Practice does not make Improvements

When I used to practice, take piano as an example, I often tried to play pieces at their original speed, even though it was too fast for me. I believed that if I kept practicing at that speed, I would eventually be able to play it. While this idea isn’t entirely wrong, there was a critical flaw in my approach: I was attempting to play at full speed before mastering the foundations. As a result, I sometimes lost the groovy or emotion of the piece. Even worse, I developed many bad habits along the way—and those bad habits became ingrained.

I thought I knew how to practice, and I even advised others on the importance of deliberate practice. While deliberate practice is crucial, I was doing it incorrectly. Only recently did I truly understand that practice does not necessarily make improvements or “perfection”—Practice reinforces skills, whether they are good or bad. If you practice incorrectly, you end up solidifying poor habits that are hard to undo later.

This idea seems obvious, but I only fully grasped it and started applying it to everything I’m learning in the past few weeks. Whether it’s music, dance, or even language, I’ve discovered that slowing down and practicing deliberately has led to remarkable progress in all of them. More importantly, I’ve found myself filled with patience, tranquility, and joy, often losing track of time for hours as I immerse myself in the process.

I’m writing this simple article because I believe many people make the same mistake I did. Once I recognized my own error, I started seeing it everywhere, for example, in dance classes the students wasn’t able to dance well at half speed while the music played was in full or 2x speed or people’s frustrations on every day situations etc. To anyone reading this and to myself: slow down, build greatness first. Only then should you speed up.