RD x's Key Ideas from The Art of Learning
by Josh Waitzkin

This belief is wrong that ‘skill is an ingrained and unalterable level of ability.’ So, don't use language like

• I am a good writer
• I am bad at Music

Also, parents should not set their children up for failure by telling them

• You are so good at reading
• Maths is not your thing

This is called “Learned helplessness orientation”.

It is true and should be believed that ‘any concept or skill can be grasped and mastered incrementally. So, prefer to say things like

• I did well because I put in time
• I should have worked harder at this

To help their children, parents can say things like

• You are getting really good at reading, keep it up
• It's ok, we just need to study a little harder and you will do great on the next maths test

Teach children the “Mastery oriented response”, so that they can associate success with effort not anything else.

“The fields of learning and performance are an exploration of greyness - of the in-between. There is a careful balance of pushing yourself relentlessly, but not so hard that you melt down. Muscles and minds needs stretch to grow, but if stretched too thin, they’ll snap”

• Josh Waitzkin

• One phase of full throttle action
• One phase of influx, broken down growth

Most people refuse to invest in loss during the growth stages and as a result never upgrade their game.

Sometimes you need to breakdown every thing in mind and start from ground zero to reconstruct the game and to reach to the next level. So you need to invest in loss sometimes.

Better the recovery process, better performance.

More you practise the cycles of rest, the less you will need to take. Athletes are taught this as “interval training”.