The 4-Step Process for Learning Absolutely Anything

I found this article about the Feynman Learning Technique fascinating. It is a 4-step method to learn absolutely anything:

1. Pretend to teach a concept you want to learn about to a student in the sixth grade.

2. Identify gaps in your explanation. Go back to the source material to better understand it.

3. Organize and simplify.

4. Transmit (optional).

The article goes into detail on each step but it really is beautiful in its simplicity.

My favorite part is that the person you are teaching is a 6th grader and not a really smart adult who loves to learn.

An 11-year-old is just old enough to learn anything as long as the explanation is simple. Being able to teach something succinctly requires truly understanding the subject at hand. It’s a great test.

Hope you enjoy this article as much as I did!

The work we do when no one is around

It is amazing to me that Seth Godin, who isn’t a musician and never writes specifically about being one, hits the nail on the head about so many things related to our profession. It just goes to show that succeeding in one field generally requires the exact same approach and execution as any other.

Here is a brilliant blog post by Godin on two different kinds of marathons. One has lots of people around. The other is all by ourselves.

Guess which one does more to get you to the top of whichever mountain you are aiming for in the music business?

And of course, it’s the more difficult of the two (which is good or everyone would get there.)

Also worth noting: As with most of Seth’s brilliant blog posts, it will take you literally 30 seconds to read!

Godin: The solo marathon

Godin: The top 5%

The approach is to pick the right set to be part of. Not, “top 5% of all surgeons,” but perhaps, “top 5% of thoracic surgeons in Minnesota.” Be specific. Find your niche and fill it.

—Seth Godin

You can find a great truth bomb from Seth Godin here.

A great kick in the pants to start the new year and a great read to focus our efforts regardless of whether the calendar just flipped or not.

A+ stuff from Seth as usual.

If you didn't go to a fancy school...

...there's good news!

NO ONE CARES where you went to school.

All that matters is what you do with the education you got, whether that's from a fancy school, an unfancy school or no school at all.

"...success is uncorrelated with the filters we’ve set up."

Article: Top teachers are most likely to seek advice from their peers

Top teachers were the *most* likely to seek advice from their peers. The better the teacher performed, the more likely they were to obtain feedback on how to be even better.

Asking for advice & feedback is a sign of strength, not weakness. https://t.co/bqTgEMzBsd

— Daniel Pink (@DanielPink) August 13, 2018

This is both fascinating and at the same time not surprising. The self-awareness found in all great teachers drives them to always want to learn more. Or to be able to deliver the knowledge in a more effective way.

This is a good read right as the semester is starting!

Article: "This Is How To Make Good Habits Stick: 6 Secrets From Research"

This article from @bakadesuyo is money. It is so applicable to being a musician and our constant attempts to get better and more consistent at what we do.

I had never heard the term Minimum Viable Effort before but I love it!

Article: "This Is How To Make Good Habits Stick: 6 Secrets From Research"

Article: Fact Resistance by Joey Tartell

"Access to information is more easily accessible than at any time in history, but there is no built in truth filter.  When there is no filter, all information- true, false, misleading, outright lies- can be treated equally.  So what happens when people go looking for information?  They get bombarded with all kinds of information, and sometimes don’t know how to differentiate the facts from the garbage.

Too often, people that want to convince you that their way is the right (and sometimes only) way are the loudest voices, working hard to drown out any that disagree.  There seems to be an idea that if something is said loudly enough and often enough, it must be true."

This is an excerpt from a great blog post by phenomenal trumpet player and professor at Indiana University, Joey Tartell. It is a very thought-provoking piece about the times we live in, when anyone can be an "expert" and the loudest voices can seem the most correct.

Well worth the three minutes it will take to read.

Fact Resistance by Joey Tartell

Article: The 4 Rituals That Will Make You An Expert At Anything

The 4 Rituals That Will Make You An Expert At Anything https://t.co/WQWESp4Wf6 via @bakadesuyo > Fantastic read!

— Andrew Hitz (@AndrewHitz) March 13, 2016

Read this article. Like, right now.

The four rituals:

1. Find A Mentor
2. It's Not "Try Harder", It's "Try Different"
3. It's About Doing, Not Knowing
4. Study The Past To Have A Better Future

Did I mention that you should read this article right now?