The Ultimate Guide to learning online.

How to learn any skill online. Even if you don't have time, money or talent.
Part 1: Mental Work.

I’m writing this article to help you get rid of limiting beliefs that can prevent you from learning effectively. To help you get out of your own way so that you can learn any skill you want to. Addressing the beliefs that may prevent you from learning is the first step to learning effectively.
The illiterate of the 21st century are not those who can’t read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn. - Alvan Toflyn.
Learning is an important skill. It’s the skill that will help you get all other skills. Luckily for us we live in a time where the knowledge we need to learn most skills is available for free to everyone with an internet connection who is willing to learn.
I believe anyone can learn anything on the internet and Im here to show you how..
Enjoy.

What do Rema, Beyoncé, Bill Gates and Lionel Messi have in common?
They all sacrificed their childhoods.
I used to think success was just a matter of talent and luck. I’d see mark zuckerberg, messi, davido... and think that they had it easy, that they had everything handed to them. I was almost right. Yes, these incredibly talented people are lucky that they get to do what they love and make the kind of money that will remove anyone from the trenches.
But talent and luck are half the story.
Bill gates didn’t come out of his mum a genius programmer. He put in the work.
Beyoncé was in a choir laying the foundations for a successful music career for years.
Messi says it took him 27 years and 144 days to be an overnight success.
And Rema has been making music videos since he was a baby (Rema is an exception, he has been making hits since the womb. He cried when they gave birth to him. That is now a hit).

Hard work is the other half.
The first step to learning is believing that you can learn anything. You can learn anything you want whether you have the talent or not. Learning a skill is more about practicing daily for a long time than a matter of talent.
Yes, some people are naturally gifted. But that advantage is minor compared to the power of focused, consistent intelligent practice.
A talented musician who releases one song every year will always get beaten by a talentless one that releases twenty a year.
You aren't talentless, you just haven’t practiced enough.
You too can get good (or great) at any skill, if you put in the work.
If you don’t believe me listen to the scientists.

Neuroplasticity.
"Neuroplasticity" is a term neuroscientists use to explain how your brain physically changes in response to your environment, your actions and the consequences of your actions.
Your brain changes as you learn a new skill. It’s like a muscle the more you practice the more it grows. Every brain is blessed with this gift.
If you decide to learn a skill, your brain will adapt and change to make the skill easier. This is proof that you can learn anything.

Fixed vs. growth mindset
In her book Carol Dweck (a psychologist) sites a lot of research that suggests that people usually have one of two mindsets. People either have a fixed mindset or a growth mindset.
People with a fixed mindset assume that you’re either born with a skill or you can never have it. "I will never be able to sing because it is not my talent" is a fixed mindset statement. People with a fixed mindset assume that they can never be good at something if they are not naturally blessed with the talent.
While people with a growth mindset believe that skills and abilities grow with practice and persistence. They believe in growing their talents. They believe that they can’t sing because they haven’t practiced enough. They believe that with practice and consistency it’s only a matter of time before they’re singing like Michael Jackson.

It’s easy to fall into the fixed mindset trap.
I recently fell into it. Mathematics used to be easy in secondary school. I didn’t need to study it to pass my exams. I’d look at my incomplete note for a few minutes and be ready for an exam. No problem.
Then I entered Uni (Obafemi Awolowo University). I started failing mathematics, I felt like shit. I couldn’t study or concentrate in class, because all the notes looked like Greek. Then some witches would be getting 99% (Something is wrong with them. They can get 80% and still have an A but nooo they want the rest of us to look stupid)
I used to think I was failing because I didn’t have talent. I gave up. Until a friend introduced me to her friend who taught me until I was confident enough in my abilities.
We did back to back lessons until I was good enough for the exam.
I still failed. But this time I knew what I was doing.
And I didn’t just fail because I didn’t put in the work. There was a mistake with the marking (I got the same score as one of the 99% witches)
Why was I failing math? Because Mathematics is not my talent? Wrong! It was because I was confused and didn’t know where to start. I just needed guidance. Sometimes I would sit with the book for hours without learning or understanding anything so I gave up. I even cried once.
I didn’t fail because I was not blessed with "good at mathyness" I failed because I didn’t know how to put in the work.
We fall into the fixed mindset trap because we see extremely skilled people doing magic and we can’t explain it. We'd also like to do magic but we don’t know where to start.

Another reason we fall into the fixed mindset trap is because it is what we are taught from an early age, but the existence of neuroplasticity should prove that you can learn anything with a bit of practice if you adopt a growth mindset.

The first step
The first step in learning is believing that you can (with time and effort) learn anything.
I believe in you. You just have to believe in yourself.
The next articles I write will show you a process to use to learn anything. From singing to writing to drawing, dancing, gardening. Stay tuned.

This article is heavily inspired by Josh Kaufman's book "The First 20 hours"
https://first20hours.com/