The Pareto Principle says that 80% of an event’s output comes from 20% of the input. I would not be surprised if mastering fundamentals is the 20% that drives effective learning.
But before you can become good at the fundamentals, you first have to know what they are.
If you’re lucky, the learning modality you choose emphasizes the core principles before anything else. A good teacher, book, or course can help make that happen. That’s ideal.
For the most part, identifying the fundamentals is less straightforward. Perhaps they won’t be obvious, or worse, not covered at all. As a beginner, you can’t easily make these distinctions.
That’s why for me, domain proficiency begins by doing some pre-work. I’ll do internet research searching for the foundational ideas or skills in my area of interest. I compare the perspectives of several experts, from multiple sources. I don’t need consensus. I need a better idea of what matters most.
Figuring out the fundamentals early is my favorite learning strategy.