Desirable Difficulties: When Harder is Better for Learning
Can you learn more efficiently by making things harder for yourself? These three strategies let you learn faster (even if it feels slower).
«However, practice testing is one of the most effective learning methods that has been systematically studied, while re-reading is one of the worst.»
More from Scott Young
The 85% Rule for Learning
How often should you succeed at a task, to maximize learning? I review research suggesting the answer is close to 85%.
«we find that the optimal error rate for training is around 15.87% or, conversely, that the optimal training accuracy is about 85%.»
Why Do People (Usually) Learn Less as They Get Older?
Why do people tend to learn less as they get older? What should we do to be the exception?
Practice Made Perfect: The 10 Keys to Optimize Improvement
Getting good at anything requires a lot of practice. But not all practice is equal. Here are ten steps to faster improvement.
«Getting good at anything requires a lot of practice–but not all practice is equal.»
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Boring Phone: How to Stop Phone Addiction
I must admit, I’m quite addicted to my smartphone. My average daily screen time used to touch 9+ hours, which was not clearly healthy. This article is a follow-up to the one I published last year on…
Single-tasking: the power of focusing on one task at a time
Trying to multitask can not only hurt our productivity, but also our ability to learn. Fortunately, there is an alternative way to boost your efficiency: single-tasking.
«That’s why multitasking leads to decrements in performance when compared to performing tasks one at a time.»
Scientists finally know why we get distracted — and how we can stay on track
More than just a distraction, mind-wandering (and its cousin, daydreaming) may help us prepare for the future
«the decoupling of attention from perception, which is what happens when our thoughts separate from our perception of the environment.»
The psychology of unfinished tasks
Unfinished tasks can overwhelm us or motivate us. These contradictory experiences are due to the Zeigarnik and the Ovsiankina effects.
«compared to a task that has not yet been started, individuals have a stronger urge to complete interrupted or unfinished assignments.»
The Paradox of Goals
Here lies the paradox of goals: Setting goals is a guarantee for disillusionment whether we reach the desired state or not, and yet working toward goals is an important part of evolving as a person.…
«It is tempting during such liminal moments to cling on to a ladder – any ladder – to regain an illusory sense of control and progression.»
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