Compounded Learning

I read 500 pages like this every day. That’s how knowledge works. Its builds up like compound interest. All of you can do it but I guarantee not many of you will do it.

Warren Buffett

Elon Musk didn't know about space. But he learned enough by reading and talking to people. The way he did for his other projects too.

What is compound learning and how do we do it?

Our formal education has this principle in-built. We keep going deeper as we progress from class to class, year to year, school to college. This compounds our knowledge, at least part of it (we definitely need educational reforms so that learning is more coherent and useful as we move in life, but that is a topic for later). The same principles we use in our education can and should be used for our self-development.

After we exit formal education, we are on our own to enhance our learning. We can rely on upskilling platforms, use the learning opportunities that our HR managers create, go back to college, and so on. But all that stems from our inherent desire (to learn) and depends on our discretion (on what and how we learn).

Compounded learning is not:

• Disconnected (learning different topics without correlating)
• Linear (adding new information without relating it to the previous knowledge)
• Restricted (completing a pre-defined curriculum)

As a habit, we should cultivate an interest and ability for compounded learning.

1. Spend time with knowledge. It can be a great friend. Books, AV content, interactions with learned people, self-reflections are ways to befriend knowledge. See how Bill Gates continues to find time to read and learn.
2. Do not treat this as a hobby. This should become a routine, a perspective to approach life. Warren Buffett is a testimony.
3. As you progress in life, choose deeper areas of knowledge, the ultimate knowledge being spiritual awakening.
4. Observe and structure your learnings in a way that they can be shared with others for their own compounded learning. Example: the way Ray Dalio has distilled the learnings of his life into a book.

Further reading: Article on Compounding Knowledge by Farman Street.