In the few days since I started posting on seddit again, I've noticed a lot of guys asking basic questions that get roundly ignored. "How do I kino?" "How do I beat AA?" "How do I neg?"

It reminds me of my own personal and social development. I started reading seddit frequently in late 2010/early 2011, and had very little to show for it throughout all of last year. So I stopped. I focused less on absorbing new ideas and FRs every day, and focused more on my own life. I joined a sports circle. I played more music. I trained for a marathon. I traveled. I went out once or twice a week. And slowly, unconsciously, I began to improve.

As I put more effort into improving my life, the challenge of improving my game seemed trivial by comparison. When you've spent your morning running 15 miles, pushing yourself past the mental barriers that say "I can't," it becomes much easier to look at a girl you'd like to approach and say "I can."

As I grew more diligent in my efforts to improve my life, I grew more diligent in consistently improving my game. When you have a solid routine of running, playing music and studying, game is no longer an independent obstacle--just another activity to slot into your routine.

As I grew more conscious of my progress in life, I grew more conscious of my progress in game. Mindless effort can only get you so far. When you consciously track your improvements in running distance, or picking speed, or kanji memorization, it becomes natural to track your improvements in remembering to escalate kino, or maintain strong eye contact and strong body language.

So many beginner questions share this one answer: Do The Work, in game and in life. Like any worthwhile pursuit, game isn't a switch that's either On or Off. It's a muscle. It must be flexed, stretched and cared for, week in and week out. You must be consistent and self-aware in your efforts. Would you expect to become a rock star by watching instructional videos and concerts all day? Would you expect to get in shape by reading Runner's World? Would you expect to learn a language by reading about different instructional methods? Of course not! So why would you expect to improve your game by reading field reports all day?

The only way to avoid becoming a useless keyboard casanova is to Do The Work, learn from your mistakes, and Do The Work again. Now, I read seddit mainly for motivation, and I post reports here as a way to learn from my own experiences by clarifying and reflecting upon them through writing. But all of the progress I've made in the last six months has come from Doing The Work.

Doing The Work in one area of your life invariably helps you Do The Work in other areas, because you cultivate the habit of consistently and consciously improving yourself, and that habit can be applied universally. Doing The Work in multiple areas of your life, accomplishing goals that bring you closer to your dreams, will make you a well-rounded and happy person who doesn't rely on girls for their sense of self worth (this is a restatement of my silly airship analogy in my last FR).

Beginners, I challenge you! Lay off seddit and Do The Work. Don't wait for someone here to tell you how to improve--Do The Work. Put in the effort. Be consistent. Reflect on your successes and your mistakes. Keep a journal, so you know where to put the effort next time. I don't even care if you Do The Work on your game in particular, as long as you Do The Work on something in your life. Stop thinking about how to work your muscles and work them. Seddit is not self improvement, it's just a map to self improvement. In the end, you must do the act of improving yourself.

I am nowhere near the end of my journey, and I'm beginning to realize this journey might not even have an end. But I know that as long as I Do The Work, no matter the area of my life, I will learn, and I will improve.

Do The Work.