Use Your Primary Learning Mode

Now that you have a plan in place, we’ll start talking about how to implement your deliberate learning. Because everyone is wired differently, some ways of learning will be more effective for you than others, so you need to figure out the most efficient way for you to assimilate new information.

Historically, many educators have differentiated three main types of learners: visual (see Figure 17, ​Obligatory diagram for visual learners​), auditory, and kinesthetic .

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Figure 17. Obligatory diagram for visual learners

• Visual learners need to see the material—and the instructor. Pictures and graphs all work well for visual learners, and they will be sensitive to body language and facial expressions as well.

• Auditory learners have to hear the material. Lectures, seminars, and podcasts work for these folks. Tone of voice, speed, and other nuances can make a difference.

• Kinesthetic learners learn by moving and touching; they need to physically experience the material. This is especially appropriate for sports or arts and crafts, where you really need to do it to learn it.

These three modalities are very general, and as you can see, different modes may be more suitable for different activities. But it’s a good starting point to consider how you may learn best.

Do you prefer reading to seminars or podcasts? Do podcasts annoy you because you can’t see the presenter? Do you play instructional videos but not actually watch the talking head?

Take a look at Table 1, ​Representative system predicates​. Each list of words is associated with one of the major learning modes.^[102] How do you describe a learning problem? Are you “in the dark,” or do you say it “looks hazy”? That might indicate you have a predominantly visual approach. if you’re trying to “find the angle” and don’t know how you’ll “carry it forward,” perhaps you have a kinesthetic approach. Listen as other folks use these words; it’s a strong indication of their preferred learning style.

Multiple Intelligences

As you can see with these different learning modes, not everyone can learn best in the same manner; we are all wired a little differently. That doesn’t mean that a visual learner is smarter than an auditory learner, or vice versa.

In fact, the very notion of what constitutes intelligence has long been a matter of hot debate. Some researchers thought intelligence was a single, measurable thing. Others vehemently disagreed, pointing out that a single metric of intelligence may vary from culture to culture and that conventional testing doesn’t predict performance very well. It seems that once again, context matters. Out of this debate, two theories based on cognitive context emerged: Robert Sternberg’s triarchic theory and Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences.

Sternberg sees a three-part mind, composed of a meta-level component that manages thought processes overall; performance-based components that do tasks, make associations, and so on; and, finally, knowledge-acquisition components that handle assimilating new information. Each part has its place, and each part is independent—one cannot be described in terms of the others. Sternberg made the point that standard IQ tests don’t necessarily measure the sum total of your intelligence. He cites subjects that do very well at test taking but aren’t as adept at problem solving in the real world and, conversely, folks who are great problem solvers but poor test takers.

Gardner also proposed that intelligence has many different facets and that a single measurement was insufficient. He saw intelligence as a combination of different abilities and skills and so defined seven facets of intelligence, with different talents related to each:^[103]

Kinesthetic

Sports, dancing, do-it-yourself projects, woodworking, crafts, cooking

Linguistic

Verbal arguments, storytelling, reading, and writing

Logical/Mathematical

Math, numbers, sciences, taxonomies, geometry

Visual/Spatial

Using diagrams/plans, sketching, painting, manipulating images

Musical

Playing music, recognizing sounds, rhythms, patterns, remembering slogans and verses

Interpersonal

Empathic; senses feelings, intentions, and motivations of others

Intrapersonal

Self-reflective; works from an understanding of inner feelings, dreams, and relations with others

Other researchers proposed additional intelligences as time went on, but even with this original set you can begin to appreciate some interesting abilities. For instance, as part of musical intelligence, there is not only the obvious musical talent but also skills such as recognizing songs and efficient recall of lyrics, slogans, verses, and other similar material.

Everyone has combinations of these different intelligences in varying amounts. Also notice that some of these abilities are geared more to L-mode or R-mode processing.

But don’t use Gardner’s categories as an excuse. It’s easy to say “I don’t have much interpersonal intelligence” or use the widespread “I’m not good at math” as an excuse to do poorly at these tasks. All this means is that those activities won’t come as easily to you and will require greater effort than those that come more naturally.

Categorizations such as Gardner’s are helpful to point out all the different aspects of intelligence—you may recognize aspects of yourself that you hadn’t thought about before. The important thing to recognize is that these differences mean that some ways of learning are more effective for you, and others less so. And these differences aren’t necessarily cast in stone; for instance, you may find that practicing the techniques in this book changes the effectiveness of different ways of learning for you.

How do you learn best?

Personality Types

If you google around, you’ll find various online surveys and quizzes that will help you identify what sort of learner you are (or at least, where your tendencies lie). You can find out whether you’re an active learner or a reflective learner, visual or verbal, and so on. In fact, some methods of determining your learning style tie in to your personality, using the dimensions of personality popularized by Carl Jung and later enshrined in the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (as we saw in ​Codifying Your Personality Tendencies​).

Your personality can contribute to your learning style as well. An introvert probably will be less comfortable giving an impromptu talk at a conference. An extravert might want to talk things through with a group when learning a new skill.

Beyond the Defaults

Remember that these categorizations of intelligence and personality are tendencies—not hard and fast rules or judgments. Your MBTI category, if you will, represents the default settings for you. You can always choose to act differently. But these are your default behaviors when no one is watching (especially when you’re not watching.)

Type is not destiny.

Experiment with different learning modes. To help learn a new topic, try a couple of different approaches. If you don’t usually listen to podcasts or seminars, give that a shot, in addition to your usual reading or experimenting.

Next Actions

• Think about the intelligences you’re strongest at: Which ones do you use most on the job? Are your strongest intelligences a good match for your job? Or not?

• And which ones do you use for any hobbies? Do you have any strong intelligence that isn’t being used well? Can you find a way to apply it?

• If there’s a mismatch, what can you do to make up for it? If you’re a visual learner, can you start creating visuals aids for your work? If kinesthetic, would props help?