Thinking out loud and clear
#67 - no more tests for a week - hurray š
Hi there,
The transition across months has been steady and mostly positive. Following a month full of tests, we seem to have hit a lull, as seen through my sparing homework this weekend, with 2 weeks to go till half term. Moving past January and the new-year-niceties, itās been a week full of planning the year ahead with applying for work experience programs and summer schools.
Highlight of the week āļø : getting 95% on my Further Maths test. This one stands out because I was anxious I hadnāt prepared in the right way, let alone the fact that a whole question hadnāt been taught to us and I ended up relying on friendsā help. Now for the other Further Maths test score which Iām receiving tomorrow to follow suitā¦ š¤
After studying waves and how they spread out, my Physics journey, comprising patternless leaps around the textbook like a Snakes and Ladders game, has jumped back to square 1 - particles. Except itās gone to a whole new level, fast.
This week, we were introduced to āFeynman diagramsā that illustrate what happens when particles interact. For example, neutrons may split into protons and electrons, a reaction used in nuclear reactors.
Richard Feynman, the clever physicist who invented this stuff, was known to me through a different avenue: revision techniques. He said that explaining a concept to someone else (or pretending to) in your own simple words allows you to identify the gaps in your explanation.1 Often these are points where youāre not able to clearly articulate an idea, especially in basic language, or you find yourself stumbling. You then revisit this part of the āsource materialā and go again.
You don't really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother. Albert Einstein
My recent example of this was with one of my mumās college mates who came around. I was secluded away at my desk, prepping for a test the next day (it was Further Maths in fact). He walked in and asked me what I was doing. I started taking him through the general principles behind the topic - critical path analysis for anyone interested - to which he nodded his head along, allowing me to reinforce my knowledge and confirm the mechanics of the whole method to myself.
Along with voicing out loud what youāve learned to test comprehension, explaining your thought processes to others can be helpful in showing you areas where biases or lack of logical sense have crept in or maybe showing you where you need to do a bit more digging to find the true reason.
Earlier in the year, we had a networking session at school where we were asked to practice giving elevator pitches to our peers. My friend asked me āWhy do you want to go into finance?ā and although I had an answer, it wasnāt as strong or clear as Iād wanted it to be. It gave me food for thought and a question to ponder - why do I want to get into banking and finance?
A few years ago, I had a choice to make: did I want to miss morning registration to have my public speaking lessons, so that I didnāt miss any lesson time? My friend Viraj was firm with an answer of āOf course - it makes senseā but I was floating on the idea. When he asked me why, I couldnāt help but say āIām not being too rational here, am I?ā which I wasnāt.
On the other hand, just letting out a stream of consciousness can help you arrive at an answer to a question youāve been struggling with. This happened twice in the past week when I met the teacher organising our careers fair this Friday. They were facing a hurdle but just listening to them blurt their thoughts out loud resulted in them finding a solution or me nudging them towards one.
Iāve been on the receiving end of this magic trick as well at least twice this year in my Maths lessons. Iāve called my teacher over for help and although she gave me a little prod in the right direction, I figured out what I had to do myself (making her time and walk to me pointless - sorry miss)
Make sure, however, that in the name of verbalising your thoughts, you donāt end up ranting or moaning to others - youāre wasting their time and weakening a relationship. Occasional groans, just for the sake of it, are fine but you should never just be spewing out meaningless porridge. In other words, donāt be a garbage truck [thatās a link to one of my posts from roughly a year ago].
To round off, writing helps me with this comprehension as well. I often turn to journalling when I seek to understand why I think a certain way (e.g. what caused me to lash out at someone unnecessarily); the act of trying to put it into words helps to either derive true reasons or to reduce my action or excuse into a nonsensical emotional mistake. These blog posts help with organising and fleshing out my thoughts as well. Here are 2 editions that have done that, especially the first one.
Donāt think of talking about yourself, your thoughts and feelings as weighing down on others. Encourage yourself to share your ideas and beliefs, and be willing to hear othersā views as well. Youāll either get better grades or have a better fuller view of the situation with greater depth and clarity.
Book of the week š
āHoping to use the birth of a new month as fresh motivation.ā
And so I did - finished Part I of Three of the book One Up On Wall Street.
Podcast of the weekšļø
Stuff You Should Know: Elephants - the best animals?
I pick their show when I donāt feel in the mood for some hardcore productivity insight but want to warm up the curiosity muscle.
Article of the week š°
Stunning award-winning images of the Northern Lights
More of a photo gallery. Love sharing these, hoping to provide an injection of awe and amazement into your day.
Quote of the week š¬
Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well - Robert Louis Stevenson
Hope you have a productive week full of rational action ahead
Adi
Iāve found this to be a byproduct of many people asking me for help. I automatically remember the points I laid out to them and when I wasnāt able to do this effectively, I went back to look at the point Iād missed.