There is always someone out there who is better than you at anything you pick.

In my own job I’m working with people who have 10+ years of experience over me. Sure I’m good at my job (great self-confidence) but in comparison I suck.

But that is OK!

Providing I suck less over time.

How to Suck Less over Time

1. Admit to yourself that you suck and then Ask Questions

   Never be afraid to realise there is room for improvement. There is nothing wrong with realising your current state of being.

   If you know people who are better than you at something then they are the people who you should be asking questions to in order to improve. But don’t ask too many questions because a) you will bug them and more importantly b) you won’t be able to remember all the answers anyway.

2. Take Notes

   Human memory can do some amazing things but compared to what we would like it to do, it sucks. Take Notes.
   
   They don’t need to be terribly detailed, just enough that you can flesh out the details later. Again it is fine for people to know that you are taking notes. You are the one who is going to be improving.
   
   This probably also means you need to carry around some sort of capture device (small notepad and pencil).

3. Study

   Yes you have to Put in the Time.

   Take action and spend a little bit of time each day practicing to improve. In addition you can also buy a good book on the topic but I want to emphasise actual practice.

4. Plan and Prioritise

   In the last post I mentioned was the concept of being able to become at expert at anything but not everything. Make a list of all the things you want to improve at and then prioritise them. Be aware of how much time you have to practice and then only pick enough elements that you will have time to work on daily.

How do you improve yourself?