Learn Better Summary, Review PDF - LifeClub

Has Learn Better by Ulrich Boser been sitting on your reading list? Pick up the key ideas in the book with this quick summary. LifeClub TopStories CommunityStories About LearnBetterSummaryandReview byUlrichBoser HasLearnBetterbyUlrichBoserbeensittingonyourreadinglist?Pickupthekeyideasinthebookwiththisquicksummary. Tobecomeamasterinyourfield,youeitherhavetobeaborngenius,haveanoutstandingmemoryor,attheveryleast,bewillingtoburyyourheadinthebooksforyears.Right?Well,notquite.Actually,everyonecanbecomeefficientlearners.Youdon’thavetobethenextNewtonorhaveaphotographicmemory;allyouneedisaspecificsetoflearningmethods. Applythesemethodsandyou’llbeonyourwaytobecominganexpertinanysubject. Inthisbooksummaryyou’llbewalkedthroughthesixstepsyouneedtotaketomastertheartoflearning.Aswellashelpingyouenjoythelearningprocess,they’llshowyouhowtoexcelinareaswhereyouusuallyperformpoorly. InthissummaryofLearnBetterbyUlrichBoser,You’llalsolearn howyoucanbuildthedesiretolearnanytopic,evenstatistics; howCraigslistcanmakeyoulearnbetter;and what“agiant,throbbing,thirty-foot-widebuttocks”hastodowithlearning. LearnBetterKeyIdea#1:Learningiseasy.Youjustneedtherighttoolsandstrategies. Foryearsitwasassumedthatlearningabilitywasdependentoninnateintelligence.Butnowexpertshavebeguntoshowthatthisisn’tthecase.Withjustafewstrategiesandtools,youcandrasticallyimproveyourlearning. Thebiggestfindingisthat,byemployinglearningstrategies,youcandramaticallyimproveyouroutcomes. Inthe1980s,AnastasiaKitsantasconductedanexperimentatanall-girlsschool.Shesplitthegirlsintothreeteamsandtaughtthemtoplaydarts.Themembersof"TeamPerformance”weretoldthattheywouldwinbyhittingthebull’seye;thoseof"TeamLearningMethod”weretaughtthrowingstrategies,suchaskeepingtheirarmsclosetotheirbodies;andthegirlsin"TeamConventionalWisdom”weresimplytoldtodotheirbest.Intheend,notonlydid"TeamLearningMethod”outperformtheothers;itsmembersalsohadthemostfun! There’sanotherusefullearningtoolcalledself-quizzing.Thislearningstrategyinvolvesrepeatedlyrecallingandtestingyourselfonwhatyou’vebeentaught.It’satechniquedesignedtohelpnewideasstickinyourlong-termmemory. Infact,researchhasshownthatself-quizzingis50percentmoreeffectivethansomeotherlearningstrategies. A2006WashingtonUniversitystudydemonstratedjustthis.ResearchersJeffreyKarpickeandHenryRoedigergaveatexttotwogroupsofparticipants.Thefirstgroupreaditfourtimes.Thesecondgrouponlyreaditonce,buttheypracticedrecallingitthreetimesover. WhenKarpickeandRoedigertestedthemallafewdayslater,theyfoundthatthepassagehadstucksignificantlymoreinthemindsofthegroupmemberswho’dperformedself-quizzing. Afinalmethodforimprovinglearningisusingearplugstoblockoutexternalnoise. Theauthorusedthistechniqueasan11-year-old.He’dbeenhavingtroublefocusingonhismathproblems,andfoundthatjudicioususeofearplugsreallyhelpedhimconcentrate. Sothosearesomegreatpracticaltipstogetyougoing.Nowlet’sdiveinalittledeeperwiththesixstepstobetterlearning. LearnBetterKeyIdea#2:Ifyoucanfindmeaninginyourstudy,yourlearningisgoingtogetbetter,fast. We'veseenhoweffectivesomelearningstrategiescanbe,aswellashowtheycanmakelearningmorefun.Butlearningcanbemademoreeffectivestillbyusingthesixstepsoflearning. Thefirststepisallaboutvalue.Ifyoucanmaketheskillsorknowledgeyou'relearningvaluableandmeaningful