How to Become an Efficient Self-Learner PT. 1/12

“Learn slowly to memorize quickly.”

Hi! Today I’m starting a new series of posts. This will be the first of twelve.

I chose to begin with this topic because I believe it is the most important thing you should know.

I had this idea because some people get confused when they see my posts. They ask themselves, “Where should I start?” or “Should I do this or that first?”

This series will serve as your guide for the entire learning process. This is where you begin. You don’t need any prior knowledge, only the willingness to question your current methods.

This post, unlike the others, will serve as an introduction. I need to provide you with some context about your current situation and address all your concerns.

It will be helpful both for beginners and for more advanced self-learners, because there is always something new to learn. If you stay with me until the end, the entire learning structure will become clear in your mind.

It is not that your doubts will vanish completely, but it will be much easier to make progress when you know what to do and what to avoid.

I say this from personal experience. After a certain point, studying becomes a structured and predictable process.

This will only happen if you apply everything I share with you.

False Beliefs About the Self-Learner

Before we begin, I need to break down a few limiting beliefs that might be holding you back.

These beliefs have become so normalized in our society that we don’t even question them anymore. In some cases, we deny we think this way, even though our actions say otherwise.

Even if you consider yourself open-minded, do not skip the next lines..

“I’m just not talented enough for this.”

This one is very common. When you don’t get the hang of something right away, and it feels difficult (which is totally normal), you start telling yourself that you just don’t have the natural ability for it.

I won’t deny that some people are naturally gifted. But that’s no excuse for not trying. The real battle is with yourself.

No one is born knowing how to study alone, not even the talented ones. The difference is that they love what they do so much that any challenge excites them.

This is extremely important to develop because it helps you eliminate thoughts that hold you back, like comparing yourself to others.

Sure, maybe you and someone else started studying at the same time and they are progressing faster. But what really matters is not the speed, it’s the consistency.

I have a personal quote I always keep in mind:

“Learn slowly to memorize quickly.”

It doesn’t matter if you are learning slowly, as long as you don’t stop.

The difficulty you face in your studies will make you wonder if you are capable of learning that subject. Sadly, this often holds people back more than it pushes them forward.

Yes, some of the people reading this may have more talent than you. But that doesn’t matter, as long as your study system is well organized, and you retain what you learn. In that case, progress is almost guaranteed.

It depends on how seriously you are willing to grow.

It is better to be moderately consistent than to be extraordinary only from time to time.

And in at least one sense, I’m certain your progress is guaranteed.

“It’s not possible to learn without a teacher.”

It is understandable to think this way. For more difficult subjects, it is common to seek someone more experienced to help explain things. I don’t blame you. The more complex the topic, the more urgent your need for help.

In my case, there are languages where I make great progress with very little effort, and others where I get completely lost in the grammar.

It’s comforting to have someone teach you everything while you just sit and listen. You don’t have to think much. The teacher gives you a ready-made model.

When I say “teacher,” I don’t mean only university professors. I mean, anyone who is explaining a topic to you.

But nothing lasts forever. Eventually, the lessons will end. You will have to walk your own path. And then what?

I have seen this happen many times. A course ends, and the first thing the student asks is, “Now what? How do I keep going?”

They had become so dependent on the lessons that they believed all their doubts would disappear when the course was over. But the opposite happens. The more you know, the more questions arise.

I’m not telling you to stop taking classes altogether. I’m telling you to read these posts so that when your course ends, you’ll know how to keep progressing at the same level or even faster.

It is natural to think that you can’t learn without a teacher. But self-learning requires much more than just sitting down to watch someone explain everything step by step.

If you start preparing now, you will save yourself a lot of effort in the future, both in organizing your studies and in your progress over time.

People who hold on to this limiting belief end up sabotaging themselves. In reality, self-learning allows you to reach levels far beyond what any classroom could ever offer.

Another advantage we have is that we constantly use our imagination to solve problems. If someone is always teaching you, of course, they will give you the easy version of everything.

But that’s not how the real world works. You need to figure things out for yourself. You will face problems no one has seen before. And probably, no one will have the answer except you…

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Thank you so much for reading this post until the end.

The topic of the next post will be: “How to Know if Your Current Method Is Sabotaging You”

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