There’s a common belief that it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill.
But it’s not the number of hours that truly matters. It’s the intentionality that you apply when practicing that increases your skill.
In this post, I want to unpack why quantity is often the quickest way to quality when applied correctly to creative knowledge work.
The Trap of Perfectionism
I am a recovering perfectionist.
The very first podcast I ever edited was a 30-minute episode I spent about 6 hours on because I was focusing on removing every “ah” and “um.”
But when I got done, I realized a lot of that effort was wasted as the episode sounded bland and sterile.
Over the years, I’ve now published 1000s of podcast episodes. As a result, I have a much better feel for what makes a “good” podcast episode.
And it's not “perfection.”
In fact, perfection often gets in the way of true progress by keeping us from getting the feedback that we need to make things better.
It’s the quantity that produces the quality. We have to actively fight against the urge to edit and just ship things.
But just putting things out into the world isn’t enough. You have to do it the right way — and with the right perspective.
Cranking vs. Creating
There are two methods you can use for shipping consistently:
- Cranking (just get it done)
- Creating (make something valuable)
Cranking is completing things for the sake of finishing them. When you’re cranking, your goal is simply to complete the task. Once it’s finished, you move on to the next thing.
But creating is different. When creating, the goal is to learn from the process. When you’re finished creating, you don’t instantly grab the next item on your task list.
You reflect and see what you can learn from what you just put out into the world. This allows you to learn from the process and make the next version even better.
When you’re cranking, your focus is on getting things done as quickly as possible. The question that you ask when cranking is, “How can I do this more efficiently?”
When you’re creating, your focus is on getting good as quickly as possible. The question you ask when creating is, “How can I make this better?”
Both approaches apply the “just ship it” mantra. Both require you to overcome perfectionism.
But how you do that is the difference between rote repetition and the ability to develop mastery or skill.
When I went through Part-Time YouTuber Academy, I learned that the quickest way to get good at YouTube is to release 100 videos.
The point? You don't know what good looks like until you put in some reps.
Even MKBHD only had 78 subscribers after 100 videos. But he kept creating (not cranking), and is now one of the most successful YouTubers on the planet.
Sometimes the quickest way to quality is through quantity. But remember: practice doesn't make perfect unless it's deliberate.
And if you're curious how I manage my creative projects, here's a YouTube video about my entire writing process.
