Ask why a tool works, not just how to use it

Knowing the exact steps to make a tool do one thing only helps you with that one thing. Knowing why it behaves that way helps you with everything similar you'll run into later, because you can reason your way to a new answer instead of hunting for the exact same guide again.

I ask myself this same question constantly when I'm learning something new, because the reason behind a step sticks with me far longer than the step itself. Asking why also tends to reveal the small underlying idea that ties several different steps together, which makes the whole tool feel far less like a pile of disconnected tricks and more like something you actually understand.

Try this today: the next time you follow a step someone else wrote for you, pause and ask why that step works before moving to the next one. If you can't answer, look it up once and remember the reason instead of the step. That habit compounds quickly, and it makes every tool you touch after this one easier to pick up.