What does it mean to be an EXPERT?

An expert is a man who has made all the mistakes which can be made in a very narrow field

Niels Bohr

Nowadays, more and more people experienced playing the role of being an expert. It’s sufficient to demonstrate relative knowledge on a topic to get this ‘title’. So who might be called an expert?
Opinion is divided here as, as many experts (from being an expert) you have, so many opinions there are. It is commonly believed that an expert is a man of a broad and unquestioned field of competence, deep knowledge, both practical and theoretical.
On this point, however, various opinions circulate, often extreme ones. There are those who even claim that you can never become a true expert. It is in fact a road that never ends, and finding the answers to one question, raises several more. On the other hand, there are those who argue that to become an expert, it is enough to read 4 books in the field. But was is most convincing and very often quoted is the criterion of 10 000 hours.
Does this mean that it is enough “rattle off”  10 000 hours to become an expert in any field? Of course not!
Firstly, there are so specialized and popular fields, that 10 000 hours will allow you to enter into a large circle of specialists. Among them will be the expert who shows even greater competence and knowledge. There are also niche, developing or new areas, where the ‘expert’ title will be granted to someone who has even a minimal understanding of the topic – “Among the blind one-eyed man, is a king.”
Secondly, one hour does not equal another one. For several years I have been observing people who train and they really do train. They are people full of passion, persistent who achieve results and develop very quickly which others could only dream of. There are few, but these are entities in the expert path. I also see a lot of those who, instead of practicing, just “go for training.” I think everyone understands and knows the difference. It’s like, how they worked and “going to work” is seemingly the same, it seems that they both spend 8 hours a day, but the differences in effects are indescribable.

And where is this magic limit lurking?
The difference lies precisely in the quality of dedicated hours. Speaking of skills development, where progress in activities can be easily observed (golf, playing the piano, karate etc.) and the term “in-depth training expert” is being used. The same policies also apply to developing other skills such as sales, conscious communication and people management. You can practice every skill , but in order to control the ball at the expert level, you need to use the 8 principles of Master Training.
What are the rules?

8 MASTER the principles of the training

1. Especially designed  development.
   In addition to adapting the difficulty of the task to the competence in designing training and development, the key is to use your own predispositions and talent. Just as there is no single key that opens all the doors, so there is no single method of science, which is good for everyone. An excellent base is to discover your strengths and the theory of Multiple Intelligences Howard Gardner which is still underestimated in Poland. In the original version 7 types of intelligence was introduced:
   • linquistic
   • Mathematical – logistic
   • Visual – spatial
   • Musical
   • Interpersonal
   • Intrapersonal
   • kinesthetic
   By using any of these intelligence, you can develop your skills even in extremely different areas.
2. Isolation of the individual  elements.
   We tend to quickly connect portions in their entirety. We practice long conversation script at once as well the whole sequence of movements and the whole sides of tracks . “Is it a mistake? Once again, from the beginning “- as a music teacher used to say. But if we want to master the ability as soon as possible, it must be divided into the smallest parts. Only with well-learned individual elements, do we create a coherent whole.
3. Continuous measurability.
   To see progress, you first need to know the current status. Am I better than I was yesterday? A week ago? Half a year ago? If so, how much? But the most important thing is if I want to be better and when! Without continuous measurement, recording and analysis it is hard to tell if what I do has an effect. Everything can be measured in  completely irrational cases, you can register  the level of satisfaction with performed exercises.
4. Multiple repetition.
   In every training activity there are important and more important elements. In each there are also things that go better for us and those which we “simply cannot be taught”. It is these latter that are crucial for development. Repeating that which does not go with every repetition of something changing – leading to accelerated mastering of the skills. Although it is contrary to the instinctive approach – it is better to be doing something which comes out well.…
5. Training is not pleasant.
   This does not mean that it should be tortured or forced. Training should be enjoyable, but when finished. In retrospect, we can say – it was a good workout, 2 hours well spent. But in the course: continuous repetition, isolation of small fragments.
6. The constant challenge.
   Still at the limits of power, health and difficulties. According to the flow theory of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, if the level of competence is higher than the difficulty of the task, there is boredom – here we do not learn anything. On the other hand, when the level of the task exceeds our competence, there is anxiety – where there is no room for progress, because the fear of failure is too high. But when the difficult task corresponds to a high level of skill, there is a flow, a condition between satisfaction and euphoria. There is room here for improving skills.
7. Full focus.
   Properly routed meditation can help us  before a workout or exercise divided into smaller pieces. Our mind can withstand being fully focus for about 20 to 40 minutes. Make it the best utilized minutes of the entire workout.
8. Deep reflection.
   After each workout, find a moment to ask yourself a few important questions: How do you evaluate your progress? What helped me a lot, and what prevented me? What can be added to the programme? You should immediately determine another stage after completing a previous one.

Your job is also a workout – if you want to become better and better at what you do, consider work as training. Each task is your gym, every hour – punching a bag, each client  is your partner in development. This is the key to enter the expert path.

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