How to Learn–Barbara Winter

As I was busily rearranging the hotel ballroom where my seminar was to be held, a man arrived, marched to the front seat, sat down, folded his arms over his chest and said in a demanding voice, “This better be good!” I was quite certain that he was about to be disappointed.

During the break at the same class, another man rushed up to me, eyes glowing, and said, “I can’t believe what is happening. I wasn’t even supposed to be here tonight. I came to take notes for a friend who couldn’t make it. Already, I have thought of several businesses I could start!”

Every class I teach has a variation of this theme. While the information is the same, some people leave with nothing and others leave with more than they expected to get. How can you be the one to get more out of the classes and seminars you attend?

Having spent a lot of time on both sides of the desk, here are a few tips I’ve garnered:

° Be responsible for what happens in the class. Do you realize, for example, that you can help the leader do a better job? By nodding, smiling, responding, you can encourage—or discourage—the person leading the class. Nonverbal communication is strong in a classroom. If you frown or appear indifferent, you may have a negative impact on the person teaching the course. By supporting the teacher, you’ll get a better class. No kidding.

° Come ready to learn. Leave your problems and worries outside the room and let your sense of adventure take over. For a few hours, suspend your resistance and be open to the ideas and information you’re receiving.

° Pick the best seat in the house.  Arrive a bit early and select the best vantage point you can get. Make sure you can see and hear what’s going on. The farther to the front that you place yourself, the fewer the distractions.

° Take two sets of notes. Make one set factual (i.e. important points given in the lecture) and another of ideas that you get during the course of the lecture. In other words, begin applying ideas to your life immediately.

° Be a regular student. Of course, expanding your knowledge can be fun and interesting, but there are larger benefits. Seminars and classes can strengthen your self-confidence, motivate you, awaken ideas and thoughts that have been dormant. You may even transform your life. Only Cinderella changed hers with a magic wand. Modern versions of the story such as My Fair Lady and Educating Rita rely on education to perform such miracles.

Take your self-education seriously. And while not all classes and seminars will be equally powerful, you’ll still receive the rewards that come from keeping your curiosity alive.