Everyone knows compounding financials is powerful (yet still most don't do anything). Even more so is education, and thanks to the internet, this is free...
I've been reading 30-50 books a year for the past decade or so, and I'm starting to notice exponential rewards as I make new and interesting connections between disparate ideas. It gets me very excited for where I'll be in another decade.
That institutionalized education system has prepared obedient industry workers who only know enough to do their job well and nothing else.
It's very hard to get someone to understand that learning goes beyond the walls of a classroom. What's worse is that same outdated education model got copy/pasted to the online space. Taking classes through Zoom locked in a room is the worst of both worlds.
But there's still hope on the horizon and proper education is one of those tools that can truly change the world.
I consider myself a "life long learner", and the real fun began once I finished my formal education. This past year has been an incredible journey into the deep end of human philosophy and psychology, both from starting writing online (again, in the deep end) and reading powerful books such as "Man's Search for Meaning" by Viktor E. Frankl. For a long time I was content with a high paying job and learning that skill and trade, but now that my eyes have been opened to the color and depth of life I'm even more excited to learn. Thanks for writing about this incredible topic! It's the first that I have heard of an "Accelerated Learning Curve".
Oct 17, 2023·edited Oct 17, 2023Liked by Adam Singer
Once in Dallas TX, I went with my sister and her husband to visit a friend of theirs. They warned me that he was a bit eccentric.
We arrived, and his two bedroom apartment was literally filled with bookshelves full of books, gizmos, devices, etc. Literally you could find textbooks on astrophysics, actual fencing gear, rudimentary robotic parts (this was the mid-80's), and so many other things of great variety. They told me that he would get interested in something, go all in learning about it, and once sated, he moved on to something else that caught his imagination/eye.
After we left, they both talked about how sad it was that he would never find a wife and would live in "hovel" such as that. It wasn't a hovel to me. It was a wonderful living and growing museum and the guy struck me as very happy and content.
That short hour we spent with him was refreshing and enlightening. I never saw him again, but he became one of my hero's and role models that day. Never met a man like him again until I met Dr. Story Musgrave (astronaut, aircraft mechanic, farmer, speaker, teacher, poet, neurosurgeon., etc.)
To be a Renaissance Man is to never go out of style. I always said, "The day a man stops learning is the day that man dies."
Thank you Adam for this article. It will be shared far and wide. Best of luck to you.
You are spot on. I write Personal Finance Economics on Substack to extend my day job to a broader community. This work grew me in a spirit similar to what you have written. I teach but boy have I learned. I use a structured style in a university setting but have had a riot attempting to explain similar concepts on Substack more creatively. At one level, finance and economics are always just finance and economics. To give them an artistic twist has been valuable to me.
We too often sit on what we know and our experience to date---and I think about Pablo Casals talking about why he practices--I feel like I'm making daily progress--and just the joy of learning something new.
I've been reading 30-50 books a year for the past decade or so, and I'm starting to notice exponential rewards as I make new and interesting connections between disparate ideas. It gets me very excited for where I'll be in another decade.
Love this
You know what? You're damn right, especially about learning.
I meant to ask. Any specific MOOCs you like over others?
Great article and well said.
That institutionalized education system has prepared obedient industry workers who only know enough to do their job well and nothing else.
It's very hard to get someone to understand that learning goes beyond the walls of a classroom. What's worse is that same outdated education model got copy/pasted to the online space. Taking classes through Zoom locked in a room is the worst of both worlds.
But there's still hope on the horizon and proper education is one of those tools that can truly change the world.
I consider myself a "life long learner", and the real fun began once I finished my formal education. This past year has been an incredible journey into the deep end of human philosophy and psychology, both from starting writing online (again, in the deep end) and reading powerful books such as "Man's Search for Meaning" by Viktor E. Frankl. For a long time I was content with a high paying job and learning that skill and trade, but now that my eyes have been opened to the color and depth of life I'm even more excited to learn. Thanks for writing about this incredible topic! It's the first that I have heard of an "Accelerated Learning Curve".
glad helpful
Great post, Adam! Can you imagine what society would be like if more people believed this. What fun we would all have.
Would be amazing, let's prod more people :)
For sure :)
Once in Dallas TX, I went with my sister and her husband to visit a friend of theirs. They warned me that he was a bit eccentric.
We arrived, and his two bedroom apartment was literally filled with bookshelves full of books, gizmos, devices, etc. Literally you could find textbooks on astrophysics, actual fencing gear, rudimentary robotic parts (this was the mid-80's), and so many other things of great variety. They told me that he would get interested in something, go all in learning about it, and once sated, he moved on to something else that caught his imagination/eye.
After we left, they both talked about how sad it was that he would never find a wife and would live in "hovel" such as that. It wasn't a hovel to me. It was a wonderful living and growing museum and the guy struck me as very happy and content.
That short hour we spent with him was refreshing and enlightening. I never saw him again, but he became one of my hero's and role models that day. Never met a man like him again until I met Dr. Story Musgrave (astronaut, aircraft mechanic, farmer, speaker, teacher, poet, neurosurgeon., etc.)
To be a Renaissance Man is to never go out of style. I always said, "The day a man stops learning is the day that man dies."
Thank you Adam for this article. It will be shared far and wide. Best of luck to you.
Love this story
You are spot on. I write Personal Finance Economics on Substack to extend my day job to a broader community. This work grew me in a spirit similar to what you have written. I teach but boy have I learned. I use a structured style in a university setting but have had a riot attempting to explain similar concepts on Substack more creatively. At one level, finance and economics are always just finance and economics. To give them an artistic twist has been valuable to me.
Most people are mid-curved, but for those that have the curiosity & intellect to be an auto-didact, the rewards are innumerable & intangible.
This post was of exceptionally high quality. Thanks for sharing.
“if you don’t think you’ve learned more in the last year than you have in the previous 3”.
Wow🤩
We too often sit on what we know and our experience to date---and I think about Pablo Casals talking about why he practices--I feel like I'm making daily progress--and just the joy of learning something new.