Feynman Method: This is how you learn 4 times faster

Feynman method
You will learn 4 times faster!

© Dean Drobot / Shutterstock

Languages, theories, skills: with the Feynman method you can learn any subject much faster. Find out how the concept works here.

The simpler you can explain it, the better you have understood! The scientist Richard Feynman built his Feynman method according to this principle. Feynman actually worked in the field of quantum physics and accordingly had to deal with really complex content. Richard Feynman has developed a clever concept in order to make faster progress in learning new things – and we can do that too with Acquiring new skills help enormously!

Feynman method: what you get out of it

Say goodbye superficial knowledge! The Feynman method promises that you can grasp complex issues in depth – and that in a particularly short time. The strategy should be something new 4 times as quickly to be understood.

So it's not about just memorizing. The method that Feynman has developed helps you Really understand the learning content completely. As a result, information remains stored for a long time and you can no longer unlearn skills so quickly or forget learning material so quickly. A big advantage! Because how often do we sit down, study intensively and can barely remember the subject matter for two to three months? With Feynman's strategy, that won't happen to you anymore.

Feynman method: the 3 learning phases

The method is in a preparatory phase and three subsequent steps structured. It is important to note that this learning method is one Cycle. After the last step, you can start again with the first to check whether you have really internalized the subject matter. Let's take a closer look at the individual steps.

Preparation within the Feynman Method: Pick a topic

The preparatory phase is carried out quickly: Decide on a new issuethat you would like to learn or understand better. You can do the Feynman method in every sector apply. It doesn't matter whether you want to understand how to write a tax return yourself, learn a new musical instrument or how a vegan cake always succeeds.

1 step: Slip into the role of the teacher

Now that might follow most important step the Feynman method. You become a teacher yourself and present the content either to yourself or to another person who has never heard of this matter.

Here you will find one or the other Knowledge gap get noticed very quickly. And that's just as well! Because then you also know where you are important information is missingthat you still have to rework. If you are working with another person, you should also remember the questions that came up from the other person and that you were unable to answer.

Step 2: fill in the knowledge gaps

Now it is important to collect all informationthat you lacked in explanation. You occupy yourself again very intense and very targeted with the learning material. Plus point: Since you already know what you already understand and what you don't yet understand, you don't waste time on unnecessary learning details.

You can ask yourself the following questions about your Compensate for the knowledge deficit particularly quickly:

  • At what point did I feel unsafe myself?
  • Which questions could I not answer?
  • Which connections are not yet clear to me myself?
  • What have I already understood well and no longer have to deal with it intensively?

3. Develop simple explanations

Whether you can re-research the matter really understood betteryou can quickly find out for yourself. Here's how: Try it the second time to explain as simply and simply as possible. As already mentioned at the beginning, the Feynman method is based on the assumption that straightforward explanations demonstrate whether you Really captured content. Because only then can you Distinguish important from unimportant and say goodbye to unnecessary details.

What comes after step 3?

After the third step you go again to the first step: Explain your new knowledge to yourself or to another person. If you find a few gaps in your knowledge here, too, the second and then the third step follows again. The Feynman cycle you go through it until you no longer notice a knowledge deficit. Then you have fully understood the topic, internalized it and logically questioned it so often that the content burned into your memory to have. Bingo!

The Feynman method is just one of many learning strategies. Learn more about the different types of learner who each need different learning strategies. A visual learner, for example, needs more image content than an auditory learner. Also, have you ever heard of the headstand method? An important learning tip that will make you the perfect problem solver!

You can also find other exciting topics related to learning, jobs, careers and personality in the BRIGITTE Community. Have a look!