Today’s quote: “If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful at all.”

– Michelangelo

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Here’s something I did one day I was bored. I hopped on Excel (because what else is there to do when bored?) and made a productivity tracker. A schedule or planner that, when followed, gives you mastery in 5 skills over the course of 10 years.

“Mastery” I categorized by having greater than or equal to 10 thousand hours of practice. “Practice” I defined as focused studying of masters who have come before you and their works, structured implementation of their recommended techniques, and unyielding dedication to continuous improvement of the skill in question.

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After moving the skills around and experimenting with time slots, here’s a screenshot of the final draft.

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For a more detailed breakdown including some examples of skills, check out the page below. You’ll also see the calculation of number of skills, hours per skill per day, multiplied by the number of days in 10 years, which puts you a little over the 10k-hour mark for mastery. 10,957 and a half hours in each of five separate disciplines.

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So far, I have completed mastery in five undisclosed skills after a rigid schedule over the past ten years. January 1st, 2026 will mark the start of the next five skills I’ll tackle. Perhaps I’ll deepen my mastery in one of the original five. Who knows.

Just kidding. I haven’t stuck to this schedule. I’m not sure who could. (Apart from Michelangelo.) For ten whole years, could you imagine?? Fifteen hours of work, 7.5 hours of sleep, and 1.5 hours of food consumption. If you want to try it out, please keep me updated with your progress.

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Brain teaser:

What row of numbers comes next?

1

11

21

1211

111221

312211