Expertise in a subject is a long game.

I’ve been pondering, practicing, and reading about self-directed learning for over 5 years now, and writing about it for around 3 years. I’ve published 100+ articles on the subject.

And still, it’s only recently that I’ve started to feel that sense of effortless, intuitive mastery over the material—that ability to connect concepts with ease or quickly recall ideas I need for my writing.

If you set longer time horizons and commit to a subject, it’s amazing how knowledgable you can become.