Every year, around my birthday, I do a post sharing some reflections on the past twelve months and goals for the future. This year is no different and today is my twenty-eighth birthday. If you’ll allow me this self-indulgence, I’ll tell you a bit about how my year went. (And, if not, I’ll be back […]
The Irony of Focus: Why Doing Only One Thing Actually Lets You Do More
In my article series on ultralearning, one commenter wrote to me that he has trouble picking a project because there are just too many things he wants to learn. He starts one project, but then is enticed by the many other things that suddenly seem more interesting. This is a common problem and it isn’t […]
How to Start Your Own Ultralearning Project (Part Two)
Last week I wrote the first part of this two-part series on how to start your own ultralearning project. I wrote about why you should take on an ultralearning project and how to design the project to maximize the chance of success. Ultralearning projects, like the MIT Challenge or Year Without English, are goals to […]
How to Start Your Own Ultralearning Project (Part One)
Ultralearning is deep self-education to learn hard things in less time. I’ve written before about how I’ve used this approach to learn MIT computer science, multiple languages and cognitive science. I’ve touched on some of the aspects of ultralearning in previous articles. It focuses on learning depth-first, breaking impasses down into prerequisites you can finish […]
I'm a Wall Street Journal bestselling author, podcast host, computer programmer and an avid reader. Since 2006, I've published weekly essays on this website to help people like you learn and think better. My work has been featured in The New York Times, BBC, TEDx, Pocket, Business Insider and more. I don't promise I have all the answers, just a place to start.