How to Be a More Effective Learner

Everyone wants to learn more, but no one thinks about how to become a more effective learner. 

Pulling all-nighters before exams, cramming during finals week, trying to implement silly acronyms that never seem to work? Certain techniques work better for some people than others. And you need to find what works best for you to learn more effectively.

(Hint: Chances are it’s not cramming!)

You don’t need to study around the clock to learn more. You just need to discover how to study smarter, not harder.

Here’s how.

Quick Look:

• Set aside the time
• Figure out your ideal learning style
• Divide and conquer
• Improve your memory
• Teach what you’ve learned
• Ask for feedback
• Add visual aids
• Use pen and paper
• Remove all distractions
• Take breaks 
• Exercise
• Sleep at least seven hours
• Sit back and listen
• Minimize multitasking

20 Tips to Be a More Effective Learner

Here are 20 quick tips to help you learn better.

1. Set aside the time.

In order to be a more effective learner, you need to make time to, well, learn. Dedicating five hours a week (also known as the five-hour rule) just to learning is all it takes to become an effective life-long learner.

This does not mean that you cram all learning into a single five-hour block—or even two blocks of time each week. That will impede your ability to retain information and maintain a schedule of one-hour blocks. Five one-hour blocks each week gives you flexibility with your schedule; you could stick to weekdays only, or set aside two hours on the weekend. Whatever the schedule is, you need to hold yourself accountable. 

2. Figure out your ideal learning style.

Some learners enjoy one-on-one interactions, while others prefer to watch videos and learn at their own pace. There is no right or wrong way to learn—only different ways. Ask yourself what your ideal learning style is, and fully lean into it. Learning is a personal experience and should be catered to the way your brain works.

Not sure what your learning style is? Take this quiz to find out.

3. Divide and conquer.

Big projects could be intimidating at first glance, especially if there are several phases, numerous tasks and countless details of which to keep track. To prevent feeling overwhelmed, tackle one core concept at a time. Although the workload is the same, breaking things down into bite-sized pieces can trick your mind into believing that the work is realistic to get through.

Dividing and conquering will also give you time to revel on how far you’ve come and inspire you to see it through to the end.

4. Improve your memory.

Improving your memory will not only help you retain information faster, but it will also save you a ton of time because you’re not bogged down with repetition. There are several things that you can do right now to help improve your memory, such as meditating, exercising and brain training exercises. As long as you’re simulating your mind, you can enhance its capacity to retain information. 

5. Add visual aids.

There are certain concepts that just make more sense when they’re turned into flowcharts. Visual aids help your mind make associations between pieces of information, which could also help with memorization of concepts. Research by 3M found that the brain can prowess visuals 60 times faster than it can with text.

6. Ask questions.

Sometimes, you don’t know what you don’t know. So don’t be afraid to ask questions. The chances are that there are others who have the same questions but are too shy to ask them. And, believe it or not, asking yourself questions is also an effective way to learn.

When you ask yourself “why” questions, for example, you’re exposing yourself to new facts and ideas. Curiosity has been found in several behavioral studies to be correlated with higher recall. In other words: Asking questions can make you a better learner.

7. Use pen and paper.

When it comes to memory retention, writing notes with a pen and paper is more effective than relying on typing on a keyboard. A 2017 study by EEG was able to successfully prove that “because of the benefits for sensory-motor integration and learning, traditional handwritten notes are preferably combined with visualizations (e.g., small drawings, shapes, arrows, symbols) to facilitate and optimize learning.”

8. Remove all distractions.

Distractions can be costly, especially if you’re trying to retain the information you’re consuming.

Listening to lectures, watching movies in the background, texting or socializing online can be very distracting while you’re trying to study. The brain cannot handle all of it at once. While you may not believe your learning is hampered by these external distractions, it is. So remove all distractions to spend your time efficiently studying.

9. Take breaks.

There are breaks, and then there are purposeful breaks. A purposeful break could span anywhere from five to 50 minutes, and it does not involve going on social media. Instead, try going for a walk to reconnect with nature, or put on some music and allow yourself to daydream.

Taking a break is key to studying smarter. Even a 10-minute power nap has been proven to provide “overwhelming benefits,” such as more patience, less stress, more energy, increased learning and an overall better health.

10. Ask for advice.

Unsolicited feedback isn’t necessarily intended to damper your ability to learn, but sometimes that can happen. However, according to a recent Harvard Business Review study, explicitly asking for advice tends to produce helpful guidance that is both critical and actionable.

