Be The One With Something Interesting To Say

How Do You Learn Something New?

If you could learn fast and effectively, you might become the person with something interesting to say on any topic. It could also help in your carreer or business. You can learn more efficiently. Just use a few of the following techniques, and use them until they become habit.

First, when you want to learn new material, expose your mind to it as soon as possible, even before you feel "ready," or have time to study. This first stage of learning is the confusing part where you look at new ideas and say, "huh?" If you do this quickly, however, reviewing everything for a few minutes, your unconscious mind will start "incubating" the new concepts, and finding some way to organize them.

The next time you sit down with the new material, begin to relate it to what you already know. Compare and contrast things. Say to yourself, "That's like...," or "How is that different from..." The concept of the autoresponder was new to me when I started my newsletter, but it really sunk in and motivated me when I thought, "It's like someone doing all my addressing and mailing for pennies a day." This prompted all the important questions, and I was ready to learn about it.

Create Curiosity and Anticipation

You probably agree that you can learn more effectively with curiosity and anticipation working for you. So how do you create this state of mind? One way is to leave each learning session with a question or two clearly in your mind. This creates the sense of anticipation and curiosity that will help you the next time you approach the material. It's like a television show cutting to a commercial at an interesting moment in the program. You want to stay tuned, to see what wil happen next.

Use Your Imagination

Want to totally change your perspective to make learning more effective? Study with the idea in mind that you will be teaching what you're learning. As you learn something, imagine how you will teach it. This is a powerful way to get a good grasp on new information.

Imagine how you will use what you are learning. There is so much information, and so little of it is the "important stuff." By imagining how you'll use the new information, you tend to automatically focus on the things you really need to know.

Take Breaks

Learn more by working less. Well, almost. Research shows that we remember best what we studied first and last in a given session. By taking breaks, you have more "sessions," and increase the number of firsts and lasts. Get up and move around during your breaks, as this can also keep your mind fresh.

Finding Time

Is it difficult for you to find time to learn something new? What if it took no extra time to learn a new language, take a course on negotiating, or study something new and interesting? What would you want to learn then?

You can start this week, by using the dead-time in your day. That's the time sitting in your car, or on the bus, or in the waiting room at the dentist's office. There are thousands of books now on tape, CD's, and MP3's. Your public library probably has hundreds of books on tape, and you can even instantly download books on the internet. One website I use has 18,000 choices!

This is, without a doubt, one of the most under-utilised and easiest ways to learn something new. Is your job 25 minutes away? If so, you spend over 200 hours per year sitting in your car going to or from work. Could you learn something useful if you had four hours per week of audio instruction for a year? You bet. And the only extra time it takes is a few minutes to stop by the library or place an order online.

Put in a tape on your way to work, get used to using a few of the techniques here, and you could soon be a virtual learning machine.

Steve Gillman has been studying brain improvement, concentration, creative problem solving, and related topics for years. You can visit his website, and subscribe for free to his Brain Power Newsletter at: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com/newslette r.html

---

How to Optimize the Awesome Power of Thoughts and Imagination

Have you encountered a time when you were in a... Read More

The Long Way

I wrote you about four years ago, when my eight... Read More

A Quick Checklist for Improving Your Life

1. Learn About YouIf you don't know who you are... Read More

Living In The Now

I hope you are sitting down as you read this!... Read More

Handling Disappointment

Disappointment is an inevitable part of home-based business. Clients won't... Read More

Success: Cant Achieve It By Yourself? Pay A Professional!

So many people go through the motions of trying to... Read More

Are YOU a Dreamer?

This morning I watched a news article about a young... Read More

Attitude is Contagious - Would Anybody Want Yours?

Are you using the Life Potential you have been given?... Read More

Mailey?s Introspections [Monday, December 6th 2005]

As I work with clients as their introspective Inner Peace/Relationship... Read More

Among the Purpose & Personality

I have one magical thought, lets see it more closely.... Read More

How To Increase Your Coaching Record By At Least 25%

"How can I become a better and more effective coach?"... Read More

Who Do You Talk To?

Many of you reading this will be running businesses, or... Read More

More Money & Less Stress?

At 2pm last Wednesday, I got a call from one... Read More

The Role of Grief Group Facilitators

Technically, there are two types of grief groups. Informational and... Read More

Crisis: Danger or Opportunity?

I have often heard motivational speakers say that the word... Read More

Building a Strong Coaching Practice

As a person who has been around the coaching profession... Read More

Essence of Awakeness

Be conscious, aware, and alert. Pay attention. Remember when you... Read More

Seeing Your Energy At Work

Our bodies are made of pure energy. With Quantum physics... Read More

Theres Always Enough Time!

I thought I'd begin this article by stimulating your mind... Read More

Is Coaching For You?

More and more people have less and less time, but... Read More

Ten Benefits of Having a Relationship Coach

As a Master Certified Relationship Coach, I work with singles... Read More

Coaching Skills and Positive Motivation

There is one important point that is often missed in... Read More

You Have The Right

The other day I was having a interesting conversation with... Read More

The Difference Between Approval and Appreciation

Having worked with individuals, couples, families and business partners for... Read More

Use a Journal for Self-Discovery and Self-Expression

As a therapist, I often suggest to clients that they... Read More

Coaching Skills

IntroductionThe question for leaders in organizations today is how do... Read More

Tempering Temper

I'm almost always a calm and collected person. Or at... Read More

What Are Your Priorities?

"The indispensable first step to getting the things you want... Read More

Coaching Book Review: The Coach: Creating Partnerships for a Competitive Edge

Leaders today have many challenges when it comes to guiding... Read More

Let Go of Your Past

People have a difficult time letting go of the past... Read More

What Rules!

There are things that we do automatically internally that we... Read More

Words That Inspire - PEACE

WORDS THAT INSPIREA monthly quick shot to motivate you, in... Read More

The American Dream ? Are We Really Free?

The promises of THE AMERICAN DREAM (to have it all... Read More