Kevin Daum
Don't get in the way of your own learning. Here are five ways to step aside and continue to increase your smarts.
Most people don't really think much about how they learn. Generally you assume learning comes naturally. You listen to someone speak either in
conversation or in a lecture and you simply absorb what they are saying, right? Not really. In fact, I find as I get older that real learning takes
more work. The more I fill my brain with facts, figures, and experience, the less room I have for new ideas and new thoughts. Plus, now I have all
sorts of opinions that may refute the ideas being pushed at me. Like many people I consider myself a lifelong learner, but more and more I have to
work hard to stay open minded.
But the need for learning never ends, so your desire to do so should always outweigh your desire to be right. The world is changing and new ideas pop
up everyday; incorporating them into your life will keep you engaged and relevant. The following are the methods I use to stay open and
impressionable. They'll work for you too. No matter how old you get.
1. Quiet Your Inner Voice
You know the one I am talking about. It's the little voice that offers a running commentary when you are listening to someone. It's the voice that
brings up your own opinion about the information being provided. It is too easy to pay more attention to the inner voice than the actual speaker. That
voice often keeps you from listening openly for good information and can often make you shut down before you have heard the entire premise. Focus
less on what your brain has to say and more on the speaker. You may be surprised at what you hear.
2. Argue With Yourself
If you can't quiet the inner voice, then at least use it to your advantage. Every time you hear yourself contradicting the speaker, stop and take the other point of view. Suggest to your brain all the reasons why the speaker may be correct and you may be wrong. In the best case you may open yourself
to the information being provided. Failing that, you will at least strengthen your own argument.
3. Act Like You Are Curious
Some people are naturally curious and others are not. No matter which category you are in you can benefit from behaving like a curious person.
Next time you are listening to information, make up and write down three to five relevant questions. If you are in a lecture, Google them after for
answers. If you are in a conversation you can ask the other person. Either way you'll likely learn more, and the action of thinking up questions will
help encode the concepts in your brain. As long as you're not a cat you should benefit from these actions of curiosity.
4. Find the Kernel of Truth
No concept or theory comes out of thin air. Somewhere in the elaborate concept that sounds like complete malarkey there is some aspect that is
based upon fact. Even if you don't buy into the idea, you should at least identify the little bit of truth from whence it came. Play like a detective
and build your own extrapolation. You'll enhance your skills of deduction and may even improve the concept beyond the speaker's original idea.
5. Focus on the Message Not the Messenger
Often people shut out learning due to the person delivering the material. Whether it's a boring lecturer, someone physically unappealing, or a member
of the opposite political party, the communicator can impact your learning. Even friends can disrupt the learning process since there may be too much
history and familiarity to see them as an authority on a topic. Separate the material from the provider. Pretend you don't know the person or their
beliefs so you can hear the information objectively. As for the boring person, focus on tip two, three, or four as if it were a game, thereby creating your own entertainment.
Edited by: Lawyer Asad
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