According to the study, “those asked to provide ‘advice’” suggested 34 percent more areas of improvement and 56 percent more ways to improve” in comparison to those who asked for feedback.

11. Exercise more.

Another incredible benefit of exercise is its ability to help prepare your mind to learn and retain information. Studies have tied exercise to improvements in test scores and reading abilities. Exercise has also been tied to improvements in mental health, as it helps those who experience stress, depression, anxiety and ADHD—all of which can be debilitating and create distractions in a learning environment.

12. Sleep at least seven hours.

When you learn something new, you need to sleep in order for your brain to consolidate the memory. Failure to do this will result in the memory fading before it can be fully retained as a long-term memory.

It is recommended to aim for between seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Sleep deprivation not only impairs your ability to concentrate, but it can also make you feel stressed and anxious. Sleep is one of those things that seems to cure several ailments at once. If you’re studying for a big exam, remember to get a full night’s rest. You don’t want to sleep on this opportunity.

13. Minimize multitasking.

According to a 2010 study by University of Illinois, “researchers in psychology, cognitive science and neuroscience have found that media multitasking during schoolwork interferes with students’ attention and working memory.” Not only did their note-taking ability and reading comprehension diminish, but these students also experienced an increased difficulty in recalling what they just learned.

Focus on a single task at a time (i.e. learning), and set aside windows of time throughout your day to take a break and check your phone. Otherwise, you may be better off leaving your phone in another room.

14. Sit back and listen.

Did you know that 60 percent of all misunderstandings stem from poor listening? Active listening can help you develop a better understanding of what you’re learning. This requires your full attention (no multitasking!), zero interruptions (although asking questions is okay) and repeating back what you’ve learned to give the speaker a chance to correct you in case you misunderstood.

Like all skills, strengthening your ability to listen requires practice.

15. Eat brain foods.

Did you know that there are specific foods you can eat that actually boost your brainpower? Your diet doesn’t only affect you physically; it can also improve your mental health, too. 

Eating foods like fatty fish, green veggies and berries can fill you up with the nutrients you need to enhance your focus and memory.

16. Buddy up.

When you study with a partner, you may be more effective. This is because your study buddy can open your eyes to ideas you didn’t consider or ask questions you didn’t even know you needed to answer. They may also have study tricks of their own to share with you.

Plus, when you talk about a topic out loud with someone, you’re more likely to commit it to your long-term memory.

17. Divvy it up.

If you’re studying for a topic that feels pretty major, break it down into subtopics and take turns studying those. Instead of trying to master one part of it before moving onto the next, spend an allotted amount of time on one section and then move on; you can come back to each section.

While this might feel like wasting time, it’s actually an effective way to learn. When you study something for a little while and come back to it later, you force your brain to recall it. The more your brain has to recall it, the easier it’ll become to recall later. 

18. Get passionate.

Chances are that, the more passionate you are about a topic, the more you’ll learn about it. That’s just because you’ll feel motivated to learn. Excitement and curiosity can help commit information to long-term memory.

Maybe you don’t feel passionate about history, but you still have to study for that upcoming history exam. You can still look for little ways to make it personal. Maybe some historical event you’re studying ended up shaping your life or your family’s life in some way—focus on that. These little things can help you remember the big things. 

19. Close the books.

It’s easy to get tired of reading textbooks or articles. Our eyes are looking at our surroundings all day. When you’re feeling like your eyes are tired, close the books. You can try listening to audiobooks or videos instead. Maybe laying down with an audiobook is more effective in that moment than reading more just to turn pages.

In other words: Utilize all of your senses to learn—not just one. We have them for a reason, and they can all help us learn.

20. Don’t give up.

Learning something new can feel frustrating. As humans, we’re wired to want to excel at things. Failing feels bad, plain and simple. But remember that, even if you flunked the last test or didn’t do as well as you wanted on a recent exam, it’s not the end of the world.

You can still keep trying out different ways to learn, which is actually a tip in and of itself. If one method isn’t working for you, try something else. Keep an open mind and implement new techniques. Eventually, you’ll find what works best for you and start seeing greater results. 

Benefits of Becoming an Effective Learner

Being an effective learner is more than just acing a test. It offers a host of benefits, including better critical thinking, more creativity, increased retention of information and a strong problem-solving acumen. It can also boost your overall confidence and encourage you to take more risks. Effective learning doesn’t require you to work harder; it just means that you need to work smarter. Following all of these tips will help you get there. Need some guidance? Check out Dorothy to deepen your cognitive processing. It uses spaced repetition to help you form healthy study habits, making you the most effective learner you can be.