How to learn.

You go to school for 15 years. You might attend University for another four years, and that’s just your formal education. We spend our entire life learning, yet no one teaches us how to learn.

That’s the reality for most of us, and it’s unbelievable. You go to school to learn without ever being taught how to learn.

At my old home, we used to have a fireplace. One day, when dad was chopping the wood, I watched him stop and sit. Curious, I walked over. I wasn’t much older than seven and wanted to learn how.

“Why do you stop chopping, dad?” I asked.

“I’m sharpening the axe, Josh.” 

“But it’s taking you so long. It looked like the wood was splitting ok before you stopped.” 

“It looks like that at first, but have you seen all the wood that needs chopping?” 

“You’re right, though…” he added, “It takes a little longer to sharpen the axe. But a sharp axe cuts through the wood faster. You don’t notice after a few blocks, but an hour later, it’s night and day.”

“You don’t want to get halfway through the pile wishing that you sharpened the axe,” he finished.

Always sharpen the axe. You don’t want to get through halfway through life wishing you’d sharpened the axe.