Content sources#

There are many sources of content for learning. You may find some materials already well organized, for example well-written books or course manuals. You may also find unstructured content. For example, content may inside someone else’s head. It’s your job to locate this content and prepare it for the next stage of the learning process.

Some common sources for content include:

Books, texts and manuals. Books are still the most common source for content. Look beyond the standard references though. What other references may be useful? Where can you get them? Which should you buy yourself, versus which should you borrow? I recommend you buy at least the core set of texts or references. You should then have no hesitation to write notes or highlight text in them.
Instructors or lecturers. Often you gain content from a knowledgeable person. You may have one-to-one access to an instructor. For other courses, you may need to spend time in lectures. Either way, make sure your note taking skills are good and you have a system for organizing and referencing them later (some tips are on page specific content collection tips ).
The Internet. Over the past decade, the Internet has made more and more information available to us. Often you can find further information related to your training topics. Be mindful of the source though. Not everything you find is legitimate.
Computer-Based Training. Computer-based training courses, or CBTs, have become more popular recently. However, many are ineffective. Sitting in front of the computer doing a CBT is not usually enough to learn the content well. You still need to go through the process of exploring, arranging, reinforcing and reviewing. After doing many CBTs myself, I recommend using them mainly as a source of content. Treat them like a lecture or book, and write your own notes. After completing the CBT, continue with the Memletic Process to explore, reinforce and memorize the content. It’s also easier to refer to your notes later, rather than trying to restart the course to find what you are looking for.
Other students. Often you can gain good content by talking to other students. They may have helpful references you haven’t come across. They also have tips and techniques they’ve learned from different sources. Share some of your own experiences as well.
Others already in the field. Those who’ve already learned what you are learning often have useful information. Don’t just limit yourself to those immediately around you either. Biographies of famous people from your field may also hold many lessons. Some of these stay in your mind longer because of the emotional content.
Video. The prevalence and availability of domestic video cameras and PC editing software make it easy to capture your own learning content on video. It’s a great way to help you visualize and review the skills you are learning.
Other references. Be sure to have a good dictionary so you can quickly check unfamiliar terms. An encyclopedia can also provide related or extra information on a topic not covered well in your training material.