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dispatches from the new world of work

Acccccccelerated Learning:
The [Remarkable] Power of Screwing Up

I had a chance to preview Dan Coyle's forthcoming The Talent Code: Unlocking the Secret of Skill in Sports, Art, Music, Math, and Just About Anything. In short, I thought the book was a marvel—explaining pockets of amazing talent, such as Brazil and football-soccer, and, based in part on new findings in neuroscience, turning conventional ideas about teaching and learning on their head. I'll have more to say when The Talent Code appears, and Dan, I hope, will consent to becoming a Cool Friend. In a rather trivial (however, not to me at the time) way I had a chance to practice parts of what Dan discovered—and was stunned at the efficacy of his findings in this small case.

To wit:

Susan and I arrived in New Zealand about 10 days ago. Although we've been here several times before, I've found that it invariably takes almost a week, or possibly longer, to more or less adequately adjust to left-side driving. With a little bit of luck and Dan Coyle, I slashed the adjustment time this trip by perhaps a stunning 75 percent, maybe even 90 percent.

My typical approach is to head for as large a highway as possible and practice, in a low-pressure context, the fundamentals of driving on the "wrong" side; I delay tough situations as long as I can and go to great lengths to do so. This time, due to a badly botched interpretation of directions leaving the airport, I started out in intense traffic in a constrained space that included several rotaries; this amounted to a half hour in hell. In retrospect I call it the "Brazil breakthrough." (Though I was in New Zealand—the Brazilians have a small-scale version of football-soccer that requires learning numerous clever-intricate moves in the smallest of spaces; it is one of the keys to their national success in the sport.) That is, I did a ton of sophisticated practice at slow speed (traffic) in a very short time, "for real," on a very small "field." Call it a hundred maneuvers at "learning speed" in thirty minutes with about two kilometers of accumulated mileage.

That was lucky—and powerful. But I took full advantage of my luck by applying three of Dan Coyle's rules-findings that I have used before, more or less, but now used with mindfulness and a vengeance. First, I talked constantly-continuously-nonstop-out loud-loudly to myself about every twitch of what I was doing-experiencing. Second, I did so with special fervor and completeness when I made mistakes. And third, in the case of mistakes, I tried to repeat the screwed-up maneuver, within the bounds of safety, immediately. The monologue went something like this, as I said non-stop and loud: "You complete jackass, look left first." "Oh that was great, bonehead, you just cut the guy off." "Look left-left-left, idiot." "Try it again, here we go 'round—okay, go around again and see if you can do it better. Okay, dude, better." "Having fun driving in the left gutter, turkey—okay, let's risk it a little and watch ourselves in the rearview mirror. That's it, better, better, whoops, better, better." And so on. And on.

The four high-leverage tactics—small field "game" with complex maneuvers, constant self-talk, self-discussion re mistakes, followed by more quick tries*—resulted in a miracle of sorts, and in a "life or death" "game" at that.

By the time you read this I may have been in a head-on accident and be dead—overconfidence is a constant and deadly threat. But if I'm still around, I will have had a fascinating experience, and a powerful one. And one with extraordinary implications.

Cheers from Golden Bay, South Island, NZ.

Think left!

(*If there is a single key to Coyle's findings, it's "mistakes-based learning"—literally generating as many mistakes as possible as quickly as possible.)

Tom Peters posted this on 02/11/09.

Comments

Fantastic post! Thank you. Pretty funny too! Looking forward to the book.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 11, 2009 10:10 AM

That was a great post. Good way to analyze mistake-based learning. The quicker you make mistakes the quicker you learn how to avoid them and improve yourself. Sounds like a very interesting book as well.

Posted by Ryan Freed at February 11, 2009 1:51 PM

Are the "rotaries" you mention really what we users of the Queen's English (aka proper English) would refer to correctly as a roundabout?

Yours, slightly tongue in cheek... Have a great holiday.

Posted by Mark JF at February 11, 2009 2:22 PM

Thanks Tom for a great story.

