A recent book Dr. Shah read called Moonwalking with Einstein highlighted an important concept for almost any individual, “getting past the okay plateau”. So what is the okay plateau? The okay plateau is what many of us think is the upper bounds of innate ability. We often hear the term practice makes perfect. But many of us don’t reach perfect, we just get to okay. For example, in typing most of us can progress from simple single digit typing to two-handed typing. However, after hours and hours of typing most of us do not get any better. Why is that?
Psychologists, Paul Fitts and Micheal Posner found that any new skill has three phases:
- Cognitive phase- Intellectualization of task and discover ways to become more efficient
- Associative phase- Make fewer major errors and more efficient
- Autonomous phase- Good as we need to be and function on autopilot
So how does one go from simply being okay to world class. What is the difference between world class musicians from a very good piano teacher? Breaking the okay plateau, involves focusing on technique, staying goal-oriented, and getting immediate feedback on performance. The difference lies in never being satisfied with our results. This often distinguishes amateur musicians versus masters.
Dr. Shah applies some of these principles to his own practice to constantly get better. This often leads to an innovation of a technique since the technique itself may have inherent limits. For example in treating nasal tip convexity, Dr. Shah has developed a technique to treat fuller cartilages which can help significantly define the nose. He also believes that improvement in a skill often involves looking at that skill in a different perspective. Dr. Shah’s speaks with friends in many different fields, such as engineers, Allergists, artists, photographers who have a different view point on the world. This added perspective makes Dr. Shah’s insight deeper into some of the issues he is working with in his own practice.