Variable Practice

Look at that fantastic bow hold. Wow.

Did I learn that from Twinkle Twinkle Little Star?

Nope. I learned it from my mom convincing me to just play one note, over and over, at the start of each practice. Crazy enough, I still do this, and I apply it to my business thinking.

It’s called variable practice. Essentially, when you practice for near and far skills, you more deeply understand the middle.

It was famously tested in a 1978 “bean bag” experiment.

Researchers Sandra Kerr and Robert Booth gathered two groups of eight-year-olds to throw bean bags at a target three feet away. For practice, one group focused only on the three-foot target. The other group only threw from two feet and four feet, never even practicing the actual goal.

Surprisingly, the second group outperformed the first on final tests. Once they knew too short and too long, they could more accurately find the middle.

The same applies to my music practice. I deeply focus on the most simple thing: one single note, over and over. My wife loves it.

Then I practice the most advanced moves to push my growth. When I come back to my regular songs, I’m incrementally better.

The same goes for business, and it’s why I’m enjoying my current business model so much right now.

I get to help companies of varying sizes. I get to advise a company breaking into its market, and I also get to lead teams that are outgrowing their region.

I get to practice the basics and what is universally true with smaller companies. With larger teams, I get to be more focused and leveraged. That allows me to see the through lines: what maintains truth, what still matters, and what is unnecessary.

I’m able to reintegrate those elite parts back into a simplified whole to bring back the essence of the best.

I’m able to practice what’s near and what’s far, and more clearly define where we sit in the middle ground.