Every now and again I’ll dabble in a free online class to see what I can learn from it, usually an MOOC from a site like Coursera or EdX. One I came across recently was called Mindshift, offered by Coursera and hosted by Barbara Oakley. I originally checked out her Coursera class “Learning How to Learn” between semesters in undergrad and found it very useful to understand the way our brain tries to comprehend things while obtaining my Bachelor’s.
Fast forward a few years, and now this course comes along. As this course focuses more on how learning can impact your career, this came onto my radar at an appropriate time, now that I’m at the phase of my life where I’m building career experience. I figured as a way to help me retain useful information from this course I would write about some of the more useful information I found in the class for everyone here to appreciate. Enjoy!
Fast vs Slow Learners
One segment in the course two types of thinking, where one is equated to a race car (learn fast but are less flexible in their thinking) and the other is hiker (learn slower but are more flexible in thinking). I used to be more of a race car learner, but as the years have gone on I feel like I’ve shifted more towards a hiker learner.
Race car learning was more beneficial when I was in school. I learned just what I needed in school to ace exams and get good grades. It was very effective in maintaining a high GPA but it was not the best option for retaining the information long-term. Instead I found that I was prone to memory decay because I didn’t have a broad understanding of the concepts I needed to have the
That’s why I’ve tried shifting to a hiker’s approach now that I’ve finished school instead. By taking concepts slowly it’s easier to go down rabbit holes, but it’s also helpful to building a foundational knowledge necessary for stronger understanding of an idea.
Focused vs Diffused Thinking
The concept of focused and diffused thinking I had initially heard about taking Learning How to Learn, but hearing about them again here was a good refresher on the concept.
Focused thinking is when your thinking is very concentrated and you are intentionally trying to learn. That is, you should be in this mindset when you’re studying a subject.
Diffused thinking occurs when you are at rest and your brain is able to connect the dots for some concepts in the background. An example of this would be realizations you come to when you’re either in the shower or exercising.
Both of these types of thinking are very important. Drawing important connections in your brain by solely using focused thinking won’t be successful in the long run, as your brain will need breaks and diffused thinking to make the connection stick in the long run. By allowing your brain to shift between the two modes you will set yourself up for the most success.
Two Types of Meditation
When people mention mindfulness and meditation, it all feels like it falls under a catch-all umbrella. But in reality, if you explore meditation you find that there are different types of meditation that benefit different parts of your brain.
Focused Meditation
This is based on the focused style of thinking, and generally involves chanting a mantra or focusing on an object in order to feel better. Initial research into meditation is scarce, but preliminary findings have shown that feelings of anxiety and depression are reduced when practicing this type of meditation.
Open Monitoring Meditation
This is based on the diffuse style of thinking, and generally involves not focusing on one thing, but rather letting all sensations and emotions come to us without judgment. This is the style of meditation that the mindfulness movement is based around. Preliminary research here has shown that this type of meditation is good for building creativity. However, diffuse styles of thinking are also associated with feelings of anxiety and depression.
Continual Learning
This is something I thankfully learned earlier with a resurgence in reading nonfiction books in 2017, but a main topic in the last week of this MOOC is about the importance of learning new skills through resources such as books or online classes. With our current information economy, it’s just not feasible to have the same job for 40 years and retire on a pension. Skillsets will need to constantly develop with the ever changing demands needed in the workforce.
Conclusion
Overall this course didn’t necessarily teach me anything new, but rather reinforced what I already knew to make it easier to think ahead for my future. I recommend checking the course out if you found this useful in any way!