MetaLearn Podcast

Niklas Jansen is the co-founder of Blinkist, an app that distills the core insights from non-fiction books into 15-minute summaries that you can access from your smartphone or tablet in written or audio form. If you're someone who wonders about how to apply what you read in everyday life, then the app is worth checking out, because the short summaries or "blinks" cut away the excess and drive you to take action. Niklas founded Blinkist with three friends in 2012 and the business has since gone on to raise Series A funding and acquire over a million users. In this conversation we discuss a range of interesting topics including: - How Niklas started the business and learned the skills of entrepreneurship - How to apply what you read and use Blinkist to learn more in less time - How Niklas and his co-founders create a learning environment at the business So whether you're looking to build your own business, remember more of what you read or learn better from your coworkers, this episode will give you actionable strategies that you can apply today.

The MetaLearn podcast has reached the big 5-0. The show is now in 127 countries with listeners on every continent and is growing rapidly – in fact in the first 3 months of 2017, the podcast had 40% more downloads than the whole of 2016! In today’s special episode you’ll have the chance to hear my reflections on learning and education after fifty episodes of the podcast. I'm interviewed by Joshua Fields, who was the very first guest on the podcast. Josh is a mental and physical health expert with qualifications in hypnotherapy, NLP and mindfulness meditation and is also a blogger at the Huffington Post, contributing on mental health, entrepreneurship and economics. In this conversation we discuss a range of topics including: - My main reflections on learning based on my insights from the podcast - The lessons I’ve learned from working as a lecturer and teacher - My views on the future of learning and the educational system So if you're interested to find out what I've learned after 50 episodes of the podcast, look no further than this special episode.

They're two words that get thrown around a lot but what exactly is the difference between knowledge and wisdom? Knowledge is something closer to what the Ancient Greeks called Episteme – a specialised knowledge in a particular field or an ability in a skill that's descriptive or explanatory in nature. Wisdom is something that’s harder to define but it’s closer to what the Greeks called Phronesis – it’s a more general understanding of how to live a good life and the decisions we should make. In this episode I discuss the differences between knowledge and wisdom, and the insights we can draw from them, including: - Knowledge comes and goes but wisdom lasts - Knowledge is additive and wisdom is subtractive - Knowledge Can Be Taught But Wisdom Must Be Learned So whether you're looking to make better decisions in your life or become more practically wise, this episode will give you actionable insights that will help you think smarter and make better decisions.

Ben Medder is a movement coach who has trained in martial arts, athletics and parkour. He’s taken inspiration from the likes of Ido Portal, best known for his work with MMA fighter Connor McGregor, and the Fighting Monkey and Evolve Move Play Methods. Many people don't identify as being athletic but physical skills can be learned like anything else. While you're not going to become the next Usain Bolt by doing a few sprint sessions, it's easier than most people think to get good at a sport. As someone who has learned and taught a wide range of physical skills as a coach, Ben is perfectly placed to give advice on the most important elements of picking up new sports or physical practices. In this conversation we discuss a range of topics including: - Ben’s advice to people looking how to move better and pick up a physical skill - The parallels between parenting and teaching in different contexts - The role of movement and sports in the educational system So whether you're looking to learn karate or kayaking, football or fencing, this episode has you covered with practical strategies you can apply straight away.

In modern society, learning has become synonymous with taking in information passively and retaining it. Students view teachers as people who are supposed to deliver information into their heads so that they can recall it when required. But this is the one of the most damaging misconceptions we carry into our lives because the truth is that all learning is active. It isn’t a process of having something done to you – it’s a process of you doing something to yourself. The best teachers all understand this – and know that their main role is not to build a whole fire for their students - it’s to ignite the spark of inspiration that will help them build and feed the fire themselves. In this episode I discuss some of my main insights about teaching including: - The teacher’s role in society and how it’s changed throughout history - The qualities and characteristics that I think make great teachers - The things we can learn from other educational systems who value teachers Whether you're involved in the educational system or not, you'll gain insights that will help you reflect on the role of teachers in your life and help you become a great teacher to others, whether at school or in life as a parent or friend.

