Learn Like a Pro

Cheery Friday Greetings to our Learning How to Learners!

Barb and her good friend and co-author, Olav Schewe, are thrilled to give you an early heads up that their new book Learn Like a Pro: Science-Based Tools to Become Better at Anything! will be available on Amazon this Tuesday, June 1 and can be pre-ordered here.  Where Uncommon Sense Teaching took an instructor’s view of helping people learn, Learn Like a Pro takes a business professional look at learning. It is a quick, practical guide that is full of sticky insights that can allow you to learn more effectively in today’s fast-paced world.

About Barb and Olav’s new book

Neuroscience has moved fast in the past five years, showing how our MOOC Learning How to Learn got it right with key insights about learning and the brain. Now you can springboard even further ahead in your learning, as Learn Like a Pro swiftly reviews the basics (the Pomodoro Technique, focused versus diffuse mode), and then leaps ahead to describe vital new neuroscientific and cognitive psychology findings that can help with learning, including insight about how to develop intuition in coding, problem-solving, or language-learning; note-taking; metacognition; and why speed-reading can be problematic.

What’s great about Learn Like a Pro is that it condenses key learning insights and techniques down into one quick and easy read. Writing short books is hard—it took Barb and Olav years of work to make this exceptionally well-researched book into light-hearted treasure you’ll find yourself referring to again and again. 

Why should you read Learn Like a Pro?

Learn Like a Pro teaches learners to make the best use of their brains, whether those brains seem “naturally” geared toward learning or not. Are you already a great learner? This book is still for you! Learn Like a Pro gives useful tools to become even more powerful in your learning.

 Barb and Olav’s handbook will answer questions like:

• Can electromagnetic stimulation help with learning?
• What is the research verdict on using binaural beats to help you learn?
• Can supplements help with your learning?
• What’s the best way to take notes?
• Is it possible to improve your reading speed?
• What is the difference between learning a physical sport versus a mental concept?

You will also learn how to:

• Develop your problem-solving intuition
• Speed up your ability to answer complex questions
• Read effectively
• Maximize your working memory capacity
• Cultivate self-discipline and motivate yourself 
• Improve your performance on tests 

Learn Like a Pro stands out from other books on learning because it weaves together cutting edge insights from neuroscience to show unexpected, yet practical, new approaches on how to learn effectively. It shows how some of the same techniques you use for activities you enjoy, such as dancing or playing basketball, can, with clever retooling, help you gradually master any subject.

About Barb’s co-author, Olav Schewe: 

Olav is the founder and CEO of Educas, an educational technology startup that develops solutions to help students learn how to learn. He is also an educational consultant to one of the world’s largest educational tech companies, Kahoot!

Olav holds undergraduate degrees from the Norwegian School of Economics and the University of California, Berkeley and a graduate degree from the University of Oxford. He has also authored and co-authored several books, including Super Student, which has been translated into more than 20 languages.

 Advanced praise for the book:

“If you want to learn how to learn, I can’t think of better guides than Barbara Oakley and Olav Schewe. They transformed themselves from struggling students into master teachers, and they’ve written an unusually digestible, immediately useful book about how to build your knowledge, improve your memory, and boost your motivation to keep getting smarter.” —Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife 

“Learn Like a Pro is the book I wish I’d had when I was a student. It is jam-packed with practical, evidence-based advice for overcoming procrastination, strengthening memory, and reading more effectively. You’ll find a nugget of learning gold on every page.” —Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of When, Drive, and To Sell is Human

 We’re excited for you to read Learn Like a Pro to boost your learning success—and have fun while doing it! 

That’s all for this week. Have a happy week in Learning How to Learn!

Barb, Terry, and the entire Learning How to Learn team

• Get in early on the upcoming critically acclaimed Uncommon Sense Teaching!
• Get the course recommended text, A Mind for Numbers!
• And Learning How to Learn, a book for kids and parents.