You Can Learn Anything

3 Takeaways from my conversation with a musician and developer.

So, I’m teaching my dog how to roll over… and he’s not quite getting it.

I’ve tried so hard to show him how to do it. I would tell him to roll over, present an accompanying hand motion, and then roll him over myself, and the praise him like he had actually accomplished something.

And then I would tell him to roll over, present the hand motion, and expect him to at least try. But nope. He just lays there, looking at me like I’m the dumb one. Or barking back at me in frustration. One time, he even got so frustrated that he buried his face in his paws and refused to listen to anything else I said.

I get it, buddy.

Here is a photo of my dog crowding the camera so you can’t see that he’s been chewing on the pamphlet behind him

But this moment reminded me of my conversation with Alec Williams a couple of weeks back, because we talked a lot about learning. Here are my biggest takeaways.

Expertise comes in just 30 minutes a day.

Alec shared about how his parents would make him practice the piano 30 minutes each day when he was younger. He didn’t like it at the time, but he reflected on it and remarked that it helped him so much when it came to other areas of his life.

First and most practically, it helped him get a job as a music director shortly into adulthood. But it also led him to getting fascinated by mechanical and then computer engineering. Why? He told me that because he knew music, engineer just… made more sense to him. In fact, he said that many people in engineering also have a musical background.

It makes sense to me, because I think of it in terms of learning a new language. I’m currently learning Spanish, trying to take that same 30 minutes a day and apply it to a new skill. But music is also a kind of language. So is engineering, if you think about it.

So, not only was Alec learning how to play piano when he was young—he was learning how to learn.

You can learn anything.

The ability to learn, in itself, can be learned. Take a moment to think about it. When you acquire a new skill, not only do you get better at that skill—that’s obvious. But what’s less obvious is that you get better at acquiring new skills in general.

Learning means acquiring information, employing more knowledgeable others, putting theory into practice, failing, learning from that failure, applying it again, teaching it to someone else, and so on. Some people are naturally more gifted at learning, but I think anyone can learn the process—and use it to climb new mountains in their life, career, you name it. I go so far as to say that if you can learn how to learn new skills, you’ll become unstoppable.

Because let’s face it, the majority of the time, our mindset holds us back, not our natural abilities.

“I’m not good with numbers.”

“I’m not good with names.”

“I don’t play well with others.”

Those statements reflect a mindset. Maybe that mindset is borne of a natural skill gap, or weakness. But I argue that those skill gaps can be overcome. Let me put it this way: Sure, we all have weaknesses—but we’d have far fewer weaknesses if we approached new skills by saying, “I can learn this. I can do this.”

I’m going to find a way to bring BJJ into this

I’m just going to say it—I love Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ). For those who don’t know what BJJ is, it’s a grappling art akin to judo or wrestling, focusing on ground fighting, with the object to submit your opponent through a joint lock or stranglehold. It’s also a fantastic hobby for people who sit at a desk all day, like me.

Don’t actually try to bend yourself this way

I’ve actually held back from talking about BJJ very much on this newsletter or my podcast because I love it so much and don’t want to bore people. Plus, I started about a year ago, and I didn’t want to be one of those people who gets super passionate about a new hobby, tells all their friends, and then quits.

But more than a year later, we’re still rolling—and I absolutely love it. So, I’m tired of hiding who I am. I’m probably going to talk about BJJ more, and you’re just going to have to deal with it.

I love it so much because it has concepts that relate to almost everything I talk about when it comes to entrepreneurship, leadership, finance, career development, and technology. Don’t believe me? Just wait: No matter what I talk about, I’m sure I can find a way to relate it to BJJ eventually.

It especially relates to learning something new. BJJ is a new skill in itself, but it has taught me something deeper: You have to be a white belt before you can be a black belt. (By the way, the skill/experience ranking system in BJJ, like most martial arts, progresses from white belt to black belt).

Having to be a pathetic white belt is what holds us back from learning anything new, I think. The white belt is a complete idiot. They get their butt kicked every time they go out onto the mats. They’re so ignorant about BJJ, that they aren’t even that fun to train with. Because they make such obvious mistakes. And they’re exposed: Everyone else in the gym can see their lack of experience.

But something amazing happens. People adopt you. They come around and say, “Hey, try doing it like this,” or, “Here’s a concept that will help in this position.” Suddenly, the fear of learning something new goes away. Because everyone who teaches you remembers—they were the new white belt once.

Even today, I’m figuring out how to define my core offerings and sales process as a business. I probably should have figured this out 3 years ago, when I started this business, but I’m unashamed. I’m willing to be the white belt in sales, because I know I can learn anything. And at least in sales, nobody is trying to break my arm—at least not yet.