Shortcuts is a bad mentality, the implication is to get results without putting in the necessary work - that just won't happen. Looking for shortcuts is to cheat yourself from having a solid foundation, at best that could result in becoming something of a one trick pony.
So your teacher replies: practice
A good question to ask from there is how best to practice?
It's not a matter of shortcuts, better practice is what'll get you better results. Long story short - you want to be focused with every moment on solving the problem in front of you. Day by day, the problems vanish, new ones take their place, and you get better.