From Advice to Action: The Long Journey of Building Real Skills

Does Advice Actually Work?

Let’s start with a common piece of advice: “Improve your communication skills.” Does this advice actually help? Before answering, let me give you a simple example.

In the private sector, the ability to speak English is often seen as a crucial skill. For the past 30 years, this notion has been widely accepted and proven true. But how many candidates, on average, can fluently speak English during interviews? The reality is only 10% to 20% at best. A staggering 80% to 90% of candidates still struggle with spoken English.

Why Does This Happen?

To understand why, I conducted extensive research. I attended English language centers, visited IELTS coaching institutes, and even enrolled in some courses myself. One striking observation was the high dropout rate, often as high as 60% in some places.

Some coaching centers devised creative solutions, such as allowing students to join classes at any time, meaning there’s always a constant flow of new learners. But how many of them actually leave with meaningful learning? Some succeed, but the majority don’t.

The Role of Learning Science

A fundamental principle of learning science is this: “Every individual has a unique learning style.” This means there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. A generic approach may work for basic problems, but it rarely succeeds for specialized skills like communication.

Let’s circle back to the advice about improving communication skills. Advice alone rarely works. Why? Because how to improve isn’t explained.

• If I realize I need to improve my communication skills, does simply realizing this lead to improvement?
• No, it doesn’t.

Why Doesn’t It Work?

1. Where is the learning environment?
2. Who will teach me?
3. Who will adapt their teaching to suit my unique needs?

Advice belongs to the domain of knowledge. For that knowledge to transform into skills, it must be executed and practiced repeatedly.

Skills Require Practice, Adaptation, and Mastery

Skill-building requires understanding the learner, guiding them in a way that suits them, and fostering consistent practice until the skill becomes second nature.

I summarized this in one sentence:

“Skills are developed by understanding the individual, tailoring the learning experience to them, enabling practice, and transforming that practice into habit.”

However, implementing this process takes years—1 to 5 years or even more—depending on several factors:

• The individual’s learning capacity.
• The resources and opportunities available to them.
• Their starting level and the target level they need to achieve.

Transforming Advice into Action

Turning advice into actionable results is a process of sustained effort, continuous learning, and expert guidance. It is not an overnight change but a journey that requires persistence and dedication.

Advice, therefore, is only the starting point. The real challenge lies in transforming it into a structured, long-term practice that leads to measurable growth.