Generally, a person becomes an expert through a process of learning and then perfecting a technique through practice. In any particular area of achievement, there are many techniques that have to be learned, either through direct instruction or by watching others perform them. Once those techniques are learned, they must be practiced. Becoming an expert at all of the techniques, which can be rolled into a skill, requires a large amount of deliberate practice, practice where feedback and progress is carefully monitored. In general, 10,000 hours of deliberate practice is needed to become an expert, but there are levels of expertise that can be developed in less time.