13 EASY WAYS TO CREATE YOUR OWN PERSONAL
BACK-TO-SCHOOL SEASON
by: LAURA VANDERKAM
from: Fast Company
1. START
CARSCHOOLING
Save mindless pop music for your evening
commute. In the morning, commit to listening to new podcasts or audio books
that stretch your mind. Since you won’t have time to find them in the morning
rush, build in a few minutes on Sunday night to download listening material for
the week (check out OpenCulture.com for some free audio versions of
classics).
2. GET A
LEARNING BUDDY
Find an accountability partner who will
check in every Friday to find out one "fun fact" you learned during
the week. This relationship will probably become competitive, and that’s the
point.
3. USE BITS OF
TIME
If you’ve got 10 minutes, you could
mindlessly check social media, or you could watch a Khan Academy video,
read a segment of a classic novel via DailyLit, or check out random knowledge via Now I Know.
4. CREATE A
POWER HOUR
There are 168 hours in a week. You can
dedicate one of those hours weekly to participating in a webinar, attending a
lunch-and-learn if your company offers them, or reading something
thought-provoking (check out on Twitter for ideas). Once a month, carve
out an evening or weekend morning for working on a longer course. Peruse Coursera, CreativeLive, or Lynda for ideas.
5.
SUBSCRIBE TO SOMETHING MEATY
I don’t always manage to read The
Economist, but when I do, I’m intrigued to learn about the political climate in
Azerbaijan, or Gabon, or other places I sometimes forget exist. The weekend
edition of a major newspaper could serve the same function, or a publication on
industry research. Commit to reading cover to cover for a few weeks, and see
what happens.
6. VISIT THE LIBRARY (OR A BOOKSTORE) AT LUNCH
Even if you don’t have a library card or
you don’t buy anything, seeing the titles and flipping through those that sound
interesting can expand your frame of reference. Getting out of the office and
into someplace stimulating is good for the brain, in any case.
7.
READ A NEW DAILY ROUNDUP
Do you get daily newsletters you don’t
remember subscribing to? Unsubscribe from the ones you don’t read, and find a
new roundup that you will (I’ve been readingtheSkimm to keep up with current events).
8. START
A WORK BOOK CLUB
Social book clubs are more fun, at least as
measured by wine consumption, but herding busy people together one evening a
month is often difficult. You have to go to work, so you may as well embrace
the possibilities. Choose slightly obscure selections, and you might be able to
convince the author to call in.
9. TALK TO
SOMEONE NEW
Then—this is key—actually listen to him or
her. Often in conversation, we’re so obsessed with making our points, or
plotting our escape, that we miss something that could be interesting. Figure
out whatever your conversation partner is fascinated by, and learn what you can
about the topic.
10.
PLAN A FANTASY VACATION
In the course of researching itineraries
through French wine country, you’ll learn a lot of geography, history, and
culture. Of course, you’ll learn even more if you actually take the trip!
11.
WRITE THAT WHITE PAPER
As you research and write a longer work in
your area of expertise, you’ll reread old resources and find new ones. To
motivate yourself to go the distance, try doing a mini version of National Novel Writing Month,
the program that has people writing around 1,700 words a day for 30 days to
produce a 50,000-word book. All you need to do is notch 170 words a day to
produce a 5,000-word white paper in a month (with the bonus option of waving it
around come review time).
12. EXPAND THE DEFINITION OF DATE NIGHT
Do you and your spouse see a movie and then
get drinks at the same place every week? Try a one-night cooking class, or
brewery tour, or visit an art gallery instead. Besides learning something new,
the novelty might bring you closer.
13.
WATCH TV THOUGHTFULLY
About 80% of
people watch television on a given day, so upgrading your selection is an easy
win. Peruse Netflix’s documentaries for options—you'll feel relaxed andsmarter.
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