Education
It’s the consistency over a long period of time where you really start to see the breakthrough. In this episode of Nat Chat, I’m joined by Nasos Papadopoulos. Nasos attended Oxford University, where after a while, realized that being on the path with finance and economics just wasn’t for him. He took a long break to travel and explore new opportunities, eventually getting into meta-learning and the science of learning. He started the site Metalearn.net where he educates other people on learning more effectively and efficiently. He also has a popular podcast and a course on the topic, all focused on helping people get better at learning. Nasos is an excellent guy to learn from for those wanting to learn more effectively and efficiently, stay motivated, and getting to know their learning strengths and weaknesses. We cover a wide range of topics, including: What Nasos has learned by focusing on learning how to learn The niche and lesser-known aspects of learning The fixed and growth mindsets and their impact on learning Figuring out your own learning strengths and weaknesses Applying Hebb’s Law and becoming more self and other-aware Overcoming the sunk cost of highly investing in the wrong area And much more. Please enjoy, and reach out to Nasos on Twitter! If you enjoyed this episode and our discussion on learning and self-education, be sure to check out my episode with Zak Slayback, and my episode with Connor Grooms, where we delve into these topics and more. Find Nasos online: Website [0:35] MetaLearn Twitter [49:18] Nasos’ Twitter [49:20] Mentioned in the show: Oxford University [0:15] Metalearn.net [0:35] MetaLearn podcast [0:48] Nat’s episode on the MetaLearn podcast [1:24] Italki [20:45] Make Me a MetaLearner course [24:47] Self-authoring Suite [25:44] 5-Minute Journal [30:45] Hebb’s Law [31:32] Python [32:58] Duolingo [34:23] Codecademy [34:24] Sesame Street [34:26] Books mentioned: How Will You Measure Your Life [11:12] The 4-Hour Workweek [11:50] Intelligence and How to Get It [21:17] People mentioned: Clayton Christensen [11:13] Tim Ferriss [11:50] Plato [12:05] Aristotle [12:06] Carol Dweck [16:53] Elon Musk [18:24] Richard Nisbett [21:15] Howard Gardner [22:49] Dr. Jordan Peterson [25:36] Scott Adams [45:32] 1:19 - Introduction to Nasos, him detailing his schooling experiences and time at Oxford University, and then rethinking his whole perspective on the educational system. 7:30 - How Nasos’ perspective on continuing to work in the financial field changed, after barely missing a top score on one of his finals. Also, a bit on his traveling experiences and what he did after having this huge change in perspective. 10:33 - How Nasos was paying for travel and a few of the impactful books he read shortly after leaving the financial field. 12:18 - How and when Nasos first began his company, MetaLearn. 13:32 - Some of the most important lessons that Nasos has learned from studying the science of learning. 16:44 - Neuroplasticity, the growth vs the fixed mindset, and some explanations on these. Also, why the growth mindset can be harmful towards learning. 19:30 - Using some of these techniques for improving your language learning, speculation how much of a role IQ plays, and some thoughts on intelligence in general. 24:18 - Figuring out your own strengths and weaknesses with learning, re-evaluating yourself, and self-analyzing with external perspectives on yourself. 28:06 - Nasos’ personal experience with self-awareness and learning that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all. 29:50 - What Nasos has been doing to be more self-aware and other-aware. 31:23 - Nasos detailing a few examples of learning based on making connections to past knowledge. Also, how Nasos has applied Hebb’s Law. 34:05 - The gamification of learning (Duolingo, Codecademy, Sesame Street) and Nasos’ thoughts on this. 36:42 - Nasos on blending the learning games with effective learning techniques. “I think if you have a piece of your learning process that is purely gamified, that’s great as long as it’s not the only thing.” 38:44 - How Nasos keeps himself motivated with learning new things and working on his entrepreneurial creative project. “I come back to: ‘Why am I doing this, why does this matter to me, what impact is this having on the people around me and the wider world?” and that keeps me motivated.” 40:26 - Nasos’ advice on letting go of the sunk cost of investing heavily in something that you didn’t enjoy doing or wasn’t meaningful to you. 43:37 - Nasos’ current long-term goals with Metalearn and other projects. Also, a bit on systems-based thinking and Nasos’ advice for others looking to become more effective with learning in general. 48:55 - Wrap-up and where to find Nasos online. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe at https://nateliason.com/podcast When it has meaning to you, the other motivational stuff just becomes irrelevant.