Summary: The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything . . . Fast! by Josh Kaufman

Key Takeaways

• Have you ever wanted to learn a new skill, but felt overwhelmed by the time and effort required? Have you ever given up on a skill after a few hours of frustrating and boring practice? Have you ever wondered if there is a better and faster way to learn anything? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this book is for you. In this book, you will discover how to learn any new skill in 20 hours or less, using a proven and effective method that will help you achieve your learning goals and enjoy the process.
• If you are ready to take charge of your learning and master any skill you desire, then you should read this book. It will show you how to break down complex skills, learn the essentials, overcome obstacles, and practice efficiently and effectively. It will also inspire you to challenge yourself, explore new possibilities, and have fun along the way. It will teach you how to learn anything fast.

The First 20 Hours (2013) is about learning new skills quickly. These summary will help you shake off the notion that it’s too late to expand your horizons. Whether you want to master a foreign language or learn how to fly a helicopter, here are ten simple steps for getting started.

“This book is about my personal quest to test the art and science of rapid skill acquisition— how to learn any new skill as quickly as possible. The purpose of this book is to help you acquire new skills in record time. In my experience, it takes around twenty hours of practice to break through the frustration barrier: to go from knowing absolutely nothing about what you’re trying to do to performing noticeably well.” – Josh Kaufman

Here is a systemic way to become competent in any skill (mental or physical) as quickly as possible:

Deconstruct a skill into the smallest possible sub-skills

“Deconstructing the skill before you begin also allows you to identify the parts of the skill that aren’t important for beginning practitioners. By eliminating the noncritical sub-skills or techniques early in the process, you’ll be able to invest more of your time and energy mastering the critical sub-skills first.” – Josh Kaufman

One way to deconstruct a skill: imagine the opposite of what you want. Picture a situation where you’ll need to use your desired skill. With that situation in mind, imagine the worst-case scenario. For example, if you wanted to learn to white-water kayak, it would be helpful to imagine going down a river in your kayak and encountering a dangerous white-water rapid. As you hit the rapid, your kayak flips, and you’re underwater, unable to flip the kayak over and about to hit your head on a rock. To prevent this worst-cast scenario from unfolding, you’ll need to know the following skills: how to roll a kayak right-side up when underwater, how to navigate a river and spot dangerous rapids, and how to control a kayak to avoid dangerous sections of the river. Each of these skills are ‘sub-skills’ of ‘kayaking.’ Thinking of a disastrous performance with your desired skill allows you to come up with an inventory of important sub-skills to initially focus on. By breaking down your desired skill into a set of sub-skills, acquiring the skill seems less overwhelming.

Learn just enough to practice intelligently and self-correct during practice

“Learning helps you plan, edit, and correct yourself as you practice. That’s why learning is valuable. The trouble comes when we confuse learning with skill acquisition. If you want to acquire a new skill, you must practice it in context. Learning enhances practice, but it doesn’t replace it. If performance matters, learning alone is never enough.” – Josh Kaufman

Spend less time studying how to practice and more time actually practicing. Gather a collection of trusted resources (ex: three or more top-rated books on Amazon) and quickly scan those resources for ways to practice certain sub-skills and to self-correct while you practice. Find a consensus of best practice methods from several resources. The moment you devise a practice plan and a way to self-correct, you should put down the books, turn off the lesson videos, and go practice. “Instead of trying to be perfect, focus on practicing as much as you can as quickly as you can, while maintaining ‘good enough’ form.” – Josh Kaufman

Remove physical, mental, and emotional barriers that get in the way of practice

“There are many things that can get in the way of practice, which makes it much more difficult to acquire any skill.” – Josh Kaufman

Here are three barriers to rapid skill development to consider and eliminate prior to practicing a new skill:

1. Limited access: If it’s too hard to get started, or it takes too long to get started, you’ll find an excuse not to start. If you want to learn to play the guitar, place your guitar in the middle of the living room with a sheet of music next to it. Doing so will make it easy and effortless to pick up the guitar and start practicing.
2. Distractions: Skill development requires your undivided attention while you practice. Practice in areas that you consider boring while you are free from distractions: no television, ringing phones, or incoming e-mails.
3. Self-consciousness: The fear of looking incompetent is the largest barrier to skill development. Adjust external expectations and laugh at yourself for the first 20 hours (without losing enthusiasm for learning the skill).

Practice the most important sub-skills (with feedback), for at least twenty hours

“Once you start, you must keep practicing until you hit the twenty-hour mark. If you get stuck, keep pushing: you can’t stop until you reach your target performance level or invest twenty hours. If you’re not willing to invest at least twenty hours up front, choose another skill to acquire. The reason for this is simple: the early parts of the skill acquisition process usually feel harder than they really are. You’re often confused, and you’ll run into unexpected problems and barriers. Instead of giving up when you experience the slightest difficulty, precommitting to twenty hours makes it easier to persist.” – Josh Kaufman

An easy and effective way to reach 20 hours of practice is to devote 1 month, 40 minutes a day, to practicing your desired skill (one skill at a time). I suggest practicing for 20 minutes after you wake up and 20 minutes before you go to bed. Before each practice session, set a timer for 20 minutes and push yourself to improve (struggle is ok, in fact struggle is essential to learning process). Seek instant feedback while you practice – use coaches, mentors, software programs, and video capture devices when possible. After 20 hours of practice, you’ll be in a better position to decide if you want to continue developing the skill.

About the author

Josh Kaufman is an independent researcher on topics such as business, entrepreneurship, productivity and behavioral psychology. He’s been ranked as one of the best business authors by Amazon. His first book, The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business, was a best seller.

Genres

Personal Development, Education, Schools and Teaching, Memory Improvement Self-Help, Educational Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Productivity, Business, How To, Philosophy

Table of Contents

A Note to the Reader ix
1 A Portrait of the Author as a Learning Junkie 1
2 Ten Principles of Rapid Skill Acquisition 14
3 Ten Principles of Effective Learning 28
4 Yoga 40
5 Programming 70
6 Touch Typing 131
7 Go 157
8 Ukulele 212
9 Windsurfing 232
Afterword 257
Acknowledgments 259
Notes 261

Review

The book The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything . . . Fast! by Josh Kaufman is a guide to rapid skill acquisition. The book challenges the popular notion that it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to master a new skill, and proposes that it is possible to achieve a satisfactory level of performance in just 20 hours of focused, efficient, and effective practice. The book explains the four-step process of rapid skill acquisition, which consists of deconstructing the skill, learning enough to self-correct, removing practice barriers, and practicing for at least 20 hours. The book also illustrates the application of this method to six different skills that the author learned in 20 hours each, such as programming, yoga, ukulele, windsurfing, touch typing, and go.

The book The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything . . . Fast! by Josh Kaufman is an inspiring and practical book for anyone who wants to learn new skills quickly and enjoyably. The book is based on the author’s personal experience and research, and provides a clear and simple framework for rapid skill acquisition. The book is well-written, engaging, and full of useful tips and examples. The book is not only a book about learning, but also a book about living, as it encourages the reader to pursue their interests, passions, and goals, and to overcome their fears, doubts, and excuses. The book is a valuable resource for lifelong learners, hobbyists, professionals, and anyone who wants to improve their skills and their lives.