Nothing can be done perfectly on the first try: you can’t lift heavy weights right away in the gym, you can’t approach a stranger and immediately win their interest, you can’t propose a big business deal with instant success, or deliver a mind-blowing public speech from the start.

The path to mastery is through practice, trial, and error. You gradually increase the intensity until you hit a limit, allowing your body or mind to adapt over time. Then, you push the intensity a bit more. Growth doesn’t happen without failure.

But there’s a challenge: we often struggle to see how to gradually increase intensity in certain areas. In the gym, you can start light and add weight slowly, but that approach seems harder with things like approaching strangers or public speaking. Yet, with creativity and mental preparation, it’s possible.

You could start by walking in crowded areas, imagining interactions. Then, begin with a simple ‘hello’ or asking for directions, progress to small talk, then give compliments, and finally introduce yourself — slowly increasing the intensity over days, weeks, months, or even years.

Similarly, for public speaking, you can start by watching speeches, then write one for yourself, practice alone, and perform in front of a few friends before moving to larger audiences. Gradually increase the challenge over time.

Mastery requires a price: you’ll experience discomfort, pain, and embarrassment. The difference lies only in intensity. It can be instant and intense or gradual and manageable. You decide how much you can handle and how fast you want to grow.

Life is interesting. If you accept that discomfort is necessary and unavoidable, with only the intensity and timing varying, you’ll start winning in life.