Barbara Oakley is an educator and writer who’s empowering people all over the world to learn more effectively. Barb is best known for her role as the lead instructor on Coursera’s Learning How To Learn – the most popular online course in the world last year – and her bestselling book A Mind for Numbers. For all the hours we spend in school it's remarkable that we're never taught how to learn. This is even more surprising when recent developments in cognitive psychology and neuroscience mean that we know more about the learning process than at any point in history. Barb's work on the MOOC Learning How To Learn has brought this knowledge to the public domain, with remarkable results thanks to her engaging presentation style and ability to communicate complex ideas in a simple way. In this conversation we discuss a range of topics including: - Barb’s insights from learning in the military and retraining as an engineer at 26 - How to apply what cognitive science has established about the learning process - The future of online education and the success of "Learning How To Learn" So whether you're looking to upgrade your learning skills, find out more about how they pick up skills in the military or understand the secrets behind great online education, this episode will give you all that and more.

Is it really possible to learn from animals? For thousands of years, all kinds of authorities have been repeating the idea that we humans are exceptional and by far the most intelligent in the animal kingdom. So it’s easy to see why we humans think we’re much smarter than animals – but is that actually the case? The fact that animals don’t understand us in some ways, and that we don’t understand them in others implies our intelligences are different. But different in kind rather than rather in level – like the difference between analytical and musical intelligence, rather than the 'I’m smarter than you' type of intelligence. In this episode I dive into 5 of the main lessons I think we can learn from our friends in the animal kingdom including: - What wolves can teach us about leadership - What ants can teach us about collaboration - What giraffes can teach us about being ourselves So by the end you'll have gained insight into to some of the main lessons we can learn from some of the remarkable creatures we share the world with.

In ancient cultures, mythology served a number of other important functions on an individual and personal level which may not be immediately obvious. On a personal level mythology created a sense of awe about the mystery of human existence. By creating this sense of wonder, mythology helped people to learn about their own lives in a way that few other fields could. On a social level, mythology educated people about how they fit into the group they lived in. Rituals would help to mark the different stages of life and would help to define the roles of the different members in that society. In this episode I discuss the insights we can take from mythology including: - My interpretation of the myth of the Trojan Horse in Homer's Iliad - The danger of hubris, drawing on the myth of Icarus and Daedalus - The hero's journey, drawing on Homer's Odyssea In this episode you'll learn to look beyond the surface of mythology and find far more than literary entertainment - because mythology is at the core of ancient wisdom and points at what it means to live a good human life.

Zahra Davidson is a multidisciplinary designer innovating in education by encouraging people to learn in communities. She is the founder of Enrol Yourself, an organization that gives people the structure and support to pursue learning marathons (long term learning projects) with other lifelong learners. When we leave school we often miss out on one of the most important components of learning anything - community. Communities allow us to learn from others, assess our performance level and share the learning experience. Zahra has experience of participating in great learning communities and has now built and managed her own, so she's perfectly placed to offer insights into the process of using community to accelerate the learning process. In this conversation we discuss a range of topics including: - The importance of learning in communities - The impact of the educational system on collaborative learning - The qualities needed to become a self directed learner So whether you're looking to join a community to supercharge your learning or start your very own learning marathon, this episode will give you the tools and techniques you need to succeed.

Children are full of life. They're constantly growing and learning. They embody curiosity and the creative spirit. And these are all qualities we could all use more of in every area of our lives. We become so used to learning things we don’t really want to at school and university that we stop asking questions. We forget what it’s actually like to learn something we love and to learn it in a way that’s fun and enjoyable. But the good news is that every one of us can rediscover that boundless curiosity and learn like a child again by looking to the creative geniuses all around us. In this episode I explore the insights children have to offer us, including: - Asking questions about everything and exploring your curiosity - Living fearlessly and recognising your limiting beliefs for what they are - Having fun and making the learning process enjoyable rather than a chore So by the end of this episode you'll have everything you need to bring more creativity and joy into your life and work.