DEV Community

Cover image for How Do You Learn New Things When You're So Busy?
dev.to staff for The DEV Team

Posted on

How Do You Learn New Things When You're So Busy?

What strategies and tactics do you use to continue learning while handling busy work schedules?


Follow the DEVteam for more discussions and online camaraderie!

Top comments (12)

Collapse
 
krlz profile image
krlz

Learning new things when life gets busy can be tough, but there are ways to make it work:

  1. Manage Your Time: Break learning into small parts. It's better to learn a little bit every day than cramming a lot at once.

  2. Attend Online Conferences: These are short events, usually about an hour long, where you can learn and connect with others who share your interests.

  3. Share Your Interests: Talk about what you're learning with friends and family. It's a good way to strengthen your relationships and get feedback.

  4. Make Your Own Talks: Share what you know with others. It helps you learn more and engage with people who are interested in the same things.

Learning doesn't have to be overwhelming. Take small steps, stay motivated, and keep growing!

Collapse
 
keep_calm_and_code_on profile image
Alex Lau

These are great suggestions @krlz ! I'm curious how you go about discovering the online conferences you mentioned?

Collapse
 
krlz profile image
krlz • Edited

I was collecting some info and made a post dev.to/krlz/stay-connected-network...

Collapse
 
keep_calm_and_code_on profile image
Alex Lau

I've had a lot of "false starts" on passion projects over the years, where I get excited about something but then lose steam over the course of a few weeks.

The only thing I've found that works for me personally is to carve out consistent time for a project and stick to a routine for it. If it's part of my daily workflow then I make continual progress toward the goal. Otherwise it just falls toward the wayside like my other "fad diet" projects.

Collapse
 
prakirth profile image
Prakirth Govardhanam

I happen to be the same. I carve out time during the week for the important work and additional learnings. This helps me to cross-off completed tasks and help me keep up my additional learnings as well πŸ˜€πŸ‘ŒπŸΎ

Collapse
 
ssukhpinder profile image
Sukhpinder Singh

I usually enrol in a class called "Osmosis 101" where I just sleep on my textbooks and hope the knowledge seeps in through osmosis. So far, I've learned a lot about pillow imprints but still waiting on the quantum physics breakthroughs.

I usually listen to educational podcasts during my commute, setting aside 15-20 minutes a day for reading articles as well.

Collapse
 
gokayburuc profile image
Gokay Buruc • Edited

Voice Recorder (mobile and voice recorder device )

I use voice recorder to record keywords and important ideas with my own format.

Small Papers and Envelope

Also sometimes field notes with time stamp provides the opportunity on deep-thinking later.
Generally i have plastic envelope and put every small paper with quick notes into this envelope if i have no computer around.If i have computer around i use Obsidian.md instead of paper.

Format :

  • Time Stamp
  • Mnemonics or Reminder
  • Keywords
  • Special Symbols ( Triangle for idea , square for )

Check Time

When i finished my main job, I'm checking these small notes and voice records (Gom Recorder is my favourite recorder at Android because of separated folders feature).

Mind which full of ideas like a teapot with tea and water.Need some time to get correct taste of tea.So i generally check my notes before going to bed. In my opinion, Before the dawn and the before the sleep time are best times to think.
Because it's Silent and peaceful.

Collapse
 
treedev2022 profile image
Andrew Trefethen

Pro procrastination. If you're like me (ADHD) periodic procrastination is just a fact of life. If you maintain a curiosity about new things, then procrastination time can be spent on learning new things instead of random things. This is an example of "fail forward".

Collapse
 
akashdev23 profile image
Akash Dev

Just spend one hour learning after I wake up. For me that's the best time to learn anything new. And I feel that my brain is more active in that time.

Collapse
 
baenencalin profile image
Calin Baenen

Procrastinate on the thing I'm busy with – especially if the thing I'm learning concerns code. :ΓΎ

Collapse
 
kevinluo201 profile image
Kevin Luo

make you less busy first...

Collapse
 
darkterminal profile image
Imam Ali Mustofa

Don't think if you're busy... It's same for me; Busy = Learning New Things