The online world and social media in particular is overrun with self-proclaimed experts - we might call them virtual experts. But as with truth, real expertise is as rare as ever in the digital era (notwithstanding the aforementioned ‘instant expert’ social media phenomenon). One reason why true experts remain such a rare breed is that developing expertise is a complex and multifaceted process that takes many years and arguably is never complete. Even with unprecedented access to information, acquiring expertise is arguably no more straightforward, encompassing as it does not only the acquisition of theoretical understanding but also applied knowledge and practical skills across multiple areas. Most coaches and practitioners aspire to attaining real expertise and as most will testify this journey and the real learning begins only once we leave formal education and enter the profession. This distinction between education and learning is an important one when seeking to develop expertise, as we will explore. It is similarly crucial that we understand the true purpose of teaching and the role of teachers, master coaches and mentors in guiding the process. Finding enlightenment and the pursuit of mastery however remains the domain of the individual and it is as much a process of self-discovery as anything else. There are also a number of steps and various stages to this journey.
True experts share a number of traits, not least the depth of their understanding, which separates them from the superficial grasp of the topic held by others. Rather than the one dimensional view held by others in the field, expertise confers something more akin to a panoramic view. Experts therefore bring a different perspective and the ability to see things in ways that others cannot. In stark contrast to the overconfidence and facile solutions espoused by pretenders, real experts have an appreciation of the complexity involved and so they not only offer more nuanced answers but also allow for uncertainty. As a friend and colleague shared, an expert is somebody who possesses an appreciation of the extent of what they have yet to learn. As Einstein himself said, ‘The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know’. This depiction of the essential nature of expertise provides a glimpse of the size and intricate nature of the task we face.
TEACHING AND LEARNING…
In our quest for expertise it is important that we differentiate between education and learning. Education is an institution-led initiative that serves various purposes, many of which have very little to do with the enlightenment of the individual. Indeed the present public schooling system evolved from the Prussian school model, which was designed to develop children into capable and compliant soldiers. Sadly, the present iteration of secondary schooling and even higher education is increasingly optimised for test scores, such that schooling can become unashamedly reduced to preparing kids to provide the right answers when prompted, rather than necessarily learning anything and often without acquiring any deeper level of understanding.
“The most necessary task of civilization is to teach people how to think. It should be the primary purpose of our public schools... The trouble with our way of educating is that it does not give elasticity to the mind. It casts the brain into a mold. It insists that the child must accept. It does not encourage original thought or reasoning, and it lays more stress on memory than observation.”
What is all the more problematic is that whilst education is viewed as a medium to disseminate knowledge, schooling is also well suited to indoctrination. Higher education may serve masters other than the state but universities nevertheless have the same propensity to propagate the prevailing dogma. Much power lies in the hands of those who decide what is included in the curriculum and sadly scholars have proven to be as easily swayed by cultural influences as anybody. From a practical perspective, the textbook version that is delivered to students also does not typically provide a true representation of the ambiguity and complexity of what we encounter in real life.
In contrast to education, learning is an endeavour by the individual and for the individual. If we adopt this definition it follows that teaching is therefore about more than simply instruction. The idea that we can simply impart knowledge is also somewhat misleading. In any case, teaching the mind to think is arguably the biggest contribution that a person can make to the learning of another.
“It is not so very important to learn facts. For that he doesn’t need college. He can learn them from books. The value of a (college) education is not the learning of many facts, but the training of the mind to think something that cannot be learned in textbooks”
Formal education has similarly proven to be ill-suited for teaching critical thinking, which is perhaps the most critical skill for those seeking to operate in the digital era. Whilst information is constantly available at our fingertips, the faculties for critical thinking are rather acquired through experiential learning and reflection with appropriate guidance.
“Never confuse education with intelligence. You can have a PhD and still be an idiot.”
Those entering the profession often have to contend with the legacy of their university education and it can be a grating transition. Models of practice that are taught are not necessarily current to what is happening in the field. Moreover, the particular ideology and academic constructs students are presented with are rarely stress-tested under real life conditions (hence there is much dogma that survives in academic teaching and zombie ideas that persist as a result). Graduates entering the professions thus often face a disorientating experience when their mental models of how things work finally encounter the realities of working with live humans.
CHALLENGES OF ACCREDITATION…
Formal continuing education and the delivery of learning content for professional accreditation (such as coach education and credentials in other disciplines) naturally suffer from many of the same problems. Ambiguity, complexity and uncertainty are inherent features of operating with humans, irrespective of the sport or chosen discipline. Moreover, sport is constantly evolving and the knowledge that informs practice is continually developing. All of which poses immense challenges in creating a learning syllabus. There are likewise logistical challenges to ensuring that the content provided in coaching modules or continuing education for practitioners remains current and applicable.
At the outset the task is more straightforward as it effectively establishes the bar for entry to the profession. To that end, the first level of accreditation effectively comprises the minimum standards to be safe to practice with live humans. The bigger concern at this stage is liability rather than expertise, so a competency-based criteria makes some sense. Thereafter the challenge becomes more difficult and it is typically at this point that things tend to diverge.
