I want to share something I do every single day. I call it learning backwards.
Most people think learning starts at the beginning. You find the first step, then the next one, then the one after that, and eventually you get where you're going. Sometimes that's true. But honestly, a lot of the most useful learning I've ever done didn't work that way at all. It started at the end. It started with something I already saw, something that already existed, and worked its way back to me.
Observation Is Only Step One
Here's the simplest way I can put it. Observation is stage one. You see something: a skill someone has, a result you admire, a thing that just works really well. You notice it. That's the easy part, and it's where most people stop.
Learning backwards is stage two. You take that observation and you fill the gap. You look at the distance between where you are and what you just saw, and instead of being intimidated by it, you start working out how to close it.
That gap is where all the learning actually lives. The observation just shows you where to dig.
You're Already Doing It
The thing is, people learn backwards all the time. They just don't call it that.
Think about the last time you watched someone do something and thought, I want to be able to do that. That little moment is you standing at the finished result and quietly working out the steps in reverse. You saw the end first. Now you're filling in everything that has to come before it.
I think that's a great thing. It means you don't have to start from scratch, and you don't have to wait for permission. The world is full of finished examples. Things that already work, people who are already good at what they do. Every single one of them is a starting point if you're willing to work backwards from it.
Start From the Goal, Work Back
This is why I think goals are more reachable than people make them out to be.
When you have a goal, you don't actually need to know the first step. You already know the last one, because the last step is the goal itself. So start there. Picture the finished thing as clearly as you can, then ask what had to happen right before it. Then what had to happen before that. Keep going until the chain reaches your feet, right where you're standing today. Now you've got a path, and you built it backwards.
It works the same way with people. When you see someone do something you admire, don't just admire it. Break it down. What does that person know, or do, that you don't yet? That's the gap. Then go fill it. Most of the time, the gap is a lot smaller than it looks from a distance.
Never Stop Filling the Gap
I do this every day, and honestly, it's been one of the most empowering things in my life. It changes how you see everything. Problems stop looking like walls and start looking like gaps. And gaps can be filled.
So never stop learning. When you observe something, don't be afraid to fill in the gap. That's the whole idea. If you see someone doing something you like, figure out how to do it yourself. If there's a goal you want to reach, learn it backwards. Start at the end and work your way home.
And if you ever have a question, or you just want a second thought on something, feel free to email me. I genuinely don't mind helping. We're all filling gaps. We might as well help each other find them.