Hacking Your Mindset for Improved Learning and Performance

See if you can fall in love with the topics you are studying. Find what is interesting, applicable, or special. And appreciate the versatile knowledge you are developing in your mental cross-training!

Find Something to Love

Ken Jennings is a “Jeopardy!” trivia rockstar. He has won the most money, has the longest winning streak, and has hosted the show. What’s his secret? I think a big part of it is his curiosity and positive attitude. He describes himself as someone with a lot of interests.

The sneaky thing is, you get to choose your interests. You could develop a new fascination, right now, with Genetics, which you just happen to be taking a course in. Do you see where I am going with this? If Ken Jennings can channel his interests to learn zillions of trivia facts about everything from geography to botany to politics to pop culture, could you cultivate some interests in the classes you are currently taking?

Instead of telling yourself that this is confusing, pointless, boring, or something you will “never use,” try the opposite. Tell yourself that this is fascinating, this is one of your interests, and that this information could come in handy in the future. Maybe you will decide to cross-breed mangos and mandarins (mango-ins?) or get some genetic tests done for a family medical issue, or you just want to know why Aunt Sylvia shares the abundant nostril hair of Grandpa Eddy.

The surprising outcome is that your attitude and interests can turn on a dime. Almost like switching on a light, you suddenly start thinking favorably about the topic. You make connections between the topic and your life and experiences. Once you stop fighting the topic and embrace it, studying can become much more pleasant.

Different Lenses, Different Perspectives

Even if you don’t love the topic and don’t think it is or will ever be relevant to your life, consider learning and studying like mental cross-training. Maybe you won’t ever need to row away from angry swans to survive, but the benefits of the rowing machine are pretty obvious. You are improving your cardio-respiratory fitness and building your muscles and coordination. Well, I would argue that similar cognitive benefits accrue from studying a range of academic disciplines. If you can learn to think like a scientist, a statistician, a historian, an economist, a psychologist, a creative writer… Wow! That is some serious cross-training and will give you the benefits of those many different ways of viewing the world and those around you.

But what if you find the theories or information outdated, disturbing, or downright offensive? Maybe you don’t like the sexist mansplaining of Freud. That’s ok. Learn to view the world the way Freud did, so you can critique the inaccuracies better and find any useful kernels (I would argue his thoughts on the unconscious and subconscious have value). And Sun Tzu's “The Art of War” would argue that it is better to know your enemy. Then you can argue more effectively against their ideas or perhaps even use a blend of your psychology, political science, and history knowledge to persuade others to your way of thinking.

Make Connections and Comparisons

Those dreaded “compare and contrast” essays weren’t simply an academic torture device. The more you integrate what you learn between and across classes, the deeper, richer, and more fun your classes will become. Principles in psychology can help explain economic outcomes and knowledge of the historical period when a literary work was written can add nuance.

The more you know, the easier it is to learn new things because you already have a knowledge base and framework. For example, if you know about baby chicks’ imprinting from your biology or ecology class, you will more quickly understand the social psychology concept of imprinting.

I encourage you to build your own “grand theories” and be playful and curious in building your knowledge. It will make your current learning enjoyable and far more effective. And you might even find yourself winning over $2.5 million on Jeopardy!