Shin Jinseo's Study Plan

Kirby · #1

Saw this image on a wiki page for Shin Jinseo:

It's what he wrote down as his study routine. It was at least posted in 2017, so it's a little old - he would have been around 17 years old at that time. I have no idea how or when his routine has changed.

Anyway, in case you're interested, the schedule is basically as follows:

quick and dirty translation wrote:

1. Wake up at 9am
2. Go over 2 kifu
3. Eat brunch
4. Wash up - it'll be around 11am by that time
5. Internet baduk
6. Kifu
7. Life & Death
8. Kifu
9. Internet baduk
10. Life & death
11. Have snack around 3pm
12. Internet baduk (play until getting a win)
13. Kifu ~ kifu ~ take a break
14. Internet baduk
15. Around 6:00pm now - have dinner, and after a break, kifu at 7:00
16. More internet baduk
17. Sometimes go outside
18. Kifu
19. Take a break
20. Internet go (play again if I lose)
21. Last internet go game; bed at 1am in case it's a loss; 12am if I win

Just thought this was a little interesting - a sample of how one pro might have studied for some period of time. Looks like lots of internet go, and then a mix of life&death and going over pro games.

jlt · #2

How many days a week does he study like that?

EdLee · #3

Quote:

How many days a week does he study like that?

Reasonable to guess at least five days.
Some physical exercise and social interactions should help, too.

Kirby · #4

jlt wrote:

How many days a week does he study like that?

No idea. I do know that Shin Jinseo has been pointed out as somewhat unique in that most of his initial study to become pro was self driven, without a teacher. He learned a lot from the internet, in contrast to most other pros who trained more closely with a teacher early on.

Knotwilg · #5

Well, if anyone dreams to be a go professional ... I don't envy him.

Jujube · #6

I wonder if he studies life and death by laying puzzles out on a real board or whether he does them on the Internet?

Also, I wonder why washing the pots is listed as a specific task.

gowan · #7

I thought that washing up was of himself, not the dishes.

Kirby · #8

gowan wrote:

I thought that washing up was of himself, not the dishes.

yeah, typically a different word is used for washing the dishes. i took this to mean that, by 11am he'll have showered or bathed or whatever

hyperpape · #9

I wonder if there are any interviews or recent followups. My take is that this schedule is too grueling to sustain, but I've seen similar things from a few other professionals.

Kirby · **#10**

hyperpape wrote:

I wonder if there are any interviews or recent followups. My take is that this schedule is too grueling to sustain, but I've seen similar things from a few other professionals.

According to Shin Jinseo, he studies more now as a professional than what he did when he was aiming to become a pro. I don't know what his current schedule might look like, though. It could be that the content of what he is studying now has changed, as opposed to the volume (the day seems pretty full based on the schedule I posted).

Not really sure. But anyway, he says he's studying more now than when he was prepping to become a pro.

John Fairbairn · **#11**

Quote:

But anyway, he says he's studying more now than when he was prepping to become a pro.

But surely that's normal for any youngster who has to go to school. And since Sin became pro at 12, I'd expect his parents would have been locked up if they let him study as hard in primary school as he does now.

The important questions are: did he have a childhood? Does he know what a teddy bear is? Does it matter? Why are we here?

Kirby · **#12**

John Fairbairn wrote:

Why are we here?

Good question :-)

Gomoto · **#13**

I love Richard Dawkins and I am a non believer.

Once I had a discussion with a group of young children of different or no religion and from different cultures. We were sitting in a circle. The girls and boys were talking about their religions and asked each other questions about their believes, they were curious about the holy spirit and god. A girl mentioned: Sometimes god visits the humans, and to to so, he enters the form of a dove. In this moment a dove flew through a window into the room and sat on a chair in our circle. Imagine the moment and the children in the room.

The dove was grey by the way.

One could choose to be here because of the dove. One could choose to be here because of the other people in the room. One could choose to be here to enjoy go. One could choose to be here and never answer silly questions. One could choose to be here and never read silly answers.

Whatever you choose, I am glad I shared the space and time with you a little bit. Have good luck and take care.

Kirby · **#14**

Clearly, the meaning of life is to post on L19. That’s our dove, no?

jlt · **#15**

For comparison, what would be the typical schedule of an insei/yunguseng? Does it depend on age?

dust · **#16**

That study plan is remarkably relaxed compared to the training routine for apprentice K-pop idols, which BBC news has just covered.Brutally inhumane and severe:

It was common to pass out from exhaustion. Often we had to help carry unconscious trainees back to the dorms.

I passed out twice during dance practice, probably because I was dehydrated or hadn't eaten enough. I woke up in bed not knowing how I got there.

The attitude among the trainees after that was like, "Good for her! She wants it so much!" Looking back on it now, I think it was really disgusting.

I found that I didn't really have good friends there, everyone was more like a colleague. The environment was way too tense and competitive to forge real friendships.

The stressful atmosphere was heightened by the monthly showcase events. Each trainee would perform in front of everyone and be evaluated by the instructors.

If a trainee didn't get a good grade, then they would be kicked out immediately.

More details: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/stories-51476159

Kirby · **#17**

I agree with that. We talk about pros studying a lot, but there are a number of pursuits that are less mild. Even studying for university in Korea is a lot more severe by my wife’s account than what I experienced in the US. Probably likewise for other asian countries.

That being said, there’s question as to whether this type of hour-after-hour study is efficient.

silviu22 · **#18**

Kirby wrote:

That being said, there’s question as to whether this type of hour-after-hour study is efficient.

He seems to be the best in the world, so this type of study gives results. He might burn out though

hyperpape · **#19**

If the cultural norm is to study this hard, it might be that all the most talented players are self-sabotaging. In that case, you can go for a long time until someone realizes they're overdoing it.

There was a period where elite athletes thought you shouldn't weight train because it would make you too bulky.

Though I do agree, it's also possible that this kind of study is effective for a few years, but leads to a shorter career.

Bill Spight · **#20**

dust wrote:

The stressful atmosphere was heightened by the monthly showcase events. Each trainee would perform in front of everyone and be evaluated by the instructors.

If a trainee didn't get a good grade, then they would be kicked out immediately.

Much of what passes for education is mainly a process of selection. The teacher doesn't have to be good, the student does.

Shin Jinseo's Study Plan

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