As a computer science student, I've experienced the frustration of trying to learn new concepts and feeling like I'm not making any progress. I've tried different methods, such as reading textbooks, watching videos, and taking online courses, but I still found myself struggling to retain the information I was trying to learn. But after a lot of trial and error, I discovered a few magical ways to learn anything effectively. The first method is called the "Spaced Repetition" technique.
Spaced Repetition Technique
Spaced Repetition is a learning technique that involves reviewing information at increasing intervals of time. It's based on the idea that the more often you review information, the better you'll remember it. This is because your brain strengthens the connections between neurons each time you recall information, making it easier to recall in the future.
How does it work?
To understand how Spaced Repetition works, let's look at an example. Imagine you want to learn a new programming language or any advanced concept of machine learning. You start by studying the syntax and basic concepts, and then you review the material every day for the first week. After that, you review the material every other day for the second week, and then every three days for the third week, and so on. The idea is to review the information at increasing intervals so that you review it less often as you become more familiar with it.
The key to the effectiveness of Spaced Repetition is to strike the right balance between reviewing the information often enough to keep it fresh in your mind, but not so often that you're constantly revisiting it and slowing down your progress. The longer you can go without reviewing the information, the more confident you can be that you've learned it and that you'll remember it in the future.
Benefits
Spaced Repetition is a powerful tool for learning anything because it helps you focus your attention on the most important information. By reviewing information at increasing intervals, you can quickly identify the concepts that you still struggle with, and focus your efforts on mastering those concepts. This helps you to avoid wasting time and energy on concepts that you've already learned, and it also helps you to identify areas where you need to put in more work to achieve mastery.
Key insights
One of the best things about Spaced Repetition is that it can be customized to meet your specific needs. For example, if you find that you're struggling with a particular concept, you can review it more often, or you can spend more time studying it. On the other hand, if you find that you've mastered a particular concept, you can reduce the frequency with which you review it. This allows you to focus your efforts on the areas where you need the most help, and it also helps you to learn at your own pace.
Another advantage of Spaced Repetition is that it can be used to learn a wide range of subjects, including math, science, history, and even languages. Whether you're trying to learn a new skill or just trying to improve your knowledge of a particular subject, Spaced Repetition can help you to achieve your goals.
Eat The Frog
Another magical method I found is the popular "Eat The Frog" method.
The "Eat the Frog" method is a productivity technique that was popularized by Brian Tracy in his book, "Eat That Frog!". The idea behind the method is that you should tackle the most important and difficult task of your day first thing in the morning.
How does it work?
This task is often referred to as "eating the frog." The metaphor comes from the idea that if you had to eat a live frog first thing in the morning, it would be the most unpleasant task of your day, but once you've done it, everything else you do that day would be relatively easy in comparison.
The "Eat the Frog" method can be applied to learning as well. When you're trying to learn something new, it's often tempting to start with the easy or familiar concepts first. However, this approach can lead to procrastination and a lack of progress. By starting with the most difficult concept or task, you're able to get it out of the way and avoid the mental and emotional drain that can come from putting it off.
In terms of learning, "eating the frog" might mean tackling the most difficult concept first thing in the morning, or it might mean working on a difficult task for a certain amount of time before moving on to easier tasks. The goal is to make progress on the most challenging aspect of what you're trying to learn so that you can feel a sense of accomplishment and momentum that will help you to continue learning throughout the day.
Benefits
The "Eat the Frog" method is particularly useful for those who struggle with motivation and procrastination. By starting with the most difficult task, you're able to overcome the mental and emotional resistance that can hold you back, and you're able to make progress even when you don't feel like it. This can help you to develop a sense of discipline and focus that will serve you well in your learning and in other areas of your life.
One Page Summaries
I have seen myself jumbled with gazillion amounts of notes. But none of them worked while snapshot learning. So, after several years of struggling with notes-making pain in my school and in my recent year of college, I have come to know that I was making bad notes.
But now, I learned a quick way to make on-the-spot notes. I call them "One Page Summaries"
How it works
This method is very easy. Whenever you are reading a technical blog, or documentation, watching any video, or attending classes. You can apply this method everywhere. For this, you have to grab your notebook and divide your page into 3 parts, as I did:
- The first section will be live learning. Write all your understanding as your mind grabs in this section.
The second section is about key points. In this write all 4-5 key points taken out from live learnings.
The third section is the summary. In this write a quick summary of the concept grabbed.
Trust me or not, this method helped me to make my notes in a way better manner and improved my learning day by day.
Learn in public
This magical method is my favorite one. As you learn anything online, you should take the responsibility to share what you have learned with people/students around the world.
This is one of the easiest ways to learn through the public method. In this, you might make silly mistakes but keep applying the method. Share tweets, threads, and posts on Twitter and LinkedIn. It will help to build credibility in the world around you.
The "learn in public" method is a powerful way for programmers to improve their skills and showcase their progress to the world. Here's how you can use this method to enhance your learning as a programmer
The "learn in public" method is a powerful way for programmers to improve their skills and showcase their progress to the world. Here's how you can use this method to enhance your learning as a programmer:
Choose a project or challenge: Choose a project or challenge that interests you and aligns with your goals as a programmer. This can be anything from building a website or app to contributing to an open-source project or participating in a coding competition.
Document your progress: Share your progress and experiences on social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, or a personal blog. Write about what you're learning, the challenges you're facing, and your successes along the way. This will help you stay accountable, get feedback, and build your personal brand.
Collaborate with others: Find a community of like-minded programmers to connect with and collaborate on projects. This can be a local meetup group, an online forum, or a social media group. Collaborating with others can help you learn from their experiences, get feedback on your work, and build relationships with other developers.
Share your knowledge: Share what you learn with others by writing articles, creating tutorials, or giving presentations. This will not only help you reinforce your own understanding of the material but also give back to the community and demonstrate your expertise.
Continuously reflect and improve: Regularly reflect on your progress and what you've learned. Identify areas for improvement and seek out resources to help you continue to grow as a programmer.
Conclusion
In conclusion, learning can be a frustrating process, but with the right techniques, it can be made much easier and more effective. I have discovered two powerful methods for learning: the Spaced Repetition technique, the "Eat the Frog" method, "One Page Summaries" and "Learn in public method".
The Spaced Repetition technique involves reviewing information at increasing intervals to reinforce the connections between neurons and improve memory retention. The "Eat the Frog" method involves tackling the most difficult task first thing in the morning to overcome mental and emotional resistance. "One Page Summaries" is a great way to make effective notes and improve my understanding of the material.
Lastly, I have found that "Learning in public" is a powerful tool for personal and professional growth. It allows you to receive feedback and improve your skills, connects with others in your field, and build a portfolio of work that showcases your expertise. Overall, these techniques have been instrumental in my learning process and I hope they will be helpful to you as well.