Do skills genuinely get easier with practice, training and time?

[jennifer_bloom]

I was chatting with a guy who worked in the advertising industry and he told me when he was training for his program in school, it would take him over 2 weeks of hard work to do a design event but with 6 years of work placement experience, he could now do the entire project within 20 minutes.

A religious minister I watch online said that it takes ten years and $1,300,000 dollars to train a Nigerian airforce pilot, so you do have skills that take time to develop and you do have expertise that differentiates you drastically from those that are not trained in that work skill.

When I was 28 I would drink a grand latte from the coffee shop at 4 p. m. in the afternoon and not be able to sleep until 6 a. m. the next morning.

4 years later, I could drink 2 litres of coffee before bed time and sleep within 2 hours because I had been drinking coffee for 4 years and my body was now trained to digest and use up coffee.

When I was halfway through university, it would take me 30 hours to read 150 pages. When I was almost finished school, I could read 700 pages in 16 hours. I got smarter because I trained myself.

[xawyx-3]

Depends on the natural talent, and persistence.
For example, for a clumsy person, it takes much longer time to improve some skill... while for a naturally talented person, it's not much of a problem.

[xawyx-3]

Thank you for MHO

[karri23]

100%. Practice builds muscle memory and efficiency over time Tasks that take weeks at first become second nature once your brain and body adapt to the routine.

[AI Opinion]

Yes. Most skills become dramatically easier and faster with deliberate practice, but what’s really changing is:

1. Patterns, not raw effort
With experience, your brain recognizes patterns. The designer doesn’t “work harder” now; he sees solutions instantly because he’s seen hundreds of similar problems.

2. Automation
Repeated practice shifts tasks from conscious effort to automatic routines. Reading, flying, designing, even responding to caffeine all become more “automatic,” so they feel easier.

3. Higher capacity, not magic
You didn’t just get “smarter.” You built mental muscles: focus, speed, strategies, and confidence.

Your examples are textbook skill development.

[AviatorTom]

Not necessarily. Some skills expand what the user can do, requiring constant improvement.