Who dosen't want to be a smarter person. Smarter people live longer, are happier, and more well liked. Unfortunately many people believe that the only way to be smart is by paying lots of money or going to expensive universities. However studies show that we can learn just as much by taking a 'problem solving' approach to our own education.
Start With Purpose
If you could learn anything in the world what would it be? Maybe you would want to speak Chinese, maybe you want to know how to play the guitar, or perhaps you want to meditate better.
Once you know what you want to accomplish write it down! For this example we will be using "learn Chinese".
Figure Out How to Get From Point A to Point B
How many different paths are there to learning a language? (or anything at all). The answer is alot. You could go to university and take courses. You could get a textbook from amazon. You could use one of the many apps and softwares available the teach the language.
The point of this article is to find the free method. So After narrowing down all the possibilites you want to take the learning journey that costs 0$. In the case of Chinese it might look like this:
- Go to the library and rent a book about grammar and language structure.
- Download a free app like memrise for improving vocabulary.
- Download or rent audio-books from the library WITH accompanying text
- Register for a language learning forum to ask any grammar questions you are confused about
- Use a free tool like Skype or Whats App for speaking with native speakers.
And voila, now you have a plan to get a deeper more diverse education than you would ever get at university and all completely free.
Free Accounts To Stay Anonymous
Understandably, not everyone is comfortable with sharing their email and other information online. Sites like accountsilo.org let people share free accounts with anonymous user info. This way you can log in and use a service without having to worry about giving out your details. Obviously, systems like this are open to abuse and the future remains unclear. Some people use the site to get free accounts and passwords, and some sites have entire teams dedicated to removing logins that are requested to be taken down.
We are truly living in an amazing time. The greatest informational renaissance that has ever happened. Now is not the time to live like it is 1890 and go to University. The people who adapt to the new world will be the happiest and the most well prepared for the future.