--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: deliberate practice” to describe this…" description: "\"“deliberate practice” to describe this style of serious study, defining it formally as an “activity designed, typically by a teacher, for the sole purp..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg" --- # deliberate practice” to describe this style of serious… ![“deliberate practice” to describe this style of serious study, defining it formally as an “activity designed, typically by a teacher, for the sole purpose of effectively improving specific aspects of an individual’s performance.”4 As hundreds of follow-up studies have since shown, deliberate…” quote by Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg) > ““deliberate practice” to describe this style of serious study, defining it formally as an “activity designed, typically by a teacher, for the sole purpose of effectively improving specific aspects of an individual’s performance.”4 As hundreds of follow-up studies have since shown, deliberate practice provides the key to excellence in a diverse array of fields, among which are chess, medicine, auditing, computer programming, bridge, physics, sports, typing, juggling, dance, and music.”” [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Deliberate practice is a structured, teacher‑guided activity aimed at improving specific performance aspects, proven essential for achieving excellence across many fields. **In simple terms:** Targeted, guided practice builds expertise. Key Takeaway Engage in focused, purposeful practice. Themes excellence practice skill development deliberate Mood motivational practical Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - sports training - musical mastery - programming skill - medical training Key Concepts cognitive science education performance optimization Questions to Reflect On - How can you create deliberate practice without a teacher? - What obstacles hinder your focused practice? A Different Perspective It requires resources and mentorship that may not be accessible to all. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Computer programming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-programming/) [Deliberate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deliberate/) [Deliberate practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deliberate-practice/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [Programming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/programming/) ## Related quotes > [“It is a lifetime accumulation of deliberate practice that again and again ends up explaining excellence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/it-is-a-lifetime-accumulation-of-deliberate-practice-that-again-and/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Deliberate practice is often the opposite of enjoyable. I like the term “stretch” for describing what deliberate practice feels like,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/deliberate-practice-is-often-the-opposite-of-enjoyable-i-like-the/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Doing things we know how to do well is enjoyable, and that’s exactly the opposite of what deliberate practice demands…. Deliberate practice is above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/doing-things-we-know-how-to-do-well-is-enjoyable-and-that-s-exactly/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“when a branch of psychology, sometimes called performance psychology, began to systematically explore what separates experts (in many different fields) from everyone else. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/when-a-branch-of-psychology-sometimes-called-performance-psychology/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“craft-centric.” Getting better and better at what I did became what mattered most, and getting better required the strain of deliberate practice. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/craft-centric-getting-better-and-better-at-what-i-did-became-what/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“if it’s rare and valuable, it’s not easy to get. This insight brought me into the world of performance science, where I encountered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/if-it-s-rare-and-valuable-it-s-not-easy-to-get-this-insight-brought/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [Practice provides the rails on which knowledge flows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-seely-brown/practice-provides-the-rails-on-which-knowledge-flows/) [John Seely Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-seely-brown/) > [What determines how much time and deliberate practice a child is willing to devote to achievement? Nothing less than her character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/what-determines-how-much-time-and-deliberate-practice-a-child-is/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [Keep the remembrance of your real nature alive, even while working, and avoid haste which causes you to forget. Be deliberate. Practice meditation to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/keep-the-remembrance-of-your-real-nature-alive-even-while-working-and/) [Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/) > [Some people seem to have extreme natural wiring - a talent that seems to come out of nowhere. Like a music savant or prodigy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-maney/some-people-seem-to-have-extreme-natural-wiring-a-talent-that-seems/) [Kevin Maney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-maney/) > [“Deliberate Practice, which he has identified as the key to exceptional achievement. When you practice deliberately, you identify the tasks or knowledge that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/deliberate-practice-which-he-has-identified-as-the-key-to-exceptional/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“In other words, deliberate practice is for preparation, and flow is for performance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-duckworth/in-other-words-deliberate-practice-is-for-preparation-and-flow-is-for/) [Angela Duckworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-duckworth/) > [“deliberate practice requires that one identify certain sharply defined elements of performance that need to be improved, and then work intently on them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-colvin/deliberate-practice-requires-that-one-identify-certain-sharply/) [Geoff Colvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-colvin/) > [“deliberate practice—practice designed to develop mastery in the specific areas required by whatever role or position we are targeting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-disalvo/deliberate-practice-practice-designed-to-develop-mastery-in-the/) [David DiSalvo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-disalvo/) > [The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance”: “The differences between expert performers and normal adults are not immutable, that is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-anders-ericsson/the-role-of-deliberate-practice-in-the-acquisition-of-expert/) K. Anders Ericsson ## More by Cal Newport > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“many software companies now deploy the Scrum project management methodology, which replaces a lot of this ad hoc messaging with regular, highly structured, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/many-software-companies-now-deploy-the-scrum-project-management/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“when paying more than $1,000 a day to write the chapter in a suite of an old hotel down the street from a Hogwarts-style…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/when-paying-more-than-1-000-a-day-to-write-the-chapter-in-a-suite-of/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“When deciding whether to follow an appealing pursuit that will introduce more control into your work life, seek evidence of whether people are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/when-deciding-whether-to-follow-an-appealing-pursuit-that-will/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Let your mind become a lens, thanks to the converging rays of attention; let your soul be all intent on whatever it is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/let-your-mind-become-a-lens-thanks-to-the-converging-rays-of/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“study by Harvard Business School professor Leslie Perlow. 