,you’llbemuchmoredriventotakeinitiativeandpersevere. JustconsiderthecaseofJasonWolfson,anengineerinhisforties.Hisbasementisjam-packedwithhisartsyLegocreations.Itmightseemalittlestrangeforagrownmantobetinkeringwithtoys,butthere’sastorybehindeachconstruction.ThebluepolicephoneboothwasinspiredbyDrWho,andhisreplicaofGonzoisatributetohiswife,who’sabigfanoftheMuppetcharacter. Wolfsonspentsomuchtimeandeffortontheseconstructionsbecausethey’retrulymeaningfultohim.Andthat’showhebecameamaster! Butmeaningandsignificancedon’tjustappearoutofnowhere.Ittakestimeandagreatdealofhardworktofindthem. Forinstance,fewstudentsharboraburningpassionforstatistics.Andsotogetagroupofthemmotivated,ChrisHulleman,apsychologyprofessorattheUniversityofVirginia,developedalittlestrategy. Hemadethestudentswriteessaysonhowstatisticscouldenhancethemandtheirinterests.Theyputpentopaperandcameupwithsomerealgems–forinstance,thatstatisticscouldhelptheirprospectsasnurses,managersormarketers.Consequently,theyquicklybecamemuchmoreinterestedinthesubject.Infact,somereallygotthebugandendedupjumpingawholegradelevel. LearnBetterKeyIdea#3:You’llneedtosetsmall,specificgoalstomasteraskill,butfirstyou’llwanttobesureofthebasics. ThestorygoesthatIsaacNewtonsuddenlygraspedthelawofuniversalgravitationafteranapplefellonhishead.Butyoucan’trelyonsucheurekamomentsinreallife. Learningbreakthroughscomefromsettingtargets.Andthat’swhatsteptwoisallabout:breakinguplargergoalsintosmallergoals,ortargets,thatyoucanfocusononeatatime. Sayyouwanttoimproveyourmarathonrunningtime.Insteadofjusttryingtorunfaster,targetsmallerandmoremanageableaspectsoftherun.Maybeyou’dbebetterthisweektrainingonhillyterrain,forexample?Notonlyaresuchsmallertargetslessdaunting;theyalsomakeiteasiertotrackimprovement. Butthere’smoretomasteringaskillthanbreakingupyourgoals.Youalsoneedtobuildupsomebackgroundknowledgebeforeyoubegin.That’sbecauseit’sdifficulttoreallygraspanewsubjectorfieldbeforeyou’vegottenahandleonthebasics. Forinstance,imagineyouhavenoknowledgeofGermanandaresuddenlyconfrontedwiththequestion,"Hastduheutegefrühstückt?”WithoutafewfundamentalGermanwordsandgrammarrulesunderyourbelt,you’dhavenowayofknowingthatyouwerebeingaskedwhetheryou’deatenbreakfast. Youshouldapplythesameconceptelsewhereinyourlife.Afterall,youwouldn’tstarttryingtofixtheheatingpipeswithoutalittleplumbingknowledge. Andonceyouhavetheessentialsdown,you'llbethatmuchbetteratsettingyourselfsmallandachievablegoals. LearnBetterKeyIdea#4:Whenitcomestolearning,theimportanceoffeedbackcan’tbeoveremphasized. Haveyoueverpracticedapresentationinfrontofafriendbeforethebigday?It’sacommonthingtodo,andwithgoodreason.Beingevaluatedbyanaudienceisafantasticwaytoimprove. That’swhythethirdstepistodevelop–thatis,tohoneyourskillsbygettingfeedback.Afterall,whenyou’relearning,youoftendon’tknowinwhatareasyouneedtoimprove.Someoneelse’sperspectiveisboundtohelpinthelongrun,evenifitfeelslikeit’sslowingyoudownatthetime. Theauthoractuallypersonallybenefitedfromthisstep.He’dalwayslovedplayingbasketball,buthe’dneverbeenverygood;infact,hewasprettymuchtheworstonhisteam.Eventhoughheshothoopsforhalfanhourathislocalcourteachday,hismovesandfootworkremaineddismal. Butthat’sbecausehiseffortswereunfocused,andhewasn’treceivinganyfeedback.Then,onedaywhilebrowsingCraigslist,hefoundbasketballinstructorDwaneSamuels. WithSamuels’shelp,theauthorworkedonperfectingspecificmovesliketheone-dribblepull-upjumpshot.Thetrainershowedhimhowhismiddlefingershouldrollofftheballandhowhisfeetshouldbepositioned.Withinafewweeks,theauthor’sjumpshotsbeganfindingthehoop;heevenstartedhittingthree-pointers. Anotherwaytoimproveistodecreaseerrorratebymonitoringandrecordingyourmistakes. Ifyou’remonitoringwhatyoudo,you’llbemoreawareofyourperformanceandwhereyou’regoingwrong.Inshort,you’llstoprepeatingmistakes. Evenbrainsurgeonsbenefitfromthistechnique.MarkBernsteinrecordedeverymistakethatoccurredinhisTorontooperatingroomovera10-yearperiod.Miscommunication,apoorlypositionedspongeoradelayinanesthesia:itallwentinhisdatabase. Thankstothisfeedbacksystem,histeam’ssurgicalerrorratewentfromthreemistakesamonthtojustoneandahalf. LearnBetterKeyIdea#5:Youcanimproveyourlearningbyimmersingyourselfinyourfieldandmakingthingsvisual. Youmightthinkthatrenownedwriters,artistsorscientistswereborntosucceedintheirrespectivefields.But,inreality,geniusesareforgedinthecrucibleofcontinuouslearning. That’sstepfourinanutshell–you’vegottoextendtheknowledgeyoualreadypossess.Inotherwords,ifyouaspiretoreachthehighestechelons,you’llhavetoconstantlyimproveyourunderstandingofagiventopic. ThepainterJacksonPollockknewthiswell.Attheageof23,hejoinedMexicanmuralistDavidAlfaroSiqueiros’sworkshop.SiqueirosencouragedPollocktoexperiment.ItwastherethatPollocklearnedthedrip-and-pourtechniquethatbroughthimworldrenown,butittookhimalongtimetomasterit.Helearnedtoworkwithfractalstructures–geometricpatternsthatrepeatonsmallerandsmallerscales,suchasyou’llfindonRomanescobroccoliorinspiralgalaxies. Atfirst,Pollock’sinitialdrippaintingsdisplayedlittlefractalcomplexity.But,overtime,thefractalsgrewincreasinglycomplexanddetailed.Itfact,theyweresocomplexthatitwasaphysicist,RichardTaylor,notanarthistorian,whofirstspottedthem. Afurthertechniqueyoucanusefordeepeningyourskillsandknowledgeistovisualizeimageswithyourmind’seye. Stand-upcomedianBobHarrisisagreatfanofthismethod.OncehewantedtomemorizethetitlesofE.M.Forster’snovels.Soheimaginedhimselfinaroom,lookingoutthewindow,throughwhichhecouldsee“agiant,throbbingthirty-foot-widebuttocks.”ThisimageensuredthatHarriswouldforeverrememberthebooktitlesARoomwithaViewandHoward’sEnd.Presumably,inHarris’smind,thegargantuanbuttocksbelongedtoagiantnamedHoward. Throughthesimpleactofvisualizing,youtoocanbenefitandlearntheconceptsandfactsyouneedinyourchosenfield. LearnBetterKeyIdea#6:Understandingrelationshipsbetweenconceptsandpracticingdifferentapproachestoaskillmakesforbetterlearning. It’ssaidthatthebestwaytomasteranewskillistopracticeitoverandoveragain.Buttheproblemisthatpracticealoneisn’tactuallyallthatefficient. Thisiswherestepfivecomesin–you’vegottorelate.Inotherwords,youhavetodevelopanunderstandingoftherelationshipbetweenconcepts. PsychologistCharlesJuddprovedthisin1908whenheconductedanexperimentattheUniversityofChicago.Hehadtwogroupsofchildrenthrowingdartsatatargetfourinchesunderwater. Thefirstgroupsimplypracticedthrowingdartsunderwater.Butthesecondgrouplearnedaboutthephysicsofrefractionbeforehand.Theynowunderstoodthatthetarget’srealpositionwasn’twhereitappearedtobe,duetothewaylightmovesunderwater. Next,Juddmovedthetargetdeeperunderwater,toadepthof12inches,whererefractionwasmorepronounced.Thismadeconditionsevenmoredifficultasthetargetappearedevenfurtherawayfromitsrealposition. Ofcourse,thesecondgroup,whichhadagrasponthephysics,couldnowrelatetheinformationthey’dlearnedtothenewsituation.Predictably,theyoutperformedthefirstgroup. Varyinghowyoupracticealsoworkswondersforlearning. A1993studycomparedtwogroupsofwomentrainingtoshootfreethrowsinbasketball.Onegrouppracticedfreethrowsandnothingelse.Thesecondmixedthingsupabit.Aswellasfreethrows,theytriedshootingfrommarkseightandfifteenfeetawayfromthebasket. Intheend,thegroupwhichhadpracticedavarietyofshotsendedupperformingmuchbetteratthefree-throwline. LearnBetterKeyIdea#7:Wecaneliminateoverconfidencebyreviewingourknowledge. Haveyoueverfoundyourselfdrivingaroundincirclesforhours,justbecauseyou’reconvincedyouknowhowtogetsomewhereandareunwillingtoaskfordirections? Thesixthandfinalstepencouragesyoutoreviewyourknowledge–torethink–andthuspreventexactlythissortofmistake. Overconfidenceleadstomistakesonafairlyregularbasis.Peopleusuallyoverestimatetheirpastperformanceandfamiliarity:theythinkthey’velearnedmorethantheyreallyhave,andsoexpecttoperformwellinthefuture. Themilitaryevenhasanameforit.Theycallitvictorydisease.Ageneralmayoverestimatehisownabilitiesbecausehe’swonmanytimesbefore.There’snobetterexampleofthisthanGeneralGeorgeArmstrongCuster,theUniongeneralwho,duringtheCivilWar,defeatedtheenemytimeaftertime.Butitallwentwrongin1876attheBattleoftheLittleBighorn.Heledhis200menagainstover1,000NativeAmericans.OnlyoneofCuster’smenisthoughttohavesurvived. Whichisalltosay,reviewingyourknowledgeandunderstandinghelpsyoutodealwithoverconfidence. Forinstance,psychologistArtMarkmanwasconvincedheknewhowatoiletworked.Afterall,heuseditseveraltimesadayandasachildhe’devenopenedupthecisternafewtimestocheckthestopperandwigglethehandle. Butonedayherealizedthathecouldn’tactuallydescribehowatoiletwasconstructed,andthathecertainlywouldn’tbeabletotakeitapartandputitbacktogetheragain. Onlyafteradmittinghislackofknowledgecouldheaskhimselfthenecessaryquestions:“Howdoesthewaterflowintothetoilet?Wheredoesitgoafterflushing?” Hewasreadyforbetterlearning. Youtoocanbecomeabetterlearnerifyouabidebythesesixsteps.Nomatterifyou’dliketofixtoilets,improveatsportsorlearnalanguage,afewsimplepracticeswillsoonmeanyou’llbecomemasterofyourknowledgedomain. InReview:LearnBetterBookSummary Thekeymessageinthisbook: Byputtingintheeffortandfocusingonlearning,almosteveryonecanbecomeanexpertormasterinalmostanyfield.Buttodothisyou’llneedtoinvestthetimeandusesometried-and-truestrategies.Justrememberthesesixsteps:value,target,develop,extend,relateandrethink.Withthesemethods,you’llbewellonyourwaytobetterlearning. Actionableadvice: Spaceoutyourlearning Thenexttimeyou’restudyingforanimportantexam,makesuretosplityourlearningintoseveralsessions.Youcertainlyknowthefrustrationofspendinganentiredaystudyingonlytofind,justafewhourslater,thatyou’vealreadyforgottenalmosteverything.Tospareyourselfthisfrustrationandlearnmoreefficiently,youneedtobreakupyourlearningintosmallachievablegoalsandspreaditoutovertime,insteadoftryingtolearneverythinginonesitting.Yourbrainneedsbreakstostorenewinformation,sogoahead–takeone! Ifyoulikedthisbooksummary,alsocheckout: Purpose Workethic Vulnerability Happiness Overcominganxiety Effectivecommunication Anxietymouse Habits Depression