Published on 05 Apr 2021 in improvement
You learn from the bruises. They come with experience.
Experience give you a frame of reference for theory.
I’ve learned the most in areas that I was thrown into earlier in my career, before I knew what good looked like.
I’ve been wondering why it’s so powerful a learning experience to do something first and learn about it on the job, applying new knowledge (theory) afterwards.
Without a doubt the power of this is being able to bring to mind examples that relate to what you’re learning. But I think it’s deeper than that. You’re not limiting yourself to looking through the prism of theory only. You’re using it to illuminate a much broader experience.
Let’s use an analogy.
Experience is like knowing the terrain of an island.
You know every nook and cranny. But you don’t know where the treasure is buried.
You may find it by trial and error. You may work out the hard way where the quicksand is.
Theory is like learning where the treasure is buried.
You know where to look, but first you have to get to the spot. You’re not prepared for that. You’ve never seen quicksand before…
You’ll probably get there eventually. But it’s going to be hard. In theory it was straightforward.
If you know the terrain well, you can apply the theory well. It will fit into place, you know what to expect.
For me, a great example was in leadership. It wasn’t something I’d aimed for or given much thought to, I emulated the leaders around me, I had successes and I made mistakes. I saw, experienced and partook in the good and the bad. Having built and led teams, when I dig into books like Extreme Ownership they really hit home. I recall what I did well but more often than not see what I could have done better.
Applying the knowledge to past experience brings deep learning and improvement.