What is the Feynman Technique?
The Feynman Technique is a teach-to-learn method that focuses on understanding. It helps to learn faster by forcing you to explain the topic in a simple way and make analogies with what you already know.
Teachers teach, and students learn.
That’s how it works in school.
So we grow up thinking you should teach a topic only after you master it — like teachers or professors.
But contrary to this belief, teaching is a great way to learn for beginners.
Richard Feynman realized this when he was studying Physics at MIT.
After all, he needed to learn fast to work on developing the atomic bomb, win a Nobel Prize, and become a legendary physicist.
He loved learning so much; he later called his book “The Pleasure of Finding Things Out.“
And his learning method to learn fast was simple: teaching the topic he was learning in the simplest way possible.
How to use the Feynman technique to learn faster
1. Choose the topic and study
Copywriting, user experience design, or how to read a balance sheet.
Choose a skill or topic you’d like to learn.
If you have prior knowledge, write down everything you know.
If you’re new to the topic, study from your resources and take notes of what you learn.
2. Write to teach
Now, imagine you need to create content to teach the topic.
But your audience is 10-year-old kids.
You must explain everything in simple words without jargon.
And it needs to be concise. You don’t want to lose kids’ attention.
So write the core ideas and how they relate to each other in plain language.
When we speak without jargon, it frees us from hiding behind knowledge we don’t have.
Richard Feynman
3. Identify the knowledge gaps and fill them
As you write, you’ll notice where your knowledge is weak.
You’ll struggle to replace jargon and connect some ideas.
Your writing is still confusing for a kid.
But now, you have a map.
You’re starting to know what you don’t know.
So go back to your resources to close the knowledge gaps.
4. Continue to simplify
You have a good understanding of the topic now.
The last step is to improve your explanation.
We’ve said your audience was 10-year-old kids. Now let’s try with 7-year-olds.
How can you further simplify it?
Use analogies. Visualize ideas with simple drawings. Create a narrative.
If you still have points you can’t explain well enough, study them more.
As you continue to simplify, explaining will become understanding.
A side benefit: Share your learnings
When you use the Feynman technique to learn, you’ll end up with perfect content to share.
So you can help others who are also interested in the same topic.
This article is an example.
I used Feynman Technique to learn about Feynman Technique.
I simplified what I learned as much as possible. The reading level of this text is below the 4th grade.
So I ended up with an article to post.
Remember, people always appreciate a good explainer.
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