In general, the shortcomings of the standard process become more evident as we progress through the tiers of accreditation. The learning undertaken by the individual and the formal processes of continuing education are frequently at odds to some degree. The prevailing wisdom or chosen school of thought presented for a given topic in coaching modules and the materials used for accreditation are inevitably driven by convention and riddled with dogma.
At the risk of being cynical, there can also be other forces at play. The process of accreditation confers power and status to those who hold the reins. The motivations of the organisations and individuals granted the authority to preside over the process may therefore extend beyond simply determining fitness to practice and evaluating the expertise of the practitioner. There are even financial incentives that can shape how the assessment process is carried out - it can be a lucrative process and certifying bodies are not above cashing in on providing workshops and paid content to prepare for taking or retaking the evaluation.
Whilst any accreditation or assessment process should be rigorous it is equally important for everybody to acknowledge the element of subjectivity and make some allowance for the nuance involved. For an accreditation process to retain any validity it needs to account for the fundamental truth that there are many roads to Rome. The criteria for evaluation must therefore accommodate multiple solutions or different ways to tackle a problem. What works in practice naturally depends upon the situation and the optimal approach tends to vary according to the individual. The way in which practitioners are evaluated thus needs to consider the context as the frame of reference. There is no universal version of best practice or single right way of doing things and it is important that the processes employed reflect this reality.
LEARNING OUR TRADE…
Happily there are well established routes to practical learning that are distinct and largely separate from higher education. Apprenticeship is the best established route to acquiring the practical knowledge and technical skills for those starting out in the profession. This typically involves hands on training under the tutelage of an experienced master craftsman, alongside more formal taught classes to learn the underpinning theory.
The apprenticeship process for early career practitioners essentially concentrates on the what and the how. By observation and instruction the apprentice learns the ins and outs of the techniques and becomes increasingly skilled at executing them.
Once they are deemed ready to operate independently, the apprentice graduates and ventures out on their own, or at least begins to work without supervision. Aside from the ongoing experiential learning that they accrue through practicing independently, there are still gaps remaining and multiple avenues to pursue in acquiring real expertise.
The most common route to filling these gaps and ongoing development of professional judgement and tools to become more effective as a practitioner is via mentorship. One of the key differentiators between apprenticeship and mentorship is an added focus on the why, beyond simply the what and how. Developing true expertise is contingent upon having a grasp of the fundamental principles that govern practice. The mentorship that helps the individual to progress on their journey is thus more concerned with principles and the logic and reasoning that informs the what and the how.
“As to methods, there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.”
Progression is marked by the shift from becoming well-practiced with technical skills and effective at carrying out tasks to developing the capability to make good decisions and exercise professional judgement. Rather than executing a standard process on command, the individual starts to make a determination on what the best approach might be.
PURSUIT OF MASTERY…
Mastery has elements of tacit knowledge and empirical understanding. As such, it is acquired through experiential learning, applying skills in different contexts and problem-solving in a variety of scenarios. Practically, the pursuit of mastery is therefore a journey of discovery, ideally with appropriate guidance.
Two of the central challenges for those of us in the human performance realm are learning to navigate complexity and acquiring a level of comfort operating under conditions of uncertainty. Likewise, applied practice is about exercising judgement. What constitutes the right approach is specific to the context and constraints of the particular scenario. By definition, there is no set curriculum or rule book that is fit for this purpose.
Furthermore, the human element is also absolutely crucial to being effective as a coach or practitioner irrespective of the sport or discipline. As such, expertise in coaching and all disciplines concerned with human performance encompasses emotional intelligence, which in turn has both intra-personal and inter-personal elements. As an aside, we should be happy about all this, otherwise our jobs would soon be replaced by bots and algorithms.
Each individual and scenario effectively presents a different puzzle to solve. Learning over time thus occurs through (guided) discovery and reflective practice. In essence this a cyclical process: we appraise the situation at hand, determine the best approach according to the constraints and what information we have, proceed and modify on the fly as needed depending on how things play out and review afterwards to elucidate what lessons we can take moving forwards. Periodically it also serves us well to conduct a more extensive audit of our process and a deeper examination of ourselves with a 360-degree review to identify and address any blindspots and barriers that might be impeding our progress.
Guidance and perspectives offered by others can greatly facilitate the process but enlightenment can only be arrived at by the individual. To that end, a crucial part of the role of the mentor is to offer insights based on their own expertise and shine a torch on salient aspects to consider. As well as being a sounding board to assist the learner in reasoning things through, a good mentor asks the right questions which prompt the reflections that ultimately lead them towards those ‘light bulb moments’.
There are levels of mastery and layers of understanding. The journey and process of discovery yields important realisations on the underlying logic and glimpses of the deeper nature of things. Effectively there is no end point to this journey. There is always more to learn and the potential to attain an ever greater level of mastery in the application or execution of skills.
Those interested in learning about the services we offer to organisations and teams can find more via the consulting section on the site. You are also welcome to reach out via the Contact page.
Found this a worthwhile read? Subscribe to get Informed Blog posts direct to your email inbox and free to share with anybody in your network who might find value. When you subscribe you will receive a link to access a course entitled Fundamentals of Physical Preparation for free.
Also check out the Books section for a host of resources that take a deeper dive on various topics relating to human performance, coaching, athletic preparation and sports injury. The recent release Prepared: Unlocking Human Performance with Lessons from Elite Sport is now available worldwide.