From a ‘left hand side of the road driver’ here in the UK your story reminds me of the Englishman driving for the first time in France. He continued his English habit of driving on the left hand side of A2 trunk road. His wife rang him on his cell phone to warn him that she had just heard on the radio that there is a lunatic driving on the wrong side of the A2.

The blissfully unaware husband calmly replied

''Take it from me honey … there are hundreds of them not just the one"

Enjoy your break :-)

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 11, 2009 3:46 PM

Trevor - you're English. Do not, repeat, do not use such silly terms as "cell phone." It's a mobile. End of. Standards, man, standards!

Posted by Mark JF at February 11, 2009 4:56 PM

Sorry Mark - I Promise I will try harder - Mind you ... When in Rome and all that :-)

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 11, 2009 4:58 PM

Interesting book... will check it out eventually.

One interesting quote to take into account with Dan Coyle's
forthcoming The Talent Code is from Malcolm Gladwell's book,
"The Outliers" - that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to
master any skill, mistakes would probably accelerate this
process. In Outliers, Gladwell lists the hours of practice, for
example, by The Beatles, concert pianists, chess players,
hockey players and presents a fairly good case that
practice is the key to success in most fields.

Page 45: "The emerging picture from such studies is that ten
thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level
of mastery associated with being a world-class expert-in
anything," writes the neurologist Daniel Levitin.

"In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction
writers, ice skaters, concert pianists, chess players, mas-
ter criminals, and what have you, this number comes up
again and again. Of course, this doesn't address why some
people get more out of their practice sessions than others
do. But no one has yet found a case in which true world-
class expertise was accomplished in less time.

It seems that it takes the brain this long to assimilate all that it
needs to know to achieve true mastery."

Keep driving on the left Tom, you'll get the hang of it eventually.

Posted by salvo at February 11, 2009 5:09 PM

Salvo's quote about practice reminds me of what the great soprano, Leontyne Price, said to me when I was teenager. "Remember," she said, "when you are not practicing someone else is and when you meet her she’ll be better." I spent 4 hour practicing daily spread out throughout the day in 30 minutes sessions. The voice is not like an external instrument so we can’t sing for hours and hours nonstop especially without amplification. But there was also learning the music and foreign translations always to do--dramatic coaching too.

The non-singing practicing took many more hours daily which often actually included light singing or humming. Many times I would also simply go through the motions, replaying upcoming performances in my mind's eyes and actually going through the blocking in my living room. By the time of the performance I had done the piece many times before. No sweat! It was ongoing excellent training in a trial of errors. Thanks, Salvo, for the quotes--appreciated. I’m now really looking forward to the book.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 11, 2009 6:39 PM

Hey Tom- do you consider this really to be the "sink or swim" theory?

Posted by Ken Ribotsky at February 11, 2009 6:55 PM

Mark, "real Americans", and I used to be one, call them "traffic circles." Bostonians-New Englanders call them "rotaries"--and I'm sorry I got caught calling them by that name. Frankly, the Queen's way, "roundabout," strikes me as far more civilized. [Californians have no name for them at all. We think the whole idea is silly--why not spend a zillion dollars and build an intricate overpass-underpass system?]

Posted by tom peters at February 11, 2009 7:13 PM

Salvo, the Coyle key, and that of earlier writers like George Leonard ("Mastery") and Twyla Tharp (her book on creativity) is NOT practice per se but the QUALITY of the practice. I'm a convert!

Posted by tom peters at February 11, 2009 7:16 PM

The quality of the practice is one of the main reasons I broke up my daily practice schedule. This was something I learned in college. Many of my college friends would be practicing for hours straight and by the end of the day would be hoarse and exhausted. It seemed like pain for them to return to practice every day. For me it was different. I loved practising, even when I cracked notes and could get the phrasing, breathing, etc.

