I was watching the X Factor a couple of weeks ago when Shakira, the Latin American singer was on. For those of you from the US, the X Factor is the UK show that spawned the American Idol shows in the US. Another one of Simon Cowell’s shows.
Now, after her performance, Shakira Shakira was asked by the host, Dermot, what tips she had for the contestants. Her answer was one that caught my ear.
Shakira replied by stating that the contestants had to apply Intelligent Effort.
This got me thinking….
So many people place such an emphasis on statements like Practice Makes Perfect. Well does it?
What about if you are practicing the wrong things? Or at the wrong intensity?
I am sure that your golf is not going to improve much unless your basics are correct and you are following the guidance of tried and trusted instruction. You will progress to a level and then plateau.
To improve in anything, as Shakira has rightly spotted, you have to practice the right things. You have to be intelligent with your effort so that you are working on tasks and projects that are related to your goals.
So maybe instead of the term Practice Makes Perfect, we can think rather of Perfect Practice Makes Perfect.
However, you cannot hit a target you do not have and I can feel that some goals related posts are long overdue….
Just thought I would share this little nugget with you all and I would love to hear any comments you may have.
Practice makes permanent.
@X:
Just make sure you practice the right stuff!
Cool. Never had this idea cleared out until now. :)) Really. Now I can understand why some of my projects have failed or succeeded. Awesome. I don’t know who to thank: you or Shakira ?! 🙂
Practice does not kake perfect.
Perfect practice makes perfect.
(P.S. I noticed my spelling error, but left it in since it kind of contributes to what I mean)
Hmm, I’d prefer to stay away from the word “perfect.” Practice is both an end and a mean.
Though the point made here is a good one: don’t just do stuff, think about the stuff to do before doing it. It’s easy to get caught in a rut and fool ourselves into thinking that we are moving forward. Every once in a while, we need to step back and look with a bit of perspective.
@Kourosh:
Yeh, we have to ensure what we are doing is towards a goal.
Pingback: Daily Productivity Links Monday, 30 November, 2009 « TaskWriter
i love the way Shakira is on barefoot whenever she have some live concerts.~-~
Everyone likes to watch Shakira do belly dancing he he he. i love that too.”~,
I really love Shakira i think she is great.
I sort of discovered your blog by mistake, but your blog site captured attention and I thought that I’d post to tell you that I enjoy it.