The Power of Learning: Elon Musk's 2 Rules for Accelerated Growth

Learning is one of the most underleveraged tools of the common entrepreneur. Everyone talks about methods of learning, but few people find realistic and authentic techniques that actually yield a net profit in the information and application categories. Elon Musk, a once-in-a-lifetime genius, has broken through the barriers with learning techniques that have proven successful not just once, but time and time again. He has leveraged his learning by becoming a disrupter, shifting entire industries, including the transportation sector, the energy sector, and the space sector.

The image is a screenshot of Elon Musk

Rule Number One: Building a Tree of Knowledge

Musk's first rule of thinking is to build a tree of knowledge. He starts by identifying the fundamental principles of each sector his entrepreneurial ventures sit in. He ensures that he has a solid grasp on the core central concepts before moving on to the minute details. This approach allows him to understand what is at the core of each sector, making it easier to learn and expand his knowledge.

The image is a screenshot of the concept of building a tree of knowledge

Many of us, on the other hand, load up on peripheral facts while never fully understanding how or why they connect back to the trunk. This outward-facing, cramming approach leaves our brains overcrowded with misidentified and ultimately unimportant knowledge. That's not learning; it's cramming. The result of our efforts is a tree with a toothpick trunk and an overload of teeming branches threatening to snap off as we try to cram one more idea or thought within our brains.

Rule Number Two: Connecting the Dots

Musk's brilliance is found in his second rule of learning, which underlines his ability to build vast and towering trees of intellect across multiple sectors. Rule number two is: "You can't remember what you can't connect." Musk never learns a piece of information at random; everything he intakes, he connects back to some deeper, more solid base. He starts with solid roots and dense trunks, and then as he begins to grow his knowledge upward, he begins connecting branches and leaves together with other branches and leaves from other trees.

The image is a screenshot of the concept of connecting the dots

Most learners today are not master gardeners but stick collectors. We walk around life picking up tidbits here and there until our arms are full of sticks. Once we have a good bunch of sticks, we do what comes naturally: we burn them. We think the size of our fires equals the size of our learning, but we are slow to realize that fires burn out, while Musk plants trees in rich soil that grow to be thick and abundant centers of learning.

Embracing the Elon Musk Approach

If you want to learn anything faster, try the Elon Musk approach. Build the trunk first, then work tirelessly on making connections. It might take you a bit to get the hang of it, and you might actually feel like you're learning slower than you did previously. That's okay; what you're actually doing is building the foundation for exponential growth.

The image is a screenshot of the concept of exponential growth

Henry Ford once said, "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got." If you want to learn anything faster, try the Elon Musk approach, but be warned: you may end up becoming a rocket scientist far faster than you previously thought possible.

[*The image is a screenshot of the concept of becoming a rocket