Something annoying about learning: the things that make learning feel productive are usually the things that slow it down. Cramming feels great. You sit down, you grind through the material, and by the end of the session you feel like you’ve got it. You can rattle off the answers. You feel smart. And then two weeks later — gone. Most...
written by: Trevor Ragan In 2009 researchers ran an experiment on a group of middle schoolers from San Francisco. The students were divided into two groups before taking a couple biology lessons. One group was told to study the material for themselves, the lessons were for their own knowledge and development. The other group was told to study so they...
written by: Trevor Ragan A few months before my son Benny was born, my wife and I got to work on his room. We wanted it to feel calm and relaxing—which meant choosing the right paint color. Easy, I thought. The room will be green. Done. But when we got to the store, I was blown away. Turns out, you...
written by: Trevor Ragan Learning is the Wild Card It’s game night. Snacks out, friends sitting around the table, cards shuffled. The deal begins. You peek at the first card – 5♦. Not much to work with. The next – 7♣. Then 4♠. Then 8♥. So far this hand is a dud – low cards, no pairs. Then comes the...
written by: Trevor Ragan Every morning after my workout class, I hit the Starbucks drive-thru. And every single time, I order a grande nitro cold brew. They’re so good – especially for the first couple of minutes after they’re poured. The nitro bubbles swirl around creating the smoothest texture in all of the land. It’s perfect. An absolute 10/10. After...
written by: Trevor Ragan You arrive at a lab and take part in something called a Behavioral Approach Test (BAT). Lucky for you, it has nothing to do with bats – but it does involve spiders. Fear of Spiders Pre-test The test is simple. Enter a room. In the back of the room there’s a large spider in a glass...
My fiancée is thinking about getting a 4Runner. For the last week we’ve been doing our research – scrolling reddit, learning about the different options and trims, arguing about what color looks the best. During this time something weird has happened. Every time we leave the house the streets are filled with 4Runners. These things are everywhere. One of two...
Ali Crum and her research team round up over 80 hotel workers. They divide them into two groups: The intervention group, who is told that the work they do (cleaning hotel rooms) is good exercise and satisfies the Surgeon General’s recommendations for an active lifestyle. They are given specific examples of how their daily activities, such as vacuuming, changing linens,...
Let’s discuss some new and exciting growth mindset research You walk into a lab to take part in an experiment. Someone comes up to you and says: “In a few minutes you’re going to give a five minute speech to a panel of judges.” Then they leave you alone to prepare (and freak out a bit). You plan your speech,...
Spring training 2023. Tampa, FL. I’m watching five players doing the most boring drill in baseball. The coach is hitting them grounders, they’re fielding and throwing to first base. Normally, during a drill like this, I’d immediately start swiping on my phone. But this time I couldn’t stop watching. One of the players was visibly more locked in than the...
season 4 ep 8 A little bit of reflection can lead to a lot of benefits for learning and performance. Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube THE POWER OF REFLECTION: HOW THINKING IMPROVES LEARNING & PERFORMANCE Giada Di Stefano joins to discuss the her work on the surprising benefits of reflection. Her work shows how valuable it can...
season 4 ep 7 We can all change. But we usually don’t. The good news: we can fix this Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube KATY MILKMAN: HOW TO CHANGE Katy Milkman joins to discuss the most common obstacles to change and the tools we need to overcome them. She presents strategies to deal with: – Laziness –...
season 4 ep 6 There’s been some exciting advancements in the world of growth mindset. David Yeager joins to share some of his latest research. Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube THE NEW ERA OF GROWTH MINDSET – A quick growth mindset overview – Addressing growth mindset controversies – The New Era of Growth Mindset – David Yeager:...
