Agreed, on all points. I tend to take more calendar time to learn things, because I have to think them through to really internalize the concepts. Until I do that, I will only ever be moderately good at it.That is an interesting question. I don't know the answer. With intense training and good coaching, some people (not me) pick things up very quickly. On the other hand, some things just take time to get right. But that doesn't mean spending your entire life following a sifu.
After a certain point, there are things you have to figure out on your own. Moreover, different people may discover different ways of doing things depending on what works best for them.
Some folks won't accept anything that doesn't come from their sifu. Personally, sometimes I like figuring things out on my own.