That means learning the broadest applicable skills you’d apply throughout your life first.
Another example: when learning a new language focus on the list of 100 or 1000 or whatever most commonly used words—this enables you to get started understanding the gist of basic conversations quickly, which then enables a positive feedback loop of compounding as you speak more in the new language, gain confidence, pick up new words in those conversations etc.
Extending this—focus learning (especially in early life) on permanent, unchanging knowledge like math, physics etc.
Also—with compounding, optimise for things you can keep doing for a long time. The earlier and longer you can do something, the more you will gain from the force of compounding.
There are some caveats to the principle of compound interest (with money and other applications):
Not all things will continue to compound forever, or the rate will change
No one ever got rich putting $100 in the bank and letting it compound for 50 years. Lesson: You do still need significant deposits (raised through means other than compounding interest) to actually get large gains from compounding.
Yes, that’s a very good example! That’s exactly how I learned French—and I learned much quicker than, say, the usual class curriculum starting with grammar. Turns out, if my goal was to go to France and speak to people there in French, the grammar wasn’t necessary to get the point across (in most cases).
with compounding, optimise for things you can keep doing for a long time. The earlier and longer you can do something, the more you will gain from the force of compounding.
I was hinting at this, but didn’t say it. Thanks for making it explicit.
Another example: when learning a new language focus on the list of 100 or 1000 or whatever most commonly used words—this enables you to get started understanding the gist of basic conversations quickly, which then enables a positive feedback loop of compounding as you speak more in the new language, gain confidence, pick up new words in those conversations etc.
Extending this—focus learning (especially in early life) on permanent, unchanging knowledge like math, physics etc.
Also—with compounding, optimise for things you can keep doing for a long time. The earlier and longer you can do something, the more you will gain from the force of compounding.
There are some caveats to the principle of compound interest (with money and other applications):
Not all things will continue to compound forever, or the rate will change
No one ever got rich putting $100 in the bank and letting it compound for 50 years. Lesson: You do still need significant deposits (raised through means other than compounding interest) to actually get large gains from compounding.
Yes, that’s a very good example! That’s exactly how I learned French—and I learned much quicker than, say, the usual class curriculum starting with grammar. Turns out, if my goal was to go to France and speak to people there in French, the grammar wasn’t necessary to get the point across (in most cases).
I was hinting at this, but didn’t say it. Thanks for making it explicit.