Have you ever heard of the old adage "practice makes perfect"? I'm sure many if not all of you have. And in theory it makes sense.
How did any sports star get ready for a game or a season? Practice.
How did every elementary school kid master multiplication? Practice.
How did any impressionist painter master their skills? Practice.
See the act of practicing or to practice is great for repetitive tasks. Does it translate to those areas of mastery for STEM? Let's put it to work...
Did Einstein practice to derive the theorem of relativity? No, he failed first.
Did Edison practice how to construct a light bulb before he invented it? No, he failed supposedly over 1000 times.
Do graduate students practice in order to complete a dissertation? No, they fail a boatload (trust me).
Please do not misinterpret what I am saying however. Yes, Einstein had to practice basic principles of physics to progress to study relativity. Edison had to understand how currents and electricity had to work in order to construct a light bulb. Graduate students can't just fail a whole slew of experiments and come out with a PhD, nor can they walk up to any instrument without practicing using it in order to gain results. There was a great deal of practice that occurred throughout their careers, but was it the only thing that contributed to their success in STEM? No.
For those who are actively pursuing academic or career aspirations in any STEM field I would say one of the biggest fears for them is failing. And this post is not to necessarily assuage you all from failing. It WILL happen. The difference between that and practicing is what do you learn from it?
I worked with a chemist whose career was in instrumentation. He said, and I will forever remember it, "you will never learn from the instrument working. You will always learn if it breaks." As I think back, it was in the moments in which I had to examine why an experiment failed, why an instrument started smoking, or I obtained results opposite to what I hypothesized in which I learned the most. Many of those circumstances are not "failing" in classical terms, but they sure made me feel like a failure.
I say this all as yes, keep practicing. It does, of course, help master skills, especially those in STEM. But do not be afraid to fail. Failing is proof you tried. Failing will undoubtedly teach you something. Failing may also teach you something about yourself you didn't necessarily know before.
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