Once upon a time, I was in a so-called “mastermind”.
Basically, it was a group of career/entrepreneurial types who’d meet up every fortnight to talk about business strategies & self development.
Anyway…
In one particular session, we’d just finished reading Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, when one guy asks,
“Great, what book’s next?”
The leader blinks.
“Have you applied Think & Grow Rich yet?”
No, mumbles the guy.
“Well, go apply it then.”
It was a moment for me that summed up a trap I’ve fallen into many many many times in my career, and now try my utmost to avoid:
The “Always Be Learning Trap”.
And to make it crystal clear what this is (and why it can be so damaging for your career), let’s take a very brief segue into a reddit forum dedicated to mixed martial arts (I’ve somewhat recently become a big fan of the sport, I wonder if there any other readers who are too!).
🥊 Your typical MMA fan.
One day, I was looking at the r/mma reddit and found this pic, which one redditor commented was “your average MMA viewer”:
As the guy above elegantly shows…
Knowing how to do something on an intellectual level vs. knowing how to actually do something are two very different things.
🎓 The perpetual student
We've all met someone who seems to be in a constant state of learning. They go from one degree to another, stacking up certificates and diplomas like they're collecting trading cards.
Bachelor's degree? Check.
Master's? Check.
Second master's? Why not?
MBA? Gotta catch 'em all!
While their dedication to education is commendable, they've fallen into the trap of always learning and never doing.
And when they start ‘doing’, they realize the real world is so different from what they’ve been ‘learning’.
I've been there myself.
I studied computer science in college, and I thought I had it all figured out. But when it came time to build my first website, I was lost. The theoretical knowledge I'd gained didn't translate into practical skills. And programming languages had already evolved substantially.
So I had to learn by doing. By Googling, posting questions online, testing things myself and eventually figuring it out.
And it's a lesson I've carried with me ever since:
The classroom can only take you so far.
🎓 The decision-making muscle
My biggest problem with the "Always Be Learning Trap" is that it prevents you from developing your decision-making skills.
When you're constantly consuming information (“learning”) but never putting it into practice, you’re really just following step-by-step tutorials.
You aren’t learning how to think for yourself or make decisions.
But decision-making is probably the most important skill you need to cultivate. After all, the highest paid employees, e.g. CEOs, aren't paid top dollar for their time; they're paid for their judgment.
And the only way to develop that skill set is by actually applying what you’ve learned, running into annoyingly BIG obstacles, and making the right decision to get around it.
You can read every book on leadership, but until you're in the trenches, making tough calls under pressure, you won't truly understand what it takes to be an effective leader.
🧩 Treasure maps vs. Treasure
So the theory goes, there’s two types of knowledge.
- “explicit” knowledge (which is purely intellectual)
- And “tacit” knowledge (which is real-world skill and/or experience).
The way I think about it, explicit knowledge is like a treasure map. Is a treasure map valuable? Well.. not really. I mean, at the end of the day, it’s a piece of paper.
When it becomes valuable is when you follow it to find the treasure (the tacit knowledge).
So, this gives us a neat rule going forward:
✍️ ABA!
In sales, there’s the classic, “ABC - Always Be Closing.”
My motto?
ABA - Always Be Applying!
Let’s say you’re learning copy or content writing. Instead of just going through a two week course.. write LinkedIn content or sales emails while you’re doing it.
Taking a UX/UI course? Choose one of your favourite brands, redesign their website, and send it to them, with no expectation of anything in return.
Learning programming? Build a mini app or website.
Reading a “self-help” book (or email cough cough ;))?
Write 2-3 actionable pieces of advice / insights, then on Sundays, journal about how you can apply them during the week.
If you make it a rule that you always apply what you learn, you’ll go from being an “Ivory Tower” thinker to someone who has actual experience and skill…
(something extremely rare (and thus valuable) in the marketplace.)
🌊 Don’t brag unless your T-shirt’s wet
Let me leave you with this:
In his famous newsletter, Gary Halbert tells the story of taking a friend out on his boat. The friend remarks, "Man, this boat is fast."
Gary replies, "Bullsh*t."
He explains that while his friend might have an intellectual idea of the boat being fast, he doesn't "really know" the boat is fast.
So, Gary takes the boat out a couple of miles off shore and slams down the throttle. The boat takes off like a bat out of hell, with waves smashing off the hull like cannon shots.
Their skin is pulled tight on their faces, their eyes are streaming, and his friend is screaming, "Oh Lord! Oh Jesus! Oh Sh*t! Holy Mary! Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God... This Boat Is FAST!"
Now he didn't just know.
He really knew.
And it’s this “experience” which is like gold dust for your career.
Actually knowing what it feels like to go through a heated negotiation, or to be under insanely tight deadlines, or to lead a team, or deliver a speech when morale is low…
.. is what helps you remain “calm under fire” when the proverbial you-know-what hits the fan.
So…
Seek experiences which back up what you’re learning.