Learn how to learn

Many people focus on the skillsets they need to learn and all the information they need to consume. Rarely do people stop to think twice about how to learn effectively so that every minute spent learning any course material yields maximum retention and the time effort is minimized.

This section is inspired by Barbara Oakley’s book Learning How to Learn.

Lesson’s from the book

These notes are extracted from this summary of the book. I strongly recommend reading the book or taking Barbara Oakley’s Coursera course.

  1. When You Find Yourself Struggling To Solve A Problem Or Learn Anything New, Try To Relax For A Few Minutes. And Then Try Again Later.
  2. Procrastination gives you instant pleasure, but it hurts you long-term and makes you highly unproductive.
  3. Think in metaphors to learn faster.
  4. Learning has no age. Even adults in their 40s or 50s can learn new stuff!
  5. Sleeping is important for your brain connections to become stronger and sturdier.
  6. Use memory palaces to remember cold hard facts
  7. Excercise is good not only for your body but also for your brain
  8. Neurons are sophisticated tiny computers in your brain
  9. Focus on different aspects while studying a new subject

More resources on learning how to learn