“Why are you trying to read that?” the principal asked.
Silent sustained reading. Eighth grade.
Of all the students, in all the classes, this evil bastard had pulled up a chair behind me.
By now, I was used to interrogations anytime something went wrong on campus, and even to the occasional teacher reminding me of my very limited potential.
But this time, even I was surprised.
I looked up from my Java 2 textbook—which I understood almost nothing of—and sheepishly replied, “I want to learn how to program computers.”
What followed took every ounce of the disdain that comes from decades of reprimanding problem children in a British boarding school.
He scoffed.
If you’ve picked up this book, chances are you know what it feels like to wish you could learn faster.
You’ve spent the late hours studying, trying to keep up with your peers, your industry, or your passions.
You’ve faced the exam you thought would kill you, struggled to transition between industries, or even missed that big promotion.
But even if you have kept up, no matter.
You no doubt can feel the pace of information and change constantly creeping up around you, slowly drowning you as you attempt to tread water.
And deep down, you know the unspoken rule of the game we’re all playing: in our information economy, if you can’t learn quickly and effectively, you’re going to get left behind.
In the next decade, this trend is only going to accelerate as we transition into a society of nearly 100 percent knowledge workers.
And in that time, every single knowledge worker in the world is going to have one of two conversations. In the first, your employer will thank you for your service and tell you that it’s no longer needed. Your job has been outsourced, eliminated, or automated. Best of luck.
In the second conversation, they’ll use phrases like “irreplaceable,” “leading expert,” and “invaluable asset.” Then, they’ll ask you what it would take to keep you around.
Which conversation do you want to have?
Fortunately, there is a better way to learn. A way that harnesses your brain’s innate abilities to make learning both easy and fun. A method that makes new information as memorable as your most cherished memories. That allows you to accumulate knowledge faster than you ever thought possible. This method is based on proven neuroscientific principles and has been developed and refined for over 2,500 years. Once you know it, you’ll be able to learn anything you desire, from industry trends to foreign languages, in a fraction of the time.
In this book, you are going to learn the techniques that comprise this method in an easy, entertaining, and step-by-step way. You will learn to use the evolutionary strengths of the human brain to create and retain strong, linked memories. You’ll learn to maintain those memories effectively over time. Plus, you’ll learn strategies for reading faster, optimizing learning, and maintaining peak brain health.
Over the last five years, I’ve taught this SuperLearner methodology to over two hundred thousand students and readers in 205 countries and territories. Those students have gone on to pass every exam imaginable, from the bar exam, to technical certifications, to the MCAT. They’ve used these techniques to change careers, start businesses, learn languages, and master musical instruments. And while some subjects do lend themselves more to these techniques than others, we’ve yet to find a topic that can’t be learned easier using them.
Are you ready to claim your birthright and become a SuperLearner? Keep reading.