Tip: Become an expert in your field exercise

[SourceCodo]

Just a thought to share on the nature of growing your expertise and understanding of topics in your field. Personal experience.

I'm a career analyst and have worked in Military Intelligence, Finance, Operations, Sales and Market Research/Competitive intelligence. My methods might not fit you, but perhaps you'll think of something similar that helps by seeing my approach. This method helps me get to know advanced topics quickly - the nature of consulting in big tech required rapid learning of new and emerging topics/technologies.

 

• I'm currently moving from account management in competitive intelligence position into a role with FP&A (Financial Planning & Analysis) building their internal reporting and forecasting strategy and driving business decisions through customer and financial insight. My knowledge of FP&A is limited to my time in finance... And it's weak. They want my strategic mind... So I'm bolstering the weak spots I found in my ability to deliver on their goals and FP&A specific aspects of the work.
• I've been studying the FP&A topic with this method for around a week now and my comprehension and confidence on the topic has sky-rocketed. I can speak the language confidently and present real, valuable ideas based on what I have learned.
• I've successfully used this method in many areas and on many topics: marketing strategy, marketing infrastructure, competitive intelligence best practices, specific technologies like AI/ML, IoT, Chatbots, All things cloud, User experience, etc.

SO... The method. 

One of my favorite methods for gaining *comprehension* of the topics I'm dealing with rather than just *knowledge* of them is to rewrite books or web articles in my own words as I go through the sections.

This method:

- Enhances comprehension

- Requires dismantling complex topics so you can speak to them directly

- Drives further research on weak spots in your understanding

- Systematizes the learning approach to make the topic more logically clear and provides the ability to see it from the 30k view.  

- Is an easy set of training wheels to follow when learning a new topic

 

Here's the method:

1. Pick a small book or web article on the topic you're wanting to understand

2. Create an outline of the books chapters and key sections or topics you hope to understand by then end of the exercise

3. As you read each chapter, visit your outline and attempt to paraphrase or summarize the key points of that section

4. Revisit the text and do additional research if you read what you wrote and don't find it sufficient

5. Recycle, repeat. Simply a learning methodology and tool for forcing a deeper understanding and developing the self discipline to actually do it

6. Bonus - build a mind map of how the function operates in the organization and with the technology infrastructure or what is more relevant to you

 

If you have any tips for me, I'd love to hear them. 

Cheers. 

 

Edited April 1, 2023 by SourceCodo

[Danioover9000]

@SourceCodo

16 hours ago, SourceCodo said:

Just a thought to share on the nature of growing your expertise and understanding of topics in your field. Personal experience.

I'm a career analyst and have worked in Military Intelligence, Finance, Operations, Sales and Market Research/Competitive intelligence. My methods might not fit you, but perhaps you'll think of something similar that helps by seeing my approach. This method helps me get to know advanced topics quickly - the nature of consulting in big tech required rapid learning of new and emerging topics/technologies.

 

• I'm currently moving from account management in competitive intelligence position into a role with FP&A (Financial Planning & Analysis) building their internal reporting and forecasting strategy and driving business decisions through customer and financial insight. My knowledge of FP&A is limited to my time in finance... And it's weak. They want my strategic mind... So I'm bolstering the weak spots I found in my ability to deliver on their goals and FP&A specific aspects of the work.
• I've been studying the FP&A topic with this method for around a week now and my comprehension and confidence on the topic has sky-rocketed. I can speak the language confidently and present real, valuable ideas based on what I have learned.
• I've successfully used this method in many areas and on many topics: marketing strategy, marketing infrastructure, competitive intelligence best practices, specific technologies like AI/ML, IoT, Chatbots, All things cloud, User experience, etc.

SO... The method. 

One of my favorite methods for gaining *comprehension* of the topics I'm dealing with rather than just *knowledge* of them is to rewrite books or web articles in my own words as I go through the sections.

This method:

- Enhances comprehension

- Requires dismantling complex topics so you can speak to them directly

- Drives further research on weak spots in your understanding

- Systematizes the learning approach to make the topic more logically clear and provides the ability to see it from the 30k view.  

- Is an easy set of training wheels to follow when learning a new topic

 

Here's the method:

1. Pick a small book or web article on the topic you're wanting to understand

2. Create an outline of the books chapters and key sections or topics you hope to understand by then end of the exercise

3. As you read each chapter, visit your outline and attempt to paraphrase or summarize the key points of that section

4. Revisit the text and do additional research if you read what you wrote and don't find it sufficient

5. Recycle, repeat. Simply a learning methodology and tool for forcing a deeper understanding and developing the self discipline to actually do it

6. Bonus - build a mind map of how the function operates in the organization and with the technology infrastructure or what is more relevant to you

 

If you have any tips for me, I'd love to hear them. 

Cheers. 

 

   Thanks for the share of how you improve yourself.

   I do have to point out that there's nothing new here with what you're doing. It's basically a combination of Richard Feynman's method and the mind mapping method put together, plus a few other techniques of note taking and constructing arguments, and that's about it, but it's pretty good when you've already know what you're interested in.

   The real issue, is when a person has yet to discover their passion or doesn't know yet what they're deeply interested in, they can't apply your methods here because they risk knowing and understanding a field they think they're interested in, but it's half and half or even not the real passion they're into, and end up having too much knowledge of the field, risking the sunk cost fallacy.