My schedule kept me tied in and focused for a larger portion of the day, instead of just getting it done. But I found it much more advantageous, as my mind was fresher and confidence better. I would look at each sesson as a new start. The music was no joke! Many skills I learned as a trained singer have helped me in an array of business ventures.

By the way, Edward Villella's "Prodigal Son: Dancing for Balanchine in a World of Pain and Magic: is AWESOME read too!

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 11, 2009 7:56 PM

No probs there Tom & Judith.

Here is one for you Judith (and Tom!):

Action for Bridgeport Community Development studied the
impact of one program offered over a two-year period that
accomplished the following feats:

Accelerated learning for the lowest performing children of
kindergarten age;

Expanded parental engagement that produces substantial
measured learning gains for infants, toddlers and
preschoolers (age 0 to 4,) in which they rank higher than
the national norm;

A reduction of pathological dysfunctions in children and
their families;

Teacher effectiveness and moral increases.

What could produce such miraculous results?

Music.

Check out the website at this address:

www.musictogether.com

Posted by Salvo at February 12, 2009 6:39 AM

Cool! Thanks for that, Salvo. Will do.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 12, 2009 7:23 AM

As I tell all my students "Imperfect practice makes perfect"...

Salvo...thanks for the tip on engagement and music. I am working on a project for working single parents and these "tips" can be invaluable!

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 12, 2009 7:07 PM

I may have had the most visceral response to this post, which was more or less sheer terror. And Tom I mean this is the most positive vein of all, but having spent quite a few years in cars with you behind the wheel, in the states as well as over seas, the prospect of you driving around a roundabout for half an hour in New Zealand makes me twitch. Must remember to keep breathing, in, out, in out, sheesh! Hope you're having a grand time, see you soon.. m

Posted by Max at February 13, 2009 12:12 AM

I'm off to see my dentist in a couple of hours and I'm rather worried that he's still at the mistakes-based learning stage. Still, at least it's not surgery....

Posted by Mark JF at February 13, 2009 3:33 AM

Mark - has your wife checked your life insurance payments are up to date?

"Trust Me I'm a Doctor" ... and then along comes Harold Shipman .....

For the US folks, Dr Shipman was a Family Dcotor in England. He is the most prolific known serial killer in history with 236 murders being ascribed to him, though the real number may be much higher, perhaps over 450.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Shipman

Good luck Mark :-)

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 13, 2009 4:55 AM

Go easy on the self criticism, Tom. It is no easy thing to challenge ingrained habitual responses, when you go back to driving on the wrong side of the road again.

I was surprised that Mouteka had such traffic, but I suppose it is the holiday season. I am looking to the photos of Kaiteri' among other places.

Posted by wmmbb at February 13, 2009 11:17 AM

wmmbb, Wellington, right after we landed.

Posted by tom peters at February 13, 2009 1:34 PM

Having survived driving all over Scotland - it wasn't the "wrong side" driving or even the traffic circles that we found daunting. Rather, it was the tiny lanes (and the trucks are just as big) and the high, hard curbs, even in the most remote parts of the country. We had a flat tire from hitting the curb so much - AHHHH, another truck coming toward us!

Good luck!

Posted by Mary Schmidt at February 13, 2009 1:45 PM

Mary - great story - next time you come to UK try Devon in the South West of England. I lived for 20 years in glorious Devon and, take it from me, the lanes are narrower than Scotland. I ruined many wing mirrors and took off many layers of paint on my cars over the years. Enjoying driving in Devon lanes is an acquired taste :-)

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 13, 2009 2:00 PM

Fabulous - just what we need - an ancient one that should not even be driving - out there in chaos learning how while talking out loud like a madman! The ready, fire & aim generation - thanks a lot!

PS - have the book on order - it better be perfect! :>)

Posted by Contraire at February 13, 2009 5:17 PM

The [remarkable] power of "screwing up".... Tell that to my neighbours who lost everything this week... This week I have seen leadership, courage, humanity, a life affirming community, and decency all around me in the now devastated Yarra Valley. But no one would agree that they learned a thing from 'the remarkable power of screwing up'....

