If you can't explain it simply, then you don't understand it well enough.

• nobody actually knows, it's often misattributed to Einstein

The primary objective of the Feynman Technique is to learn about a subject by teaching it to children, being concise and using simple words.

The Feynman Technique for Learning a Subject

1. Write down all that you know about it
2. Rewrite it as if you were explaining it to a child
   • Children have small vocabularies. Remove jargon. Put it as simply as possible, but no simpler. Create & utilize accessible analogies.
   • Children have short attention spans. Say what’s important. Then get out.
3. Look for gaps in your knowledge
   • Where do you have to make jumps in your explanations?
   • These areas warrant further research.
4. Tell your story.

Why Learn by Teaching to Children?

Teaching to a child forces you to break down complexity. You cannot hide behind big vocabulary words. You have to truly understand a topic to be able to adequately teach it to a child. When you break things down far enough and try to weave them into a story, you’ll find gaps in your understanding. These gaps are your jump off points for further research.

My Implementation of the Technique

I realized today that http://www.aarongilly.com/gillespedia is just an implementation of the Feynman technique.

Related Notes

Essentialism

Learn by Doing

Rubber Ducking