My Secret Teaching Framework (Revealed)

[Organize your message by: 1) starting with the point up-front; 2) tell a story to demonstrate; 3) make it more relatable with a metaphor; and 4) re-state the point.]

Unlike "tell them what you're going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you told them" this focuses on starting with useful information. I've been organizing myself lately to share 'nuggets', which gives you something without having to read further, and like the idea of progressively adding layers or enriching what was previously stated.

Reading is more about picking out ideas than passing over each word.

Deprecating Content

[Include enough context (such as what, when, why, and the plan) so that the reader can make more informed prioritization of how to handle it.]

ChatGPT as muse, not oracle

In rubber duck debugging, talking to a silent rubber duck helps a person figure out the problem by forcing them to put it into words. The Oblique Strategies card deck promotes creative ideas based on general loose strategies. ELIZA can ask super basic questions and cause people to feel a therapeutic relationship. In all these cases, a person gets a boost in the creative process from interacting with a tool that’s clearly far from intelligent. It seems like large language models could do at least as well as these tools, and have a much higher ceiling.

[Recaps can help ease tension contours after intense learning.]

[If you teach well, people might pay you to help them with things you're skilled at, even without expertise.]

[Putting people in a group or course would yield better outcomes when they have been vetted to have similar needs that can be addressed by your offering. The transactional 'buy and enroll' misses this opportunity.]

Poorly dressed in other folks' old clothes, with a dog and a noisy borrowed bicycle, I'd see half the eyes in the room wish they hadn't come the moment they realised that it was me giving the workshop. 'this is the guy?!'. Some would quickly look away as if to hide the way their faces openly displayed their shock. I quickly learnt to play off of that, and to enjoy it too; it was the first tension contour to resolve! Knowing that I would resolve that tension, I could enjoy it, a little like sitting in front of a big cake you know you are about to eat, and waiting a little!

[Problematic learners can become observers. Problematic rapports in one-on-one might work out better in a worokshop setting, or in an audio course. Terminating a relationship with the student can still maintain their engagement with the method.]

[Bear with difficult learners as long as they help illuminate deficiencies in your method. Try to convince them to play ball, but ultimately leave the choice with them.]

[Explaining etymology can help mask repetition.]

[Moving at the speed of trust.]

teach me a song

teach me a move

teach me a word

Absurd to strive for reading continuously without stopping or reflecting on anything else. Thinking about the material can and perhaps should take you away for a moment—not simply an indicator of distraction that needs to be managed.

Similar to language, it might be useful to perform songs slightly under-prepared so that you can start accommodating shortcomings sooner.