On Being an Expert

This is not what I look like. Besides the facial expression that says, "What the heck are you doing?" that is.
©2008-2012 by dropoflight

As we've already established, I don't do things halfway.

I throw myself 100% into whatever it is that I'm currently into. And, since I'm a natural-born teacher, I also have this almost irresistible compulsion to become an expert on that thing.

And this has been a habit I've noticed at the very least since college (I can't think of any examples from before that). When I took my first college English class and fell in love with Paradise Lost, I stopped pursuing a music degree and switched to English and Classics. It was important to me that I be able not only to read and appreciate Milton, but that I understand the work deeply (like on a "I can read the Aeneid in the original Latin" level) so that I could better communicate to others why it was so great.

When I started doing triathlons, I read voraciously. I read everything I could get my hands on about swimming, biking, running, and how to put it all together. In the beginning, I did so to better coach myself. But as I read more and more, it seemed insane to keep the knowledge to myself. So I started a blog about triathlon, and used it to disseminate my new-found knowledge. Eventually, I became a trainer and coach, with an emphasis on endurance sports. Because that's where my expertise was.

Now, I have a new thing. And it's called rugby.

I find myself watching rugby anytime I can. Women's World Cup footage. Six Nations matches. Super Rugby. The more I watch, the better I understand the game, and the more I can see what makes a team great or mediocre.

I've got a notebook full of training ideas. They began as ideas on how I could train to be a great scrum half, but they've involved into full-on coaching. I want to develop a system for how to train elite athletes in a team sport. My co-workers joke about my zeal. Two months playing a new sport, and already I'm trying to understand the ins and outs of how to coach it!

But what can I say? This is how I approach all my interests. I want to be the best (or at least better than everyone around me) at what I'm doing. And if I'm going to be the best, that puts me in a prime position to teach others how to be better.