Learning by Teaching

Via Richard Feynman’s Technique for Learning Something New: An Animated Introduction:

Feynman’s method in a three-step process:

1. Choose a topic you want to understand and start studying it.
2. Pretend you’re teaching the idea to someone else. Write out an explanation on the paper…. Whenever you get stuck, go back and study.
3. Finally do it again, but now simplify your language or use an analogy to make the point.

This is the idea behind blogging as a newbie. When you practice in public you cook your ideas more, you develop your thoughts and opinions.

I was recently reminded of what happens when you practice and learning in public.¹ You are forced to confront your failures. You can’t avoid them, so you move on. Hopefully grown because of it.

When you learn in public magic happens.