Learn better

One thing that distinguishes humans from other life on earth is our great capacity to learn, to continuously improve ourselves and to acquire new knowledge and skills. Yet, there are times when we find learning hard or tedious or when we have to learn something new quickly. Fortunately, there are ways to make learning easier and more effective. There are however no short cuts.

First, we must want to learn. The motivation of learning has to come from within ourselves. True, there are times when we are ‘forced’ to learn, such as passing an exam or acquiring a skill for work. These kinds of learnings are transactional. We learn what we need, to be able to do what we must, and easily forgotten when the knowledge or skills are no longer needed. Another type of learning is transformational, which builds our character and causes us to change and grow. Both types of learning are necessary in our lives.

Second, knowing what we need or want to learn. When we were growing up, we learned mostly from what were taught to us by our parents and teachers. As we grow up, learning increasingly becomes an active process based on what we choose to learn. For the student, businessperson or professional, we need to know what learning is required for us to do our job better or to advance our career. For personal development, we need to understand who we are and what we want to be, not who we are supposed to be.

Third, we want to be the best we can be. When we attend a training course, the learning process is structured and the learning goals are set for us. Personal development however requires us to set our own learning targets and the steps toward it. In either case, for learning to be deep and effective, it important to have a sense of curiosity, of wanting to know more and being open to unexpected learning opportunities.

Fourth, giving ourselves time to reflect on our learning. Besides, acquiring knowledge or skills and then acting on them to gain experience, we need to go one step further into reflective learning. Reflection can be an active process when we listen to feedback from others or write our thoughts into a learning diary. It can also be a quiet process of having time to be ourselves. Reflective learning helps us to be better understand how we learn and what else we want to learn to be the best we can be.