Learning can be defined in many ways, but most would agree that it’s a relatively permanent change in behavior that results from experience. That doesn’t sound difficult to achieve – so why do so many people struggle to learn new skills? Speaking as someone motivated to make learning and personal development a priority in life, I wanted to better understand the biological and psychological processes and barriers to learning new skills. Simply stated: can you learn to learn? Yep, you can do that.

The most complex “thing” in the known universe is the human brain. The average brain has 100 billion neurons (nerve cells) and 100 trillion synapses (neural connections). That means the brain has ~1,000x more synapses than the number of stars in our galaxy (had to drop a space reference!). Therefore, it should come as no surprise that the brain is still a bit of a mystery. We’ll likely be discovering new information about how the brain works for years to come, but experts are starting to get a better idea of how we learn new skills.

From a strictly neural standpoint, learning is essentially strengthening the connections between certain neurons. To clarify – learning itself doesn’t strengthen the actual link between neuron and neuron… the brain doesn’t quite work like that. Instead, it’s more about the patterns of activation that represent various concepts and actions. Essentially, different patterns of activated neurons represent different ideas and thoughts, and when fired together, the links get stronger. Interesting, I suppose… but what are we supposed to do with that information? No idea.

Learning is so much more than just understanding the physical nature of the brain. Cognitive science is a catch-all term for understanding the different levels of human learning behavior. It was specifically created as an umbrella term to incorporate all levels – from neural to cognitive to social – and it includes contributions from many disciplines including neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, and sociology.

I’m far more concerned with understanding the psychological barriers associated with attempting to learn and retain new information – less about genetics, more about control. Learning “styles”, for instance, have been widely demonstrated to be of no practical value.
…I guess I should stop telling people I’m a visual learner.

Learning new skills is one of the best ways to make yourself not only marketable, but also happy. Makes sense… so what’s the blocker, for most people? Psychologists will discuss learning behaviors in terms of classical or operant conditioning and observation, but to me, the psychological aspect of learning boils down to this: we confuse the fact that learning requires effort with the myth that success is unlikely.

Learning is hard, and it’s supposed to be. Embrace the fear! Fear of the unknown is what you need, because it’s a sign you’re pushing your limits. You have to endure the pain of confusion and frustration before you learn, which – for better or worse – is part of the learning process.

Unfortunately, the brain tends to lean in a certain direction – often to the detriment of an open mind. The brain, despite being only ~2% of the body’s mass, consumes ~20% of the body’s energy! Selfish, but true. To conserve energy, we create shortcuts – better known as biases – that can unintentionally lead to lack of confidence and motivation in your ability to learn.

We have to create and sustain internal mental processes for learning where struggle is actually an accepted part of learning, not the end of it. When learners become consumed with self-doubt and have no clear path towards improvement, that is when we quit.

So where to start?

If adults could learn just one thing from children, it should be this: always be curious!

Curiosity → Motivation → Learning → Accomplishment

Curiosity is heavily associated with all aspects of human development, in which derives the process of learning and desire to acquire knowledge and skill. Such a powerful and forgotten quality lost in our fast-paced and stressful day-to-day life. Take note, a curious person:

• Follows their interests but listens without judgement
• Ask questions (sometimes even dumb questions)
• Reads EVERYTHING to draw on the minds of others
• Lives in the present, where life and learning happen

When learning becomes a habit, knowledge actually begins to compound like interest. Let curiosity lead the way – reconnect with your deepest source of inspiration and create a ripple effect in the ongoing effort to learn. The reality is, most barriers to learning are self-inflicted and waiting to be broken down. Whatever your learning desire, the world is always willing to reveal its secrets, we just need to open our eyes.

Hopefully, I take my own advice.