The Learning Curve Nobody Talks About

Why your "off" days are teaching you more than your perfect ones

I was reading an article this morning when the author dismissed my approach with one line: "1% better every day is a cop out to goal setting."

That familiar ugh feeling kicked in. Am I thinking about this all wrong?

A few years ago, I ditched the lofty, hairy, audacious goals for something simpler: being 1% better every day. It felt revolutionary at the time. Sustainable. Human. But here was this author, dismissing my entire approach as an excuse for mediocrity.

The doubt spiral started immediately. Maybe I was just giving myself permission to slack off. Maybe I was afraid of real commitment. Maybe I was everything he said—someone choosing the easy path while disguising it as wisdom.

I sat with those feelings longer than I wanted to. Let them marinate in that uncomfortable space between confidence and questioning.

Sitting in discomfort can be helpful.

But here's what emerged from that discomfort: I agree with him…If you're using 1% better as an excuse to do the bare minimum every day.

What he missed was this: when you use it like I do—as baby steps that lead to bigger steps, then to leaps and strides-that 's not copping out. That's winning.

The Gym Taught Me Everything

My gym experience made this clear. My trainer explained how workouts change based on what you need that day. Some days, less weight, more reps. On other days, the opposite. It wasn't about what's right for everyone else, but what's right for me.

Here's the thing we tend not to say out loud: there are days when just walking through the gym doors is the win.

You know those days when you're sitting at home, completely unmotivated, but it's workout day? I drag myself to the gym anyway. The second I walk in and see people already working out, something clicks. Suddenly, I'm ready to go.

Is walking in and walking out 1% better? Maybe not. But it's a step in the right direction, because most times walking in leads to starting the workout. And that's infinitely better than no workout at all.

The lesson hiding in plain sight: Trial and error teaches more than a win ever could.

Those "slacking" days weren't failures. They were experiments. Each one taught me something about motivation, environment, and what works for my brain and body. After looking at how far I'd come in a year—becoming a genuinely better version of myself—I realized those "slacking" days weren't the problem. They were part of what made the whole thing work.

Your perfect days teach you what's possible when everything aligns. Your messy days teach you what works when everything falls apart. Guess which skill serves you better in real life?

Someone Who Gets the Process

Finn Tropy

– Engineer and data-driven insight creator at Finn'sights – understands this perfectly. His approach to building tools and sharing insights isn't about perfect execution every time. It's about consistent experimentation, learning from what doesn't work, and iterating forward. He embodies the principle that sustained progress comes from embracing the learning curve, not avoiding it.

Here's the truth they don't want you to hear: Your failures are more valuable than your successes.

Your successful days confirm what you already know works. Your "failed" days reveal new paths, better systems, and what you need to thrive. They're not setbacks—they're research.

The Reframe That Changes Everything

Most people celebrate wins and hide struggles. That's backwards. Your struggles are where real learning takes place.

Instead of asking "Did I succeed today?" start asking "What did I learn today?" Instead of measuring perfect execution, measure useful data. Instead of avoiding failure, start collecting it like currency.

The gym taught me this: some days you crush your workout. Some days you just show up. Both get you closer to where you want to be.

Here's What This Means for You

Think about your current goals—business, personal, and creative. What would change if you stopped judging days as wins or losses and started seeing them as experiments?

That project that didn't work out? That's data about your process. That day you barely showed up? That's intel about your sustainable minimums. That time you felt like quitting? That's information about your support systems.

The Path Forward

Ready to reframe your own learning curve? Here are three ways to start collecting better data:

1. Track experiments, not just results - Keep a log of what you tried, not just what worked

2. Stop solving the wrong problems entirely - This Problem Spotter walkthrough shows how most people waste time fixing symptoms instead of identifying the real stuck point (like spending years blaming bike brakes when you shouldn't have been on the bike at all)

3. Build systems that work when you don't feel like it - Design for your worst days, not your best ones.

The Real Landing

Stop Optimizing for Perfect Days. Start Building for Real Ones.

If you're tired of business advice that only works when you're motivated and firing on all cylinders, try the Problem Spotter GPT. It'll help you figure out what you're stuck on - not what you think you should be stuck on.