Getting better at things just doesn’t happen. Being a better surfer not only takes practice, it takes a commitment to learning. To be a better chess player, you have to study the game. To be better at sales you have grow your business acumen. Learning takes an open mind. It takes commitment and it takes humility. When we are good at something or do it for awhile, it’s easy to stop learning. There is a cost if we allow this to happen.

To keep learning:

Be paranoid, expect that at any moment someone is looking to take your place.
Spend an hour a day reading blogs in your space (surfing, sales, chess)
Accept there is a lot you don’t know
Meet with someone who is better than you weekly or at least monthly
Mentor someone new, you will learn as much from them as from your mentor
Try a new approach, tactic or method
Fail
Join FaceBook, Twitter, LinkedIn
Start a Blog and post a least twice a week
Become an expert in a specific tool or method in your profession, (build surfboards don’t just surf, become an expert in Salesforce.com, be an expert in the history of chess)
Challenge a conventional method

Learning doesn’t happen by accident. It’s a commitment. Staying current, getting better, and increasing your value takes learning. When is the last time you took the time to learn something new? How much of your day is spent on learning? It should be a lot. It’s what makes you better.