The world is gradually turning into a place where every one wants to be their very own boss or basically wants to learn a skill to fill up their free time. As a student or worker, learning a skill could be quite challenging with time being a huge barrier.

The following tips would teach you how to perfect a skill while keeping up with your busy schedule.

 

WHAT SKILL?

Take a moment to decide on what you really want to do:

• Learn how to ride a bike or drive a car/airplane
• Tailoring or fashion sketches
• Programming, Web designs or other useful technology
• Public speaking or negotiations
• How to draw or sculpt
• How to sing or play an instrument
• How to make confectioneries and cook
• Start your own business
• Learn a new language and write.
• Marshal arts

The list goes on and on. You have got to know what you want, Identify with it and build a fierce passion around it. Get to crave it and desire to know it. Remember learning a skill comes with great sacrifices.

 

HIRE SOMEONE

One on one teaching has been here since forever and it would never go extinct. Get someone to teach you the skill at your convenience, possibly in the evening and over the weekends. Most of the time, skilled people would not want to come over to your home, so you would have to get to where they stay.

Make a scheme and document your progress; most of the times we fail to see the importance of documentation. But a short pen is better than the longest memory. Make a list starting from the basics and work your way up to the complex aspects of your chosen skill. Get a notepad and write down everything you learn as often as you learn.

 

BREAK DOWN

Deconstruct your skill into bits, know everything that forms it as a whole. Breaking down the skill into smaller parts is the first step in figuring out which sub-skills are critical.

Most skills follow a similar pattern: a few sub-skills are critical, while the remainder are rarely used or contribute less to the end result. Practice the most important sub-skills first, and you accelerate your overall rate of skill acquisition.

 

SET A TARGET GUARDED BY STRICT PUNISHMENTS

Be deliberate about marking your milestones and setting goals. Have a checklist or a marker. As easy as this sounds this is the hardest objective. First you have got to be disciplined enough to hit your goals and raise the bar constantly.

Give yourself a painful punishment for every time you default on your set goal. Ensure you exercise your punishments, and if you cannot enforce your penalties, get a ruthless friend to do so for you. You would be amazed at how productive you could be in the face of impending doom.

 

FOCUS

Procrastination as we all know is the theft of time. This goes without saying, prioritizing can never be over emphasized.

Ditch every source of distractions at the said time allocated to acquiring your skill and concentrate on gleaning as much knowledge as you can with the time you’ve got for your skill acquisition.

 

RELATIONSHIPS

Join groups/communities that share the same passion for the skill you want to learn, be interactive, share and glean as much knowledge as you can.

 

RESEARCH

The internet and library are your gold mine. So start digging. Join Facebook groups, subscribe to YouTube channels and be hooked on to every page throbbing useful information to you.

 

LEARN BY DOING

Knowledge acquired is useless without practice. Do not be scared of not getting it right and do not be content with getting it just right. Strive for excellence. Get a mentor and mirror their perfection.

Practice from a book, video or with your teacher and you would be amazed at just how quickly you would become proficient.

 

 

TAKE SHORT BREAKS

All work and no play gets you Einstein’s hair. It is always good to take short breaks in between work and relax. Helps your brain, muscles and also enhances focus and creativity.

 

 

CELEBRATE

 You know how far you have come, celebrate your simple achievements, make posts of your abilities, showcase the little skills you have acquired. Make a look book on how good you have gotten from time to time and smile at yourself for a job well done.

Good-luck!