Stress Mindsets Matter season 4 ep 5 The way we think about stress can change the way it affects us. Kelly McGonigal explains how it all works. Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube RETHINKING STRESS Kelly McGonigal helps us make a mindset shift towards stress. And shows that when we: – Acknowledge stress – Welcome stress – Utilize...
season 4 ep 4 Boomer, Gen X, Millennial – we use these labels all the time, but there’s two problems: 1. There’s no scientific support for real generational differences 2. Using the labels actually causes a bunch of problems, especially for learning & development Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube RETHINKING GENERATIONAL LABELS Two experts in the field,...
season 4 ep 3 Hardiness is a strong predictor of our ability to deal with challenges and change. Decades of research shows it plays an important role in both learning and resilience. Yet, it doesn’t get enough attention – it’s time to change that. Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube HARDINESS One of the world’s leading experts in...
season 4 ep 2 Outcome Bias is a common trap we all fall into, when we judge a decision based on the results, instead of looking at the process itself. This impacts learning, leadership, and decision making more than we realize. Annie Duke and Övül Sezer show us how to change that. Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube...
season 4 ep 1 Gaining experience and expertise is great for us – as individuals. However, research shows, this can hurt our capacity to connect with, lead, and advise others. Listen anywhere you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTube THE CURSE OF EXPERTISE To become more effective leaders we need to understand the curse of expertise and how to avoid it....
A deep-dive into toxic positivity: what it is, why it matters, how to avoid it What is Toxic Positivity? Positivity can be great. But when it’s used to force a positive spin on difficult emotions, it becomes toxic. Toxic positivity is everywhere, and a bigger problem than we realize, especially if we’re talking about learning. Whitney Goodman, author of Toxic...
Trevor Ragan | Podcasts | Learning Environment APPLE PODCASTSSPOTIFYGOOGLE PLAY The Culture Playbook by Daniel Coyle Dan joins the podcast to talk about his new book and digs into different ways we can build a better learning culture. Daniel Coyle is the New York Times bestselling author of The Culture Code, which was named Best Business Book of the Year...
We’re a little over a month into our New Year’s resolutions. How’s yours going? Same. Don’t worry though, we’re not alone. About 68% of people have never completed a resolution. Rather than running it back in 2023 with the same strategy and falling short again, let’s adapt, adjust, and approach this differently. And let’s do it ASAP. GOALS & SKILLS...
To change a behavior it’s usually best to focus on our mindsets and environment, rather than just the behavior. Eat more vegetables = behavior Vegetables are bland and boring → Vegetables can be satisfying and delicious = mindset shift Making fresh, well-prepared, veggies readily available = environment Get more sleep = behavior Sleep is a waste of time → Sleep...
If our goal is to be fearless, three things usually happen: 1. We avoid things that cause discomfort (which is good if we’re in danger, but not so good if we’re trying to learn) 2. We put the majority of our attention and focus on the discomfort (why am I feeling this, how do I get rid of it?) 3....
A video essay featuring: Amy Edmondson We’ve all seen or been a part of both good and bad teams. But what creates this gap? What separates bad from good and good from great? How can we build better teams on purpose? In 2012, Google set out to answer these questions. They rounded up the best researchers, statisticians, organizational psychologists, sociologists,...
On May 24, 2019 I found out I had bladder cancer. Yeah, WTF? Even the doctor was surprised when he found the tumor. It’s super rare, especially for nonsmokers, especially for people my age. So far I’ve actually been really lucky. The doctors were able to remove the tumor. There has been no need for chemo or radiation, and the...
Pause for a second and think of a few things you’re good at. No, really. Twenty seconds on the clock. Ready, set, go. We do this exercise during our workshops. And it’s one of my favorites because no matter what group we’re working with, the same thing happens: There are five seconds of awkward silence. And most people’s faces scrunch...
“In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer Great learners can adapt, solve problems, work through setbacks, build new skills. Learners are resilient. Learners are agile. No matter who we are or what we do, becoming a better learner is a...
My friend is bad with chopsticks. He’s so bad that he actively avoids places that use chopsticks. On the rare occasion when we convince him to come out for sushi, he’ll try to use them for a second, get embarrassed, then ask for a fork. In the scheme of things is this a huge problem? No. But it’s definitely an...
When we see someone perform at a high level we love calling them gifted. We see this in professional sports, in the workplace, and in schools. “Gifted” is coming from a good place but can send the wrong message. If I believe I’m gifted, I might take it a step farther and assume that I don’t need to work at...
An essential part of growth is choosing to put ourselves into situations that involve uncertainty – to do things that might not work: Applying for a new job Asking someone out Learning a new piece of software Publishing a new blog post Sending in your college application Asking for a raise When the outcome is unknown, there are a few...
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