Learn How To Learn & Free Your Mind

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Learn How To Learn
- Ch: 4.2 of How To Get Your Sh!t Together -

“Learning how to learn is life’s most important skill.” – Tony Buzan 

I don’t know what your goals are, what you already know, what you want to know or what you will need to know in the future. Realistically, I don’t even really know that for myself. Goals, desires, life circumstances can and will change. The only real certainty is that the process of learning new skills, knowledge, and concepts will be lifelong.

Learning how to learn, or more specifically, learning how you learn is one of the most important life skills to develop.

In addition to writing, I work as a high school teacher. In this role I have been exposed to a variety of theories, concepts and ideas about the learning process. In this chapter I will give you an overview of those theories as well as the approaches that I have seen working (and not working) for the thousands of students that I have taught.

Before we delve into this topic, I have to insist that you disentangle the concept of learning with your experience of the education system. The institutions of high school and university are typically designed with the average student in mind. This average student is in fact an amalgamation of all students in terms of ability, interests, learning style, competency and career pathways. This student does not exist. It is a fiction that doesn’t represent you, nor anyone really. The system is outdated and not designed with the realities of modern life in mind.

Almost on a daily basis I am asked by students, “When will I use this in my life?” This question is getting harder and harder to answer, particularly when I reflect on that question and realise that I have never used the information in my life that they are asking about (other than to teach it to them that is).

“Sir, have you ever actually used trigonometry? Needed to dissect another work of Shakespeare, or drawn on your knowledge of the industrial revolution? Has knowing about the formation of the different rocks, or the order of the planets actually benefited your life? When have you needed to know that anatomy of a frog?”

My typical response is that while you may or may not use the information, the skills that you gain in learning that information will come in handy.

The problem is that this concept is far too esoteric and the reward to distant to motivate many students. This is the reason that there is so much resentment and dissatisfaction with the education system. To most students it seems like forced labor. A 13 year sentence in which they are not encouraged or intrinsically motivated to do well, rather just something to survive.

The real shame of it all is that a lot of students leave school with a sour taste in their mouth relating to the benefits or need for education itself. The purpose of this rant is to let you know that I understand where you are coming from, but please don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Learning, and in particular learning how to learn is vital if you want any hope of self-improvement.

If you know yourself, how you learn and what you want to learn, you will give yourself a more efficient, thorough and enjoyable education than any institution possibly could provide you with.

You Learn Best When

1) You are interested in the topic

The more interested you are in learning about something the more desire you will have to retain it. You will do more and focus much harder on things that interest you compared to things that bore you.

2) You look at the content as deeply as possible

While knowing the ‘what’, ‘when’ and ‘where’ of a topic is of course important, focusing on the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of the content provides a lot more depth, nuance and connections.

3) You engage with multiple sources of the same information

People communicate information differently, therefore you will learn different aspects of the same information from each of them.

For example, if you wanted to learn how to cook Mexican, you should read different cook books, speak to your local chef, watch videos online, or even visit Mexico!

4) Your learning is more participative and less passive

Teaching others, discussing and debating, and doing the task, are far better ways to learn than listening to a lecture, watching a video or reading a book.

5) You follow your own learning style

Everybody learns differently, some are more active than others, some prefer different methods of consuming information. Experiment to find the approach that works well for you and stick to it.

6) You have set up a learning environment that best suits you

Choose the best location, time of day and mental state that best facilitates your learning. Everyone is different, experiment and find what works for you.

7) Your learning has a real world application that you care about

It is far easier to learn something that will have a direct relevance to your life, compared to abstract knowledge.

Key Learning Tips

1) Don’t multitask

While it may seem like you can effectively multitask, you simply can’t. In reality you are basically doing many tasks poorly.

When attempting to learn anything, focus on the task at hand. Turn off all technology and put yourself in an environment that minimises potential distractions. If you are simultaneously studying, watching TV, answering the phone, talking to someone, or checking social media you are not effectively learning. You won’t remember as much and it will take you longer to get back to focus following each distraction.

Seriously, turn your phone off and focus. Go to a library and watch people studying. Notice how little study those who have their phones on them actually do. They check it repeatedly and by the time they get back to the book, the phone notifies them and they check it again. In this way, two hours of reading time becomes 15 minutes of actually reading and 75 minutes of distraction.

2) Know the source of the information

It is important to know who created the resource that you are getting your information from. This way you will know if you can actually trust their work.

Given the freedom of creation and distribution that technology has given us, anyone can produce anything. Therefore it can be hard to know where the information is from and if you can trust the source.

If the person has done, or used to do what I want to know, I trust them.

For example, I only take exercise advice from people who have the body, strength or flexibility that I want to have. If they are not in shape and healthy I can’t help but question the validity of the advice that they are giving. If it worked and was possible to implement, they would be doing so and getting the results that they claim their advice can provide.

I have a similar approach to everything from taking financial advice, to learning to write, recovering from mental health afflictions, learning a language or even training a dog.

I trust the advice of people that can show me the results of their advice.

For the more theoretical and conceptual knowledge always go for ‘peer reviewed’ research. This is basically when a bunch of experts in the field sign off on the legitimacy of the research, or from someone who is a recognised expert in the field that is endorsed by large and leading institutions. For more information on this, please refer to chapter 4.9 ‘Learn How To Fact Check’.

