i have this aversion to learning "specialized" skills when i'm learning to do something new. like, if i were learning to program, i would feel strange about learning one specific programming language -- after all, i'm trying to learn to program in general, not specifically javascript/whatever. of course, if you think about it, this is a kind of silly thing to want to avoid. you can't get good at programming without, well, programming.
that idea is exactly what i'm thinking about with this post, since it's
something i haven't been able to articulate concretely until just recently:
that "intermediate hump" where it feels like your skills are plateauing
is when you have to branch into specifics. you've reached the point
where you can't simply get "better" at the skill you're pursuing; you've
reached the point where your skill level can't stay uniform across the
craft. someone who's really good in most/all areas of something
likely isn't "really good at everything", you just can't see their
exact strengths and weaknesses from the outside, but is like that
because they've tediously spent time working on many specific sub-skills and
sub-sub-skills to get to that point.
in hindsight, i think this is a fairly obvious thing to say, and of course i don't think i'm the first person to notice this. i think i tend to be averse to picking a specific specialty (art style in art, for instance) because i usually don't have a specific goal in mind when learning a new skill. i often learn new instruments without wanting to play any music in particular with them. i need to realize that specialization isn't some big irrevocable final choice and can only help you get better at the overall skill.
anyway, on a more personal note, i broke down in tears over a phone screen protector today. i think i'm more stressed than i realize. can't imagine why lol.