How Experts Figure What to Focus On

How many bad meals do you think you need to make before you can whip up a “simple, but tasty dinner” whenever you feel like it? I’d say hundreds at least. I don’t know many people who are amazing cooks after making their tenth meal ever. Developing a deep understanding of the fundamentals of cooking takes a while.

The more I study successful people from all walks of life—artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, scientists—the more I believe focus is a core factor of success.

But there is a problem with this advice too.

Of the many options in front of you, how do you know what to focus on? How do you know where to direct your energy and attention? How do you determine the one thing that you should commit to doing?

The best answer I can give is to pay attention. Usually, this means measuring something .

• If you’re an entrepreneur, track your marketing and promotion efforts.
• If you’re trying to gain muscle, track your workouts .
• If you’re learning an instrument, track your practice sessions .

Even when you do measure things, however, there comes a point where you have to make a call and decide what to focus on.

It is through this sheer number of repetitions that you’ll come to understand the fundamentals of your task. You might know what greatness looks like before this point, but you won’t understand how to achieve greatness until you’ve put the work in yourself.

In the words of Ira Glass , “your taste is good enough that you can tell that what you’re making is kind of a disappointment to you.” You’ll bridge that gap between what you know is good and what you can produce yourself by putting in the reps .

This applies to so many areas of life.

Now, finally, after trying many things and figuring out what to focus on and putting in enough reps, you can begin to simplify. You can trim away the fat because you know what is essential and what is unnecessary.

As the Frenchman Blaise Pascal famously wrote in his Provincial Letters, “If I had more time, I would have written you a shorter letter.”

Mastering the fundamentals is often the hardest and longest journey of all.