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This insight brought me into the world of performance science, where I encountered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/if-it-s-rare-and-valuable-it-s-not-easy-to-get-this-insight-brought/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Here’s the routine: Once a week I require myself to summarize in my “bible” a paper I think might be relevant to my research.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/here-s-the-routine-once-a-week-i-require-myself-to-summarize-in-my/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“craftsman mindset is the foundation for creating work you love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/craftsman-mindset-is-the-foundation-for-creating-work-you-love/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“the journalist philosophy. This name is a nod to the fact that journalists, like Walter Isaacson, are trained to shift into a writing mode…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-journalist-philosophy-this-name-is-a-nod-to-the-fact-that/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Not long into his 2010 TED talk on creativity and leadership, Derek Sivers plays a video clip of a crowd at an outdoor concert.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/not-long-into-his-2010-ted-talk-on-creativity-and-leadership-derek/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Kirk’s path to American Treasures was incremental. He didn’t decide out of nowhere that he wanted to host a television show and then work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/kirk-s-path-to-american-treasures-was-incremental-he-didn-t-decide/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“If you spend too much time focusing on whether or not you’ve found your true calling, the question will be rendered moot when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/if-you-spend-too-much-time-focusing-on-whether-or-not-you-ve-found/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Their plans were circumspect and small-time. They weren’t dreaming of taking over the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/their-plans-were-circumspect-and-small-time-they-weren-t-dreaming-of/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“This chain method (as some now call it) soon became a hit among writers and fitness enthusiasts—communities that thrive on the ability to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/this-chain-method-as-some-now-call-it-soon-became-a-hit-among-writers/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) [Explore all 257 Cal Newport quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) ## More Computer programming quotes > [“In programming the World Wide Computer, we will be programming our lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-carr/in-programming-the-world-wide-computer-we-will-be-programming-our/) [Nicholas Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-carr/) > [If you cannot grok the overall structure of a program while taking a shower, you are not ready to code it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-e-pattis/if-you-cannot-grok-the-overall-structure-of-a-program-while-taking-a/) [Richard E. Pattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-e-pattis/) > [Computer Science is a science of abstraction -creating the right model for a problem and devising the appropriate mechanizable techniques to solve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-aho/computer-science-is-a-science-of-abstraction-creating-the-right-model/) Alfred Aho > [If you really want to be a good archaeologist, you have to understand ancient DNA; you have to understand chemical analysis to figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/if-you-really-want-to-be-a-good-archaeologist-you-have-to-understand/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [I think that it's extraordinarily important that we in computer science keep fun in computing. When it started out, it was an awful lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-perlis/i-think-that-it-s-extraordinarily-important-that-we-in-computer/) [Alan Perlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-perlis/) > [Beauty is more important in computing than anywhere else in technology because software is so complicated. Beauty is the ultimate defense against complexity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gelernter/beauty-is-more-important-in-computing-than-anywhere-else-in/) [David Gelernter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gelernter/) > [At forty, I was too old to work as a programmer myself anymore; writing code is a young person’s job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/at-forty-i-was-too-old-to-work-as-a-programmer-myself-anymore-writing/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [The generation of random numbers is too important to be left to chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coveyou/the-generation-of-random-numbers-is-too-important-to-be-left-to-chance/) Robert Coveyou > [I was interested in computer programming as a kid. In fact, during my college days, I used to be a hacker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vatsal-sheth/i-was-interested-in-computer-programming-as-a-kid-in-fact-during-my/) [Vatsal Sheth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vatsal-sheth/) > [When certain concepts of TeX are introduced informally, general rules will be stated; afterwards you will find that the rules aren't strictly true. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-knuth/when-certain-concepts-of-tex-are-introduced-informally-general-rules/) [Donald Knuth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-knuth/) > [A teacher's job is to take a bunch of live wires and see that they are well-grounded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darwin-d-martin/a-teacher-s-job-is-to-take-a-bunch-of-live-wires-and-see-that-they/) Darwin D. Martin > [Computer Science is the only discipline in which we view adding a new wing to a building as being maintenance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-horning/computer-science-is-the-only-discipline-in-which-we-view-adding-a-new/) [Jim Horning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-horning/) > [Trying to outsmart a compiler defeats much of the purpose of using one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-kernighan/trying-to-outsmart-a-compiler-defeats-much-of-the-purpose-of-using-one/) [Brian Kernighan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-kernighan/) > [Considering the current sad state of our computer programs, software development is clearly still a black art, and cannot yet be called an engineering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/considering-the-current-sad-state-of-our-computer-programs-software/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [ One purpose of CRC cards \[a design tool\] is to fail early, to fail often, and to fail inexpensively. It is a lot cheaper… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cay-s-horstmann/one-purpose-of-crc-cards-a-design-tool-is-to-fail-early-to-fail-often/) Cay S. Horstmann [Browse all 183 Computer programming quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-programming/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“deliberate practice” to describe this style of serious study, defining it formally as an “activity designed, typically by a teacher, for the sole purpose of effectively improving specific aspects of an individual’s performance.”4 As hundreds of follow-up studies have since shown, deliberate practice provides the key to excellence in a diverse array of fields, among which are chess, medicine, auditing, computer programming, bridge, physics, sports, typing, juggling, dance, and music.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Cal Newport" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-style-of-serious-study-defining/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Computer programming" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-style-of-serious-study-defining/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/722/cal-newport-1302_computer-programming_deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-sty_264288.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“deliberate practice” to describe this style of serious study, defining it formally as an “activity designed…” — Cal Newport", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Cal Newport", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“deliberate practice” to describe this style...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-style-of-serious-study-defining/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/deliberate-practice-to-describe-this-style-of-serious-study-defining/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```