It May Not Be That A Topic Is Too Difficult To Understand... It May Be You Haven't Found The Right Explanation For You

The process of learning something new does not always go smoothly.

When we come across something we have difficulty understanding, we sometimes give up too quickly. We tell ourselves something like, "I am not smart enough."

Leverage The Internet, Explore Different Explanations On The Topic

If you have access to the internet, you are fortunate that now there are so many different sources to learn the same topic.

If you struggle to learn something new before quitting or saying, "I am not smart enough," try learning from a different source.

If you understand the topic, try learning from a few different sources to see if it helps you further understand it.

A lot of these sources are free. Depending on what you are trying to learn, it may be worth paying for an online course.

Example

In college, I was struggling to learn Laplace Transforms.

I asked the professor to clarify some of the steps that didn't make sense to me. He responded, "What do you mean you don't understand it?" as if this was such an easy topic. To him, most likely, but for me, at the time, I was struggling to understand it.

I went online and found a website that explained it clearly to me (shout out to Paul's Online Math Notes). After learning it from that website, Laplace transforms were easy for me to solve in that class.

Since that experience, when trying to understand a topic, I make a more significant effort to find videos or articles on a topic I am trying to learn and then search different sources to help further solidify my understanding of the topic.

Sometimes one source covers it, and another adds additional detail that may be helpful.

Conclusion

The internet has made learning more about a topic easier thanks to the access to different sources readily available. A lot are free, some at a price.

If there is something you want to learn, search for it online and look up books and articles on the topic as well.

Since graduating from college, I have learned various topics I wanted to know more about.

Examples:

• Business
• Psychology
• Productivity
• Personal Finances
• Computer-Aided Design (CAD) Software
• Geometric, Dimensioning, & Tolerances (GD&T)
• General Life Advice

Next time you find something difficult to understand, instead of giving up on it and saying, "I am not smart enough," try searching for other sources on the topic to see if that helps you better understand it.

There are so many different ways to explain a topic. You just have to find the one that works best for you.