The Invisible Mentor

I have often heard it said that reading, working on puzzles, learning a word a day and other such practices help to prevent dementia and Alzheimer.

Seven years ago while studying the program Lead the Field, Earl Nightingale stressed the importance of learning and growing. He suggested reading a book a week and learning a word a day. I mastered reading a book a week and now read on average eight books a month.

Initially, I had problems learning a word a day. I subscribed to a website that sent me a word every morning, and I purchased vocabulary builder books but I didn’t stick to the programs because either the words were so ridiculous that I didn’t want to waste time learning them. Or, the system was not easy to use and too time consuming.

Later, I purchased the Vocab system on tape, but didn’t stick to it because I believed it was too much of a hassle to rewind the tape, and I often didn’t remember all the words. But, while reading the book Superlearning 2000: New Triple Fast Ways You Can Learn, Earn, and Succeed in the 21st Century, I discovered that the best way to learn words is to hear them on a tape, while playing 60 beats per minute baroque music in the background.

I purchased Hemi Sync‘s Baroque Garden for Concentration and Vivaldi‘s The Four Seasons. Rewinding the tape was no longer a hassle because I noticed that if I counted to 15 while I rewound the cassette tape I would be exactly where I needed to be. It’s amazing how easy we can find solutions when we are truly inspired and motivated to accomplish our goals.

Even though I wasn’t exposed to classical music while growing up, like most things, the more you are exposed to them, the more comfortable you become with them. I used to have problems performing work which required concentration while the music was playing, but now it does not bother me. I guess it’s the type of music that has made a difference to my level of concentration. Listening to music stirs my heart and moves my soul and also makes me more alert. Does listening to music have an impact on you?

Now that I have developed the habit of learning a word a day, I do not have to listen to music while learning the word. I subscribe to A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg, which gives you the pronunciation, meaning, root and usage of the word.

What techniques do you use to build your vocabulary? Let’s keep the conversation going, please comment.

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