For example, when teaching programming, I think many people give the instruction, "If you're stuck for 15 minutes, ask immediately."

But, think about it. If all the answers become clear after 15 minutes, there's no "need to create it yourself." If you only superficially struggle and all problems are solved after 15 minutes, will you truly develop skills? If you're given the answers and then, in a real situation, you can complete a task without asking many questions, can you truly believe that you've gained "confidence"?

For example, in programming, when you think about how to create a slot machine program, it's precisely because you try and error and build the mechanism yourself that you understand its structure. When you first try, it's rare to come up with or understand the mechanism after only 15 minutes of struggling. Since you haven't really gone through much trial and error, your understanding won't deepen, and you won't be able to create it by yourself. As you go through trial and error and think, your understanding of the technology will fundamentally deepen.

Even if you don't understand and are taught, it often ends up as "it worked, but I just did what I was told" or "I don't fundamentally understand it, so I can't apply it when writing another program," meaning you haven't learned anything at all. The only people who truly learn from this are superhumans who can memorize everything they're taught and then apply it to write other programs.

Those who are actually learning might have some recollection of this. You tried to create something by tracing the textbook, but when you tried to create something on your own, you didn't know what to do. You tried tracing learning materials like Progate, but in the end, when you tried to create something yourself, you didn't even know where to start. If you're in an environment where you're immediately given the answers, that's what happens.

So, how do you acquire practical skills? It's by gradually thinking for yourself, trying and erroring, and finding answers even within what you understand. By doing so, you develop a "habit of finding answers yourself" instead of a "habit of asking," which allows you to acquire the ability to think and the methods themselves, and become proficient in using technology.

The excellent people who instruct "ask if you don't understand" are excellent precisely because they grew up in an environment where no one gave them the answers.

I will explain the mindset of people who say, "If you're stuck for 15 minutes, ask." First, many of these people "were in an environment where they couldn't ask, struggled, and therefore think it's better to ask."

People tend to think that once they learn "how to write" code, they "can write it again next time." Since it's ultimately a language, many people believe that the difference in skill lies in "knowing or not knowing" the method. That's why they mistakenly believe that giving them the "answers" to "memorize" leads to faster growth.

However, intermediate learners themselves don't realize that they are helped by their "experience of trial and error during a time when they couldn't ask" and the "problem-solving skills they acquired through struggling." They didn't become excellent because they could ask; they became excellent because they struggled when they couldn't ask.

For example, if they receive a request to build a slot machine, they can imagine how to create it themselves, but it's difficult for "people who have continuously been given answers" to imagine how to create such "unexperienced" productions.

This is because they have only been reproducing the answers they were given, so their thinking on how to apply them hasn't developed. As a result, they become people who can't do anything without being taught on the job. I used to be the type who carefully taught answers, but I stopped because such people tend to give up before making it a career.

Therefore, even if you are tempted by sweet words to ask for answers immediately, it ultimately won't benefit you. If there's someone who has continuously asked for answers and gained practical skills, that person would already be a highly intelligent individual with considerable problem-solving abilities. While it might be fine to keep providing answers to such people, most people won't turn out that way.

The path most skill educators follow

It's been about 6 years since I started getting involved in skill education. During that time, I've repeatedly seen a familiar "educator growth pattern."

First, they start training with an emphasis on "teaching carefully," answering questions immediately as they are asked. At that time, everyone says, "Ask immediately if you don't understand," and since this is well-received by users, they market "being able to ask a professional directly" to attract customers and expand to some extent.

However, when questions become too simple, or things that can be easily found by searching start being asked, doubts arise: "Are people really using their brains to learn this?" and "In a real situation, most problems are solved by searching, so is it okay to provide answers so readily?"

Sometimes, they even meticulously teach things like how to send files, how to compress them into a zip file, and the underlying mechanisms. However, such things can be easily found with a quick Google search, and they begin to realize the reality that "one must get used to researching and finding answers." They start thinking, "What we should be cultivating is the problem-solving skill itself, which involves deriving answers from a few hints."

They also start receiving feedback from students who went into the field or tried to create something from scratch, saying, "When I tried to do it myself, I couldn't." At that point, they finally become aware that reform is necessary.

So, what do they do? They start creating "manuals for asking questions" and "mindsets for tackling the curriculum." It is then that the understanding finally deepens that "essential education should be about teaching how to hunt prey, not just giving prey." When asked questions, they start giving only hints instead of directly providing the answers.

Just as this form has solidified, new competitors suddenly appear, starting to broadcast messages like "You can ask our mentors immediately!" And those who have been involved in the entire educational process often feel like, "Oh, here we go again..."

This loop occurs at least once a year. Therefore, I think that the educational institution that beginners should truly choose is one that discusses "rules and mindset for asking questions" and also "places where there are restrictions on asking questions," as this would be more appropriate for developing skills.

It's okay to ask freely only during practical application.

However, in actual work, the situation is a little different. There are deadlines, so you can't keep agonizing over things indefinitely. Therefore, if you anticipate struggling for several hours, it's better to ask someone who knows and solve the problem. Now there's also ChatGPT, so you can solve problems quickly without asking people. However, you shouldn't have the same mindset from the time you're practicing or acquiring skills, because your thinking ability won't be trained.

Even if it's okay to ask during actual work, it's fundamentally important to try and create things through trial and error yourself. If you ask your seniors about everything you don't understand, you'll just be someone who can't do their job, and you'll also take up your seniors' valuable time. The basic rule is to solve problems yourself and ask only when you absolutely can't figure it out.

Therefore, for problems of a certain level, you need to train the problem-solving skills themselves that allow you to solve them yourself in a few minutes. You must train your ability to visualize what you're creating and think about the most appropriate way to build it. This is something you acquire by thinking for yourself and finding answers during skill acquisition.

Skill acquisition is not about memorizing how to create things, whether it's programming or design. You need to think about how to complete tasks quickly and accurately using the given tools of programming and design. It is by making this thinking ability itself a "habit" during learning that you will be able to demonstrate your true abilities in real-world situations.

If you're going to get a mentor or attend a school, it would be better to choose a mentor or school that trains your thinking ability itself. If it's a place that lacks this emphasis on thinking and merely provides polite answers, you won't acquire significant skills. You'll end up panicking in real-world situations.

Summary

With the content of this discussion, have you understood the reason why it's better to choose "people or places that don't immediately give you answers" if you're receiving skill education?

Honestly, every year, similar educational systems are born, evolve in similar ways, and ultimately arrive at similar conclusions, which makes me genuinely wonder, "Don't they refer to other systems when creating new educational frameworks?" In the end, if one seriously confronts education and actively creates curricula or educational projects, I suppose they will reach similar conclusions a few years later.

If you join an educational institution with a system where you can ask questions immediately, unless you are exceptionally talented, you will often find yourself unable to create anything substantial after graduation. Then, starting with job hunting and freelance activities, not only your deliverables but even your problem-solving abilities won't be evaluated, and naturally, you won't be able to solve client problems, leading to a situation where you can't do work = can't earn money.

Even if you can do something, it will likely be "easily replaceable work" like piecework or "update tasks," and it will be a long time before you can fundamentally become a creator as a designer or engineer.

Let's avoid falling into a situation where you pay a large sum of money, thinking "the support is excellent" because of appealing phrases like "You can ask immediately!" and "Your mentor is always by your side!", but ultimately you can't create anything of quality yourself and haven't become capable of doing the work.

After numerous such failures, many people have arrived at the conclusion that it's better not to teach all the answers. Honestly, I really wish this loop would end soon. I vaguely think it's time we stopped repeating it.