300 people lost (and counting), 1800 homes gone, countless pets & stock lost, priceless keepsakes gone forever. That's a remarkable screw up!

Imagine you are left with nothing but what you have on your person right now. That was the reality for about 7,500 survivours of bush fires in my community of the Yarra Valley last Saturday. The air temperature was 46 + degrees (117 degrees on the old scale).. you had to be at least 400 - 500 feet away from the fire front not to suffer from radiant heat (fires like this suck the air out of your lungs). The fires raged on an 80 kilometre front - this wall of fire was 40-50 metres high. It was fanned by winds gusting up to 100 kilometres a hour (60 miles per hour). This was hell on a stick.....

What planet do you people actually live on?

Real people here in my community make real life choices everyday and their decisions are not based on Simplicity, Brand You, Book Reading, etc. They make choices as best they can based on their experience and their love of their family... Some of them did 'screws up' last Saturday and they paid the ultimate price with their life, the life of their family members, the life of their pets.....

If you really want to see what there is to learn from a 'remarkable screw up' ....take a look here and find your own lessons from this lot http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25051341-601,00.html

My heart goes out to all my fellow residents of the Yarra Valley. Your loss is my loss. Your pain is my pain.

I can assure all of you who read this that there has been a genuine and a remarkable power delivered to me over this last week - the power that comes from seeing a community come together and deal with the aftermath of a monumental screw up!

Posted by Richard Lipscombe at February 13, 2009 5:53 PM

Richard - Best wishes to you and your fellow Aussies at this tragic time.

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 13, 2009 6:11 PM

That goes for me too, Richard.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 13, 2009 6:16 PM

Tom, as someone who shuttles between the Middle East and London, I empathise. I have sometimes got as far as fastening my seatbelt before realising I have sat in the passenger's seat rather than behind the steering wheel... I had put it down to advancing senility, but now I know it is accelerated learning, and will tell my wife so next time she tells me to stop mumbling.

I hope not to diminish any sense of support and sympathy for those in Australia right now. I also have friends in Iraq and relatives of friends in Gaza, where the after-effects of screw-ups are also tragic, and where I guess noone is thinking much about personal branding either. However, in the spirit of the original post I would suggest that a) it is through practice (and low-/no-consequence mistakes) that our reflexes and muscle-memory get honed for those instinctive times of actual consequence, whether performance, dentistry or crisis. And b) the key word in the title is Learning. Screwing Up is just a means to get to a better state, not an end in itself. Life's tragedy appears to be that we have a huge capacity for making the same mistakes over and over again, and learning nothing in the process. Luckily for many, Tom's motoring experiences appear to have had no collateral damage.

Posted by RobCH at February 14, 2009 2:27 AM

Thanks Tom.
Screwing up means you never have to say your sorry.
Even if it kills 95.000 people.
Or maybe even a million.
Ready Fire Aim.
Its tatooed on my behind.

Posted by DRumsfeld at February 14, 2009 10:36 PM

I once almost buried an automatic Grand-Am in the asphalt.
I felt very original....and jerk of course.

Posted by gerson barbosa at February 16, 2009 2:23 PM

Richard, I think we all live on the same planet you do. And, my heart breaks as I read of the Australian tragedy. I only wish there was something I could do (could have done) to help.

There's a huge difference between non-life-threatening screw ups in business and screw ups in national catastrophes. We in the U.S. can point to Katrina as a massive screw-up that should not have happened. (And, then there are the banks...)

I'm positive that neither Tom or Trevor would recommend that people base their behaviors during a life and death crisis on one of their books. They're writing about innovation and creativity, not advocating irresponsible, dangerous behavior.

Posted by Mary Schmidt at February 17, 2009 12:52 PM

Good distinction, Mary. Thank you.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 17, 2009 1:41 PM

Cheers Mary - spot on!

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 17, 2009 1:43 PM