The Worst Advice

Get 1% better every day. That's some of the worst advice I’ve ever been given. Sure, on the surface it makes sense. Creating a compound effect is usually a good thing. The problem? You can’t compound human performance in perpetuity. Eventually, you’ll hit a wall. A point at which 1% improvement is physically impossible. Here’s what happens to the number 50 when you compound it daily by 1%:

• 5 Years Later: 342

• 6 Years Later: 433

• 7 Years Later: 1,098

• 25 Years Later: 48,967

Exponential growth offered by compounding is not possible when it comes to human performance. So, logically, we can say that it is impossible to improve by 1% every day beyond a specific time frame. Metaphorically, we should understand that growth on an exponential growth curve is wishful thinking at best. Everyone who has ever achieved mastery knows that real growth takes many years of work and turmoil.

Maybe we could all get .01% better every day in perpetuity, but growth is a journey more than a steady progression. You may improve for 5 years and then hit a wall, experiencing minimal to no growth for a few months or even a year. However, after that period, you experience a massive increase in performance (you know, the feeling when things...click). That’s how human growth works (physically, we know this by looking at growth spurts), but we refuse to apply the same logic to learning and knowledge growth.

Getting better is a commitment to building rituals and habits that will generate results over time. Getting better is a journey, an unpredictable one that only offers success after navigating many detours and hazards. Don’t assume you can see growth on a steady curve. Growth comes in phases and spurts after the work has already been done.

Why is getting better a bad thing?

Getting better isn’t a bad thing. Trying to continually improve in one area is often a bad thing, though. You also need to understand the reality of progress. It isn’t exponential, and sometimes it’s regressive. You may have seen this image below from Adam Grant’s work. It shows the progress of learning a new skill. You often have to go backwards—becoming an apprentice again—before you can truly become a master of any skill. Some days, getting better just isn’t possible. Some days, it’s about revisiting and relearning past progress to maintain what progress has already been made. Thinking you have to move forward, relentlessly, each day is a recipe for burnout, chaos, and dissatisfaction.

Think About it Like This

Instead of 1% better every day, I like to think about how closely I’ve lived each day to my ideal vision. I focus on how present I was with my family, how much time and effort I put into communicating and nurturing my existing relationships, and what I learned today. Getting better is not just about improving your skills and abilities. Getting better is about gradually turning your ideal lifestyle into your reality. It’s often the chaos of everyday life that prevents us from becoming a better version of ourselves each day. So, don’t focus on measuring your growth, but focus on cultivating a systematic approach to building long-term success through consistent daily actions.

Reflection

1. What things or skills do I want to become an expert in?

   1. What habits and rituals can help me work on this skill every day?

2. What areas or skills have I given up on that I should reconsider?

Getting better isn’t a bad thing at all. We should all strive to become masters at something. Acknowledging that it takes a lot of time to become a master is the first step, followed closely by the realization that your growth cannot follow a path or pattern; it will occur haphazardly over time through a combination of skill, effort, luck, and circumstances.

What will you do to improve yourself today?

See you next week!

Rick