I started leaning the piano 4 months ago with a remote tutor and it’s been such a pleasant experience. I absolutely love learning new systems, and music is a fascinating system with such interesting tangible results, it reminds me of my first experiences with web dev where I got to see this thing I myself created come to life. I agree that music practice is such a transferable skill. There are no shortcuts, but there are tricks of the trade that make absolutely no sense at first but you keep and it and pieces start clicking. I’m glad I started a side project around the same time, because I find I am applying similar discipline to both and it’s a really fun cycle to be living through at the moment :)
You bring up an interesting point that I (and Crawford) think is massively important nowadays. When you learn a real skill, like really learn it from a master, part of what you are doing is learning to trust an authority outside of yourself. Good technique in so many disciplines feels weird, awkward, wrong, and un-fun when you first try it. But the discipline decides on right, not us. The instrument, or the golf ball, or whatever real physical thing that you have to work with determines correct technique, and we have to learn how to make that feel natural through years of effort. I believe this is a huge part of the benefit of deliberate practise: you learn that "oh this feels good" or "this seems to work for me, and what I think matters most" is not good enough. And in this day and age of so much "me me how I feel me" and instant gratification, learning that humility is a really valuable skill. Music will teach you that the path to effortless mastery is full of twists and turns, and is often uncomfortable. We only get there when we decide it's ok to be uncomfortable.
