Top 10 Strategies for Learning New Skills - Zapier

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MenuSearchapps…LoginSignupLoadingHomeProductivityProductivitytipsProductivitytips9minreadTop10StrategiesforLearningNewSkillsByFarheenGani·July11,2017Wetendtothinkaboutgainingnewskillslikewethinkaboutwinningthelottery:"Gee,it'dsurebenice…""…ThinkofallIcoulddowiththosenewskillsandabilities!""…Buttheoddsofachievingthisaresosmall…mmm,gonnapass."Butwhilethelotteryisataxonpeoplewhoareoverlyoptimistic,youdon'tneedluck,youth,orevenahighIQtogainthatnewskillyou'vebeenthinkingabout.Allyouneedisalittleelbowgreaseandtherightlearningtechniques.Whetheryouwanttolearnanewsubject,gainanewskill,orjustenhancetheonesyoualreadyhave,these10techniqueswillgiveyoutheframeworkyouneedtoachievemastery.Needalittlehelpstayingontrackwithyourprofessionaldevelopment?CheckoutthesefourwaystouseautomationwithZapiertomakesureyousticktoyourplanandachieveyourgoals.1.DitchYourLearningStyleAreyouavisuallearner?Orisyourlearningstylekinestheticorauditory?I'lltellyouasecret:you'renoneofthese.Asmuchaswe’dliketobelievethatwelearnbetterinacertainstyle,thetruthis,thesehavelittleimpactonourabilitytolearn.InanintriguingtalkatTEDxUWLaCrosse,Dr.TesiaMarshiksharesastartlingfact:40yearsofresearchonlearningstyleshasfoundthatmatchingteachingstylestolearningstylesmakesnodifferenceatall.Inherownexperiments,Dr.Marshikfoundthatstudentslearnedthesameway,regardlessofthewaymaterialwaspresentedtothem.Anotherstudywasalittlemorebluntinitsjudgments:Thecontrastbetweentheenormouspopularityofthelearning-stylesapproachwithineducationandthelackofcredibleevidenceforitsutilityis,inouropinion,strikinganddisturbing.Yetthemythoflearningstylespersists,asaquickGooglesearchwillshowyou.So,what’sreallythebestwaytolearn?Itdependsonwhatyou’retryingtolearninthefirstplace.Forexample,ifyou’retryingtolearnanewlanguage,don’tjustreadthetextbook.WatchTVshows,listentomusic,andconversewithanativespeakerthroughalanguageexchangeapp.Inanagewhereeverythingisavailableattheclickofabutton,therearemanywaystolearn.Thekeyistointeractwiththeinformation.Usingmultiplesourceswillhelpyouwiththis.Don'tsticktobooksalone—gatherrelevantvideos,podcasts,movies,andblogsaswell!2.MakeItMoreMeaningfulforYourselfOnemainreasonwhy"learningstyles"don’tworkisthatwelearnthingsintermsofmeaning.Findingmeaninginourlearningisthekey.GetproductivitytipsinyourinboxSubscribeA1973studybyChaseandSimonillustratesthiswell.Inthefirstpartofthetest,amateurandexpertchessplayerswereshownachessboardarrangementfromagameinprogressandaskedtorecallthepositionofthepieces.Whileamateursplayerscouldbarelyrecallanyofpositions,theexpertswereabletorecallmostofthem.Theexpertsseethestrategy,themeaningbehindwhythepiecesarewheretheyare.Inthesecondpart,expertsandamateurswereshownboardswiththechesspiecesarrangedatrandomandaskedtorecallthem.Bothgroupsperformedaboutequally.Thistime,theexpertscouldn'tfindanyrealconnectionormeaninginthewaythepiecesarearranged.Thesamegoesforlearning.Wealllearnedvariousfactsandfiguresinschoolbuthowmanyofthosedoweactuallyremember?Onlytheinformationthatwasmeaningfultous,thatwe’vebeenabletoconnecttoourownlifeandexperiences.Ifyoutrytoforceyourselftojustmemorizerandomfacts,you’relikelytoforgetthem.Rememberallthosetimesyoutriedtomemorizeformulaewithoutunderstandingtheirrelevance?Inordertomakeyourlearningstick,it'simportanttomakereallifeconnectionsandseehowitfitsinthelargerschemeofthings.Thenexttimeyoutakeafinanceclass,insteadofmemorizingaformula,trytounderstandwhatrelevanceithasinpracticeandhowyoucanuseittoyouradvantage.You'llfindyou'reabletograsptheconceptsmuchmorequickly.3.LearnbyDoingHumansarenaturallearners—andwelearnbestwhenweperformthetaskswe’retryingtolearn.Nomatterhowgoodyourgradeswereatcollege,mostofyourlearningtakesplaceonceyouentertheworkplaceandstartapplyingwhatyou'velearned.Let'ssayyou’retryingtolearnSEO.Don’tinvestallyourtimeinlearningthejargonandtheory—diveinassoonasyoucantomastertheskillthroughtrialanderror.Startablog.Writeafewposts.Findoutforyourselfwhatworksandwhatdoesn’t.Themoreyoudoit,themoreyoulearn.Betteryet,buildnewhabitstoenforceyournewskills.Startsmallandrewardyourselftostartbuildingapatternofbehaviorthatwillreinforcewhatyou'relearning.4.StudytheGreats,andThenPracticeAspiringwritershearoverandoverthatthebestwaytowritebetteristoreadalotofbooks,especiallytheclassics.Why?Becausethey’lllearnalotmorebystudyingthewritingstylesofgreatwriters,thantheywouldbytakingacourseonwriting.Let’stakethisadviceastepfurther.Whilestudyingthegreatsisessential,itismoreofapassiveexercise.Inordertogainfromit,youneedtoapplythatlearningtoyourownworkaswell.Onewaytodothisistomimicexpertsuntilyoueventuallydevelopyourownstyleandtechnique.BenjaminFranklintaughthimselftowritethisway,ashesharesinhisautobiography:Itooksomeofthepapers(fromTheSpectatormagazine),and,makingshorthintsofthesentimentineachsentence,laidthembyafewdays,andthen,withoutlookingatthebook,try’dtocompleatthepapersagain,byexpressingeachhintedsentimentatlength,andasfullyasithadbeenexpressedbefore,inanysuitablewordsthatshouldcometohand.Oncomparinghisworkwiththeoriginals,hefoundwherehewaslacking,andstartedturningthetalesintopoemsandthenbackagain.Thisishowhelearnedtoexpresshimselfbetter.Thisformoflearningcanbeappliedtoanyskill,beitwriting,speakinganotherlanguage,orevensports.Compareyourworkwiththatofexpertsinyourfieldandyouwillnoticeareasthatneedimprovement.Then,referbacktostep3andkeeppracticingyourskills.Youwillnoticethedifference.RelatedReading:HowtoRead50BooksinaYear,in7EasySteps5.TeachWhatYouLearnOneofthemoresurprisingwaysyoucanlearnanewskillistoteachittosomeoneelse.Muchresearchhasbeendoneonthisphenomenon,butonestudyillustratesitparticularlywell.Inthestudy,twosetsofparticipantsstudythesamepassage,withdifferentexpectations.Onegroupwasexpectedtoteachitlater,theotheroneexpectedatestonit.Attheend,bothgroupswereeventuallytestedonthematerial.Guesswhichgroupdidbetter?Yep—theonethatexpectedtoteachit.Whyisthissuchaneffectivewaytolearn?Becausewhenwelearnwiththeintentiontoteach,webreakthematerialdownintosimple,understandablechunksforourselves.Italsoforcesustoexaminethetopicmorecriticallyandthoroughly,helpingustounderstanditbetter.Youdon'thavetobeaneducationmajortousethistrick.Tryexplainingwhatyou'relearningtofriendsorcoworkers.Ifyou'relearninganewbusinesssoftwareorskill,askyourbossifyoucanmakeapresentationtoyourteamaboutit.Seeifyoucanfieldalltheirquestions.Writeregularblogpostsormakevlogswhileyou'relearning.Seeifyou’reabletoexpresswhatyoulearninsimplewords.Theresultsmightsurpriseyou.6.SpendMoreTimePracticingThingsYouFindDifficultPracticeinitselfisgreat,butifyou’repracticingthingsyouknowwell,you’redoingitwrong.Inordertoexcelatanyskill,youneedtopushyourselfoutofyourcomfortzoneandpracticethingsyouaren'tgoodat.Thisisknownasdeliberatepractice,andwaspopularizedbyAndersEricsson.Ericssonandhisteamstudiedexpertathletes,violinists,andmemorychampionsandfoundthattheyspentalotoftimeimprovingareastheywereweak.Additionally,theyconsultedtheirteacherstofindoutwhereexactlytheywerelacking.Alongwithspendingmoretimeonyourweaknesses,Ericssonalsoemphasizestheimportanceofconcentrationwhilepracticing.Ifyou’repracticingwhileyourmindisallovertheplace,you’renotgettingmuchoutofit.Sothenexttimeyousittopracticeanewskill,stepoutofyourcomfortzoneandchallengeyourself.Concentrateonwhateverismostdifficultforyou,andwithtimeyou’llfindyouachieveahigherlevelofoverallefficiency.RelatedReading:TheCraftsmanApproach:MasterYourWorkThroughDeliberatePractice7.TakeFrequentBreaksThebrainhastwomodes—focusedanddiffused.Forlearningtohappen,bothmodesareequallyimportant.Whileinfocusedmode,you'reabletolearnthenitty-grittiesofaproblem.Indiffusedmode,you'rebetterabletoseethebigpictureandbringitalltogether.Youmighthavenoticedthishappeningintheshower,whenyou'renotfocusingonanythinginparticular,thenyousuddenlyrememberafactthatwaseludingyou,orthesolutiontoaproblem.It'simportanttoletyourbrainrelaxforawhileafteraparticularlyintensesessionofstudyorpractice,togiveittimetoconnectthedots.OnegoodwaytopracticethisisusingthePomodorotechnique,whichhasyouworkonaprojectfor25minutes,andthengiveyourselfa5minutebreak.Afterfoursuchsessions(thatis,100minutesofwork,with15minutesofbreak)youtakeanotherbreakfor15-30minutes.Thistechniquehelpstokeepyourmindinvigorated,andensuresyoudon'tsuffermentalfatigue.Equallyimportantislearninghowtoprocrastinateproductively,soyourbrainhastimetotrulyrechargeitself.8.TestYourselfWealllovedtohatetestsinschool,butdoyouknowjusthoweffectivetheyareinhelpingyoulearn?Turnsouttestingisoneofthebestwaystoboostlearning—evenifyou’resimplypracticingonyourown,andnottakingahigh-stakesexam.Testingevenbeatsoutmethodssuchasre-readingandreviewingnoteswhenitcomestomakingsureyourlearningsticks.AnexaminationofthestudytechniquesoftopstudentsbyElevateEducationfoundthatwhilemoststudentsre-readnotesbeforeexams,topstudentsspendtheirtimesolvingproblemsandtakingpracticeexams.Whyistestingsoeffective?Becauseittakesrecallastepfurther.Recallshowshowmuchofthematerialyouremember.Testingshowsyouhowwellyoucanusewhatyou'velearnt.Afterall,thatistheultimategoaloflearning,isn’tit?9.FindAMentorMentorshipisperhapsthequickestwaytotakeyourskillstothenextlevel.Amentorhelpsyounavigateyourfieldbyofferinginvaluableperspectiveandexperience.Initially,looktofriends,family,andcoworkersforanexpertintheskillyou’retryingtolearn.Ifyoucomeupwithnoone,startbranchingoutyoursearchtoyourlargercommunityandindustry.Whenreachingouttoexperts,describewhatyouhavetooffer,ratherthanwhatyouwillgain.Forexample,maybeyoucouldmanagetheirsocialmediaaccountsorhelpwritetheirwebsitecontent.Whateverservicesyoucanoffer,besuretoletthemknow.BusinesscoachMichaelHyattoffersgoodadviceabouttheask:Thoughatruementormaybedifficulttofind,it’snotimpossible.Ifyouhaveoneinmind,startbybuildingtherelationship—justlikeyouwouldanyoneelse.Don’tleadwith"Willyoubemymentor?"(That’slikeaskingsomeonetomarryyouonthefirstdate.)Instead,gettoknowthem.Lookforopportunitiestobegenerous.Startsmallandseewhereitgoes.Thekeyisstarting—theworstapersoncandoissayno,soask!10.BeCuriousNothingstimulateslearningquitelikecuriosity!So,asMs.FrizzlefromTheMagicSchoolbusfamouslysaid:"Askquestions,makemistakes,andgetmessy!"Insteadoflettingatextbookguideyourlearning,youtakethelead.Seekanswersfrommanysources.Don’tmerelymemorizetheoriesandtechniques—questionthemateverystep.Thinkaboutwhytheymatter,whythey'rerelevant.Tinkerwiththetoolsandknowledgeavailable.Seewhatyouendupdiscovering!Youmayendupsurprisingevenyourself.ContinueLearningwithTheseArticles:Stillincollege?Hereare20+ProductivityAppsforCollegeStudentsandYoungProfessionalsLearnhowtoTakeBackYourDayfromProcrastinationandfindthepaceofworkandstudythatworksbestforyou.Protectyourscheduleandgiveyourselftimeforeverythingyouwanttodowiththese3FreeAppsThatMakeTime-BlockingEasyStayontopofyourprofessionaldevelopmentwiththese4strategiestomakelearningapriorityReadingimagebyAaronBurden.CraftsimagebyRawpixel.PianopracticeimagebyJoaoSilas.LightbulbimagebyRiccardoAnnandale.LibraryimagebyPriscillaDuPreez.GetproductivitytipsdeliveredstraighttoyourinboxSubscribeWe’llemailyou1-3timesperweek—andnevershareyourinformation.FarheenGaniFarheenGaniisafreelancewriterandmarketerforhire.Shefrequentlywritesaboutsoftware,business,andmarketingonwebsitessuchasTechinAsia,Foundr,BuildFire,Appcues,andmore.tagsPersonalproductivityProfessionaldevelopmentEducationRelatedarticlesProductivitytipsHowtobecleverHowtobecleverProductivitytipsWorkhowyouwantto:HowtochallengeoutdatedworkplacenormsWorkhowyouwantto:Howtochallenge...ProductivitytipsWhyemployersshouldembracequietquittingWhyemployersshouldembracequietquittingProductivitytipsSometasksbelongonyourcalendar,notyourto-dolistSometasksbelongonyourcalendar,notyour...Improveyourproductivityautomatically.UseZapiertogetyourappsworkingtogether.SignupSeehowZapierworks