Podcast

SPOS #948 – Scott Young On How To Get Better At Anything

Welcome to episode #948 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast.

Here it is: Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast – Episode #948. Scott Young is the kind of person who doesn’t just ask, “How do I get better at this?” He asks, “How do we really learn anything?” That question led him on some fascinating paths – like the time he decided to tackle MIT’s computer science curriculum without ever setting foot in a classroom. No big deal, right? It’s this relentless curiosity that drives Scott’s work, and he’s made it his mission to break down the mystery behind learning and mastery. In this conversation, Scott digs into his latest book, Get Better at Anything – 12 Maxims for Mastery. This isn’t your standard “how-to” guide. Scott’s approach is both simple and profound: learning doesn’t have to feel like you’re banging your head against a wall. He argues that three things really matter when it comes to leveling up – seeing how others do it, putting in the right kind of practice, and getting feedback that’s actually useful. If you nail these three, progress follows. It’s that simple… but, of course, the devil is in the details. Scott’s no stranger to experimentation. From his MIT Challenge to learning four languages in a year during his Year Without English project, he’s someone who lives what he preaches. He’s constantly pushing the limits of what’s possible with learning, and his insights into how we can accelerate our progress – whether at work, in our personal lives, or even in the smallest tasks—are both practical and inspiring. We also touch on some big questions, like how AI might change the way we learn and work. Is AI the future of education? Scott’s got a way of making the complex simple, and our chat is packed with insights that make you rethink how you approach learning. If you’ve ever struggled to get better at something or wondered if there’s a more effective way to improve, Scott’s ideas are definitely worth hearing. Scott was on the show a few years back to dicuss his first book (which is another “must-read” titled, Ultralearning). Scott also has an amazing program with another one of my favorite thinkers, Cal Newport, titled Life Of Focus for you to check out. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 1:08:40.
Hello from beautiful Montreal.
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Here is my conversation with Scott Young.
Get Better at Anything – 12 Maxims for Mastery.
Ultralearning.
Life Of Focus.
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Follow Scott on LinkedIn.
This week’s music: David Usher ‘St. Lawrence River’.

Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction.
00:24 – The Mystery of Learning.
08:31 – The System and Agency.
23:16 – The Tension Between Competence and Learning.
27:14 – The Future of Learning: Human-AI Collaboration.
33:00 – The Unpredictable Future of AI and Work.
34:41 – Challenging Beliefs and Embracing Growth.
44:32 – The Power of Practice, Feedback, and Observation.
55:04 – Books: Concentrated Intellectual Force.
01:06:45 – Creating a Learning Culture in Organizations.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast – Episode #948.

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Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.