbook in your area of interest and sit at a table thumbing through the pages for the next five years. That would be terrible.
Everyone learns differently. I, for example, am addicted to learning. I believe online courses and thought leader seminars are a great way to brush up on the trends of the era and keep vigilant. I work on my writing skills every single week and have for the past decade.
The result? I have my own freelancing writing business and get paid to travel the world with my computer and brain. Not bad, right?
This isn’t a solve-it-all guide on how to become an excellent software engineer in a few days. This is a guide to effectively and efficiently work on becoming an expert in your chosen craft.
Find your craft
It’s decision time. We all have to start somewhere.
When I was a kid, I wanted to play professional basketball. That fizzled out when I was about a sophomore in high school when I realized that even if I tried hard, I couldn’t touch the net when I jumped.
So I chose writing.
Some people want to find their calling in life; others are perfectly content doing what they are good at. Whether your craft is welding, artisanry, carpentry, marketing, software, or rocket science, find the craft that you will focus on and make your career path a singular one.
Find a mentor
The Karate Kid had Mr. Miyagi. Bill Gates had Warren Buffet. Luke had Yoda.
No matter how smart you think you are or how successful you believe you will be, there is someone on this planet who has done what you want to do better than you can imagine. Find those people.
My formal training is in journalism. When I was a sports reporter for the Seattle Times in the United States, there was another reporter named Jacob. He exuded an air of confidence about interviewing professional athletes while I was deathly nervous of being in the same room with some of my childhood idols in a professional setting. All I wanted to do was get autographs.
Jacob set me on the right path on how to handle the business in a professional way.
This example is important for a few reasons.
● Not all learning needs to be specifically related to specific job-related tasks.
● Mindset is a crucial part of the equation.
● Fostering relationships with other people in your intended field has immeasurable value.
Jacob now is the editor of a daily newspaper in San Francisco.
Often, people think of a singular role model when thinking of mentorship; don’t put yourself in this box. Reach out to multiple people in your field and you will reap the benefits of different styles, niches, and mindsets.
Practice, practice, practice
You’ve heard this one before and are maybe sick of hearing it.
There is no get-smart-quick scheme in life. You have to put in the time and effort to show your expertise in any field or way of life.
Do you think Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo got amazingly talented at football with otherworldly human physique by just talking to a few good soccer players?
No chance. They had to work for it.
So do you.
Malcolm Gladwell is the author of “Outliers” and estimates it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become fully adept enough at something to be considered an expert.
Let’s do some math.
Let’s say you work 40 hours a week for 50 weeks each year. If you dedicate every waking moment you are at work to a specific craft, it will take five years to become an expert. Work on the particular craft in question for 20 hours per week, and it will take ten years.
You get the idea.
How bad do you want it?
If you believe you love your craft so much, five to ten years is a reasonable amount of time to become an expert. It takes dedication, discipline, and focus. You can’t give up after a few weeks.
Becoming an expert requires a sincere, genuine desire to do the work. If you aren’t passionate about something, you won’t become an expert at it.
Reevaluate your friendships
Maybe all of your friends are CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. Somehow, I doubt it.
Personal development specialist Jim Rohn says that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with.
Wow. Let that sink in for a few moments.
If the five people closest to you have bad habits, are lazy, or bring you down emotionally or psychologically, it’s time to boot those people from your life. Insert more professional-minded and hard-working individuals and watch your productivity and happiness levels skyrocket.
If you are dedicated to becoming an expert in your craft, surround yourself with smart individuals who also have goals and aspirations. Their influence will rub off on you and vice versa. It’s a great way to keep each other accountable.
Learn from your failure
For most people, failure sucks. You get bad feedback on a project, task, or performance, and you feel sad. All of your hard work, and for what?
Some of the most successful people worldwide have one trait in common: They learn from failure and allow it to lift them up.
This may sound counterintuitive, but I assure you that learning from failure increases your emotional intelligence and allows you valuable learning lessons.
The old adage still rings true: No one is perfect.
As much as you believe your parents, children, pets, boss, or spouse are perfect in every way, they’re not.
Learning to accept your failure is a valuable first step to growth. For example, here are a few of the failures I have encountered in my writing career:
● Rejected admission to my top 5 universities.
● Failed my first journalism class.
● Was passed up for not one, not two, but six scholarships.
● Lost the school newspaper editor election three times.
● Lost the annual collegiate professional fellowship three times.
● Was rejected in my first 14 professional interviews post-college.
● Was rejected for publication by 103 book publishers.
At first, it was incredibly difficult to accept failure. But now, I take it head-on and ask questions about why I failed, and I add it to my whiteboard.
Failure can be an incredibly strong motivator. Fuel your fire.
Take it easy, and relax
Maybe after reading this, you get very inspired and can’t wait to start working toward becoming an expert in your craft.
You do the math and figure if you work for 120 hours a week for the next two years, you can become an expert very quickly.
Pump the brakes. Burnout is a real thing.
Think of the human body as a car and personal wellbeing as its fuel. To zoom down the highway of life, you need to take care of your physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing. Otherwise, you will be on the side of the road with your hazard lights on, waiting for someone to rescue you.
Stress, anxiety, a lack of physical fitness, and an absence of love and affection can all put incredible damage on your mind and body. Don’t try to become an expert in the next year. You may cause irreparable harm to yourself and your loved ones if you do.
Pay it forward
I am somewhat active on social media and share both my professional and personal journey with my followers. Some people are amazed that I can travel full time and work from my computer, while others scoff at the idea that I live the lifestyle I show.
There will always be interested people looking for help or advice and other people that resent you for your lifestyle decisions.
When I first started my digital nomad lifestyle, I researched, looked up, and contacted a few world travelers that were doing exactly what I wanted to do. They gave me the inspiration, the gall, and the confidence that it was possible if I followed specific steps.
I also followed and reached out to famous bloggers across the internet on the tips and tricks they implemented to become successful travel writers.
Without their help, I would not be where I am today.
I choose to pay it forward.
Pay it forward is a concept that you repay the people who helped you by helping others down the line.
Assisting others to reach their goals gives me immense pleasure and also helps my network grow even further.