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Might disagree with the author on what is deliberate practice. I would say the implementing code at work is not deliberate practice in the sense that it’s defin

Might disagree with the author on what is deliberate practice. I would say the implementing code at work is not deliberate practice in the sense that it’s defined in the original 10k hours thesis. I think in the strictest sense deliberate practice is picking something that you’re weaker at, and spending time deliberately working on that. I imagine that some part of the author’s 10k hours was working on projects outside their comfort zone, while others were within it. The argument would be doing stuff that you’re comfortable with or don’t have to think too hard about would not be deliberate practice.

rckrd 5y ago
Agreed - tough to nail down a definition of deliberate practice for software engineering. I credit three sources - Working on a large open-source gave me access to high-quality reviewers from around the world. - Likewise, at Google, I was surrounded by some exceptionally smart people. - Finally, like you said, working on projects outside the scope of my work and expertise.
- michaelbarton 5y ago
  Thanks for your comment. I enjoyed your article. Deliberate practice is something I’ve thought about before in the context of programming and it’s hard to nail down. Especially because of how some of the skills are not programming at all. E.g. How might you deliberately practice skills like requirements gathering or managing stakeholders.
rustyminnow 5y ago
As an R&D engineer my grandfather used to say that if you're working on something new everyday for 20 years that's a lot of experience. But if you're working a job you can master in a year, is it actually 20 years of experience, or 1 year of experience 20 times? I'm not saying you're wrong - just implementing code at work by itself isn't deliberate practice - but I think it can be if you work just outside your comfort zone. Personally, I find work incredibly dull when I'm not learning something new.

rckrd 5y ago

Agreed - tough to nail down a definition of deliberate practice for software engineering. I credit three sources - Working on a large open-source gave me access to high-quality reviewers from around the world. - Likewise, at Google, I was surrounded by some exceptionally smart people. - Finally, like you said, working on projects outside the scope of my work and expertise.

michaelbarton 5y ago
Thanks for your comment. I enjoyed your article. Deliberate practice is something I’ve thought about before in the context of programming and it’s hard to nail down. Especially because of how some of the skills are not programming at all. E.g. How might you deliberately practice skills like requirements gathering or managing stakeholders.

rustyminnow 5y ago

As an R&D engineer my grandfather used to say that if you're working on something new everyday for 20 years that's a lot of experience. But if you're working a job you can master in a year, is it actually 20 years of experience, or 1 year of experience 20 times? I'm not saying you're wrong - just implementing code at work by itself isn't deliberate practice - but I think it can be if you work just outside your comfort zone. Personally, I find work incredibly dull when I'm not learning something new.