Ask HN: Do you get impatient when learning new things?

Turn what you're doing into an applied project. Lines in a book are that, in a book. Run a mini-project using the skills you want to learn, and discover much deeper knowledge and understanding.

My strategy is more or less to start by figuring out the structure of a text. This may be in the table of contents, introduction, index, chapter sections, or subsections. I generally scan the text as fast as possible to find all the essential points of interest, marking them down for future reference. What I do after this point is likely different than most. As every text I read is digitally formatted, I don't actually try to remember or deeply understand much at all on my second pass through the material. Instead, I will open a text editor and copy and paste the passages that strike me as most essential, retaining as much context as necessary to retain the original meaning. On my third pass, I will restructure the extracted content, cutting out the redundant parts, re-mixing, or re-expressing them until each chunk I want to remember is accessible and concise. This completes what I'd call the conceptual phase of my reading, which takes a fraction of the time it would take if I were attempting to understand the work using a more linear or comprehensive approach.

There is still much I don't understand at this point. This is natural since I haven't had an opportunity to apply the information to a personally meaningful context. This is the point at which I begin the practical phase. As most of what I need to know is documented in my notes, I will keep it on hand as a memory queue as I engage with specific questions or problems that interest me. And so when an issue comes up that I can't settle, I refer to the notes and also search around online to find out how I should apply the content in that particular problem situation. It's over the course of this process that I internalize the most vital details. That's where the learning happens, at least for me.

Another advantage to this approach is that you will have a type of mnemonic device to reboot your knowledge. As most people forget practically everything shortly after moving on to new subjects, it's critical to have a way to index the information you don't want to forget in the future. Something along the lines of a "memex" (or external memory system) is a good metaphor for what I'm talking about.

I'm right there with you. My motivation comes from a combination of self-esteem and a large amount of curiosity.

I've found that constant progress is key to keeping engaged with learning. It's tempting to try and learn multiple things at once but each new thing slows down progress exponentially. It's much easier to focus on one thing and get a constant stream of little victories.

Could you share some of those strategies?

This is what I recommend to EVERYBODY who says to me "I've been thinking of learning x language."