This isn’t saying that I won’t learn from other sources, rather I want a method to ensure the validity of the information I am getting. I will still listen to ‘non-experts’, if over time the information that they have provided me with has consistently proved useful, and that they are upfront about their qualifications or lack thereof. As soon as they delve into topics that are not what they usually cover, I become skeptical about what they are saying.

3) Develop shorthand for taking notes
When taking notes, speed is vital. Unlike school, your notes are for your eyes only and you are taking them as a memory tool for later revision.

Therefore, make them in the best way for you. No one else will see them. I take notes whenever I am being taught something. I always have a book on hand during my martial arts classes, online courses, reading books or watching a lecture. I am there to learn and I want what I am learning to stick.

I like to use abbreviations, summaries and acronyms to save time when noting down. In addition, I take notes on the stuff I don’t already know, because if I already know it, I don’t need to waste time recording it down for later revision. I have also found benefit in using highlighters and different colored pens to focus on the important points and draw connections between concepts.

4) Revisit the content

Sometimes it takes more than one exposure to information for it to sink in. The more you cover something, the better you will know it. So get exposed to the important information many times in many different ways. Every source will cover it slightly differently and emphasize different points.

The wider the breadth of instruction, the deeper your learning will be. Take notes from it all and then revisit those notes. Talk over the content with a friend and teach each other to gain a deeper understanding.

5) Learn to speed read
The faster that you can read, the more content you can cover. To increase your words per minute read, try the following:

- Don’t read each word, rather ‘glance and jump’. Start by focusing on the third word of the sentence and ‘glance’, then jump to the middle word and glance again, and then jump to the third last word and preform another glance. This approach takes practice, but you will eventually be able to glance and jump three times per line, which is far quicker than reading each and every word individually.

- Use a ruler to highlight the line you are on to avoid rereading a line.

- Practice going as fast as possible and over time, you will develop your ability to read faster while retaining more information.

6) Find an appropriate study space

I like to have a space that is just my own where I can control the environment and prime myself for learning. In my study I have photos on the wall for inspiration, as well as motivational quotes and personal affirmations. I can control the temperature as well as lock the door if needed. I even have an essential oil burner (bergamot) that helps me to prime my studying activity.

Some people don’t need a private space and thrive in a busy café or street corner, others prefer a public library. Some people start by listening to a song, or by wearing a particular item of clothing. The key is to find a space and ritual that best suits your own personal style of learning. Trial and error this to see what works best.

In general, you want your study area to be: free form external distractions, temperature controlled, bright, have fresh air flow, easy access to amenities (water, food, toilets), room to spread out and a comfortable feel.

7) Use cue cards

Typical candidates for cue cards include: anything involving categories, anatomy, language, math, spelling, definitions, names, places and general facts.

How to use cue cards: Take learning a language for example. On one side of the card, write the English word and on the other side, write the foreign word. Make a pile of all of words that you want to learn. Take the pile and look at the top word. If you can guess the foreign word easily, place that card in a separate pile. If you struggled, put it back in your first pile, a few cards down.

Eventually, all the cards will be in your second pile. Shuffle the cards and repeat this process again, this time the cards you find easy can be discarded into a ‘learnt pile’ as you have learnt the word. Keep going with this process until your current stack is empty. Every so often, revisit the learnt stack to ensure that you still remember the words.

8) Pace yourself

There is a debate as to how long you should spend learning a subject in one burst.

Some suggest that after 50 minutes, you become fatigued and the learning stops being effective. People in this camp would suggest a 10 minute break and then transitioning into learning a different subject. Others will advocate the benefits of ‘getting into a groove’, suggesting that it takes ages to get in the mindset of a particular topic, so once you are in the zone you should stay there as long as possible.

Find what works for you and be willing to adapt and change what you are doing. Just make sure that with whatever approach you choose, that when you are learning, you are actively learning, minimising distractions.


 “The capacity to learn is a gift; the ability to learn is a skill; the willingness to learn is a choice.” – Brian Herbert

Frequently Asked Questions
Q) I am too stupid, I can’t learn.

A) Everyone is capable of learning, you just need practice. It will take time and it won’t be easy, at least not at first. But please don’t get discouraged, eventually you will get into the groove of learning and you will find an approach that best suits your personal circumstances. Once that happens, a whole new world will open up to you.

Q) I have a learning disability that makes all of this quite hard.

A) While I don’t know the specifics of your personal issue, there will be information out there on how people with your disability can manage it and learn new skills. Ask a specialist for advice and look into alternate approaches for learning. Keep trying new approaches and ideas and eventually one will begin to work for you.

Q) I struggle to sit still and read, I find it boring and I just want to move my body.

A) One thing that I like to do is listen to audio books while driving, walking, or in the gym. That way I am still ‘reading’ the book, but I am also being physically active. This is particularly useful for books that are tough reads. While you won’t take it in as deeply compared to if you were reading it in physical book form, you certainly take in the information much in more than not reading it at all.

Resources
Speed Reading Introduction, Tim Ferris: tim.blog/2009/07/30/speed-reading-and-accelerated-learning/

Summary
No matter what you want to accomplish in life, one thing is certain, it will require learning. Therefore the skill of learning is one of the most important things to develop. If you know how to learn, every possibility is open to you.