How do you learn effectively?

Question

BiggerPockets provides access to so much amazing information that sometimes, it's a bit overwhelming! I'd love to hear about your strategies and tips for taking in, processing, and applying what you learn.

Thank you in advance for your responses!

-Mickey

Mickey Powell · Answer

@William E. I like the idea of going back and jotting it down. I find that when I physically write something down it "sticks" more. I also wanted to share something that I've learned in my professional career that I think is useful:Learning Pyramid

If you have ever seen this, then awesome! If not, it's pretty self explanatory. There are some really effective methods for learning and not surprisingly they aren't the normal methods. I'm not pointing fingers, it's just harder to practice the most effective methods.

As for how to involve your wife - I can personally relate to that ;-P

William E. · Answer

@Jeff Brower

I just finished all the podcasts as well. it took me 3 months,. many of them i heard 2 or 3 times.

i ended up getting the trial account for audible to fill up my fixation for driving and listening to note worthy information. Through audible i've been listening to the books that were mentioned in the @famousfour.  For me it helps to listen to them at 2-4x speeds.

@Mickey Powell

as far as answering your question. i lose focus if i have to read anything, but listening for is a great way to retain information. if i hear anything truly notable in the podcasts, for example; i would go back over the podcast when i'm not driving and jot it down. the main reason for this is that i can only get my wife to listen to a few of the podcasts and i make sure she hears the correct ones to answer questions she has about the REI business.

Thoughts?

B

Mickey Powell · Answer

@Jeff Brower Writing them down in that tense is a great idea. Really helps visualize the goal. Thank you for sharing, I really appreciate it!If you're open to sharing more, I'd love to hear how you incorporate new things you've learned. E.g. You read about a new approach for something (anything) and want to make sure you've really understood. How do you get to the point where you say: "I know for sure that I can implement this new idea effectively."?

Jeff Brower · Answer

Biggest thing for me has been to write down my goals and tape them on my wall. I see them every morning and night. I write them in a futuristic past tense in order to visualize myself achieving them before it happens. IE: Today is 12/31/17, I own 6 rental units and made $xxx,xxx this year. It helps.

Mickey Powell · Answer

Congratulations, @Jeff Brower! It's impressive to even guess you have listened to all of BP's podcasts, let alone track them in a spreadsheet. I feel like you should get a badge for that!You're so right about listening in the car. I've started using dog walks in the morning/evening as well as my ~2 hour roundtrip commute to listen to all sorts of podcasts. I'd love to hear any ways you've applied or experimented with the concepts you learn about. Anything off the top of your head you could share?

Jeff Brower · Answer

One thing that I have done is to listen to the podcasts in the car instead of listening to music. Been about 2 years straight that I haven't listed to music in the car. I cannot tell you how much time is wasted when we could be learning during our drives. since there are 210 now and hard to keep track, I plotted them on an excel spreadsheet to ensure that I hit every one. Just finished all 210 last week! I have yet to find a replacement that is as good as the BP podcast and seriously considering starting over since there is so much diversified information. Also, I order a lot of the books that are recommended at the end by the guests. Many can be found on ebay from thrift stores for less than $5 including shipping.

Mickey Powell · Answer

That's a really great approach, Rob. Thank you for sharing! I especially like the idea of studying in different places. Correct me if I'm wrong, isn't that "generalizing?"

Since you have a really awesome methodology for teaching yourself, I'm curious, what do you do to "test" yourself?

And the book recommendation is really appreciated. I'm always looking for great educational reading.

Rob Orazi · Answer

I build "education time" into my schedule its usually first thing in the morning before the family gets up or last thing at night once everyone goes to bed rarely in the middle of the day but occasionally. I move it around a little as I once read that its difficult to recall subject material if you only study in a single location at the same time. Then when you are being quizzed on a subject during a coffee conversation the recall isn't there because you aren't in that same setting. Speaking of recall... I take copious notes during reading time or pod cast time and I try to stick to a single topic for a few weeks at a time.

I strongly recommend reading The Surprising Truth About How We Learn and Why It Happens by Benedict Carey.