Studying Efficiently Saving time and understanding wine

Learning and Me

Before

• Bad short term memory

• Short attention span

• Mediocre academic career

• Memorization was my enemy

• I never properly studied for courses or exams

Learning and Me

After

• Passed CWE 1 year, 5 months and 2 weeks after first day of work in wine industry

• Banfi award for highest score

• Youngest CWE

How does that happen?!

What Changed?

• I studied Learning.

• I applied the Research to myself.

• I worked harder than I've ever worked before.

Studying wine

It's not that hard!

Theory

Extremely easy to learn:

• Perfectly tailored to use multiple

senses.

• Actively involves 4 major

senses.

• Can be studied using all 5.

• No complex theories.

• Completely fact based.

Reality

Hard to learn!

• Pass rates incredibly low.

• Constantly reinforced

anecdotally.

• Each of the high level exams

only have a few hundred

successes in 40+ year histories.

Why do we think it's hard to

learn?Perception vs. Reality

Involves huge volumes

of information!

Tasting is hard to learn!

There's lots of different

systems and foreign

words!

Why is it actually hard to learn?

We Teach Inefficiently

We Learn Inefficiently

We use outdated methods!

When do you think the forgetting Curve was

discovered?

When do you think the benefits of spaced

repetition were discovered?

When do you think the Testing Effect was

discovered?

When do you think modern memory techniques

were pioneered?

The Topic Isn't the Problem!

We are the problem!

Let's look at how we fixed us!

How we learn!

• Forget about learning styles!

• All* Humans learn best using

multiple techniques together.

• Remember memory is fluid.

• Eliminate distractions!

• Focus on what you find mentally

stimulating.

Learning Methods

Method Number Always

Taste Incessantly, Read Relentlessly!

• Learning and memory rely on context

• The more you read and the more you taste the more

context you create

• Read for fun

• Taste everything deliberately

Step #1: Understand

the Big Picture

• Big Picture Concepts =

Universal Anchors

• Learn the big picture concepts

first and how they relate to each

other

• Build on this in layers

• Bonus: With the big picture you

can often make educated

guesses when needed

How do I build the

big picture?

• Take a look at light wide

reaching overviews.

• Understand History.

• Anecdotes and Fun stories of

interest.

• Wine is tied to society

• Understanding the culture =

understanding the wine

Step #2:

Fundamentals

• With big picture developing ask

3 questions:

1. How is wine made?

2. How do I personally

perceive aromas and

taste?

3. What are the Major grapes

and general climates of

Major regions?

How do I build the

fundamentals?

• Study winemaking

• Make wine

• Play with structural components

• Study a SLIGHTLY more

detailed resource

Step #3: The Details

• Focus on STUDYING the

details only once you have a

solid foundation.

• Always study slightly further

than you need to.

• Prioritize your learning.

• Find a concise resource,

encyclopaedias are awfully

inefficient.

How do I retain the

details?

• Learn memorization and study

techniques.

• Adapt your approach constantly

to what works best.

• Always try to anchor the details.

• Avoid studying in isolation.

• Study frequently!

The Techniques

How to retain everything (Well most of it.)

What are we looking at?

• General Study Techniques

• Wine Hack Study Approach

What is the Wine Hack Study Approach?

• Assembly lining the wine study process

• Easy and Efficient Study Techniques

• Concise Study Materials

• As little wasted time as possible

• Relies on 3 Concepts mentioned earlier.

Concept #1: The

forgetting curve

• Hermann Ebbinghaus

discovered in 1885!

• Memory of a subject declines

exponentially after learning.

• Predictable time periods.

• Effect = Memory fades, after a

week or a month you might

remember 10-20%

How do we defeat this?

Concept #2: The

Testing Effect

• Testing Increases Recall

• All material not just tested

material

• Works best immediately

after learning

• Questions = Not too easy,

Not too hard

• Greatly decreases slope of

forgetting curve

Concept #3: The

Spacing Effect

• Also discovered by

Hermann Ebbinghaus in

1885

• Each subsequent exposure

resets the forgetting curve.

• Each exposure reduces the

slope of the curve.

• Gradually increasing time

between exposures

solidifies long term

memory.

What not to do?

• Avoid Speed Reading!

• Highlighters!

• Don't mindlessly abuse flash cards!

• Don't Read Passively!

• Don't study while driving!

Technique #1: Active

Reading

• Always have a pen and paper

when reading to study.

• Take notes about what you

read!

• Ask yourself questions about

what you read.

• Turn the TV, Music, etc. off!

Effective Note Taking

• Don't take detailed word for

word notes.

• Only write down important

information.

• Wait until end of paragraph or

page.

• Summarize info.

• Write sample test questions.

Approach #1:

Standard Notes

• Chronological

• Point form or summary

paragraphs

• Questions follow

Approach #2: Cornell

Notes

• System created in 1950's at

Cornell

• Page divided in 3: 2 Columns,

small 2" row at bottom of page.

• Small Right Column = Key

Words + Questions

• Large Right Column = Main

Ideas, Point form Notes

• Bottom = Short Summary

Approach #3: Wine

Study Hack Notes

• First part of system

• Take notes purely in question

form

• No answers on page

• Forces you to think about topic

• Forces you to actively recall

while studying

Other Advice for

Notes and Reading

• Questions, Questions,

Questions

• Try to relate information to

similar topics

• Visualize information, create

mind maps, diagrams, draw on

actual maps, study labels

Technique #2

Taking advantage of Testing and Spacing Effects

Immediately After Reading

• Notes -> effective q&a pairs

• Concise, Specific, Limited

• Add to Spreadsheet

Why do this?

• Force retrieval

• Critical thinking opportunity

• Optimize questions

• Spreadsheet -> Flash Cards or Software

Method #1: Basic

Flash Cards

• Make physical cards or use app

• Review all cards in deck

cyclically

• Suffer from boredom and

wasted time

• Pure repetition and testing, not

effective spacing.

Method #2: Leitner

System

• Very basic spacing effect for

physical flash cards

• Gradually spaced boxes (1 day,

2 days, 4 days, 8 days, etc.)

• Success = Move up a box

• Failure = Down a box or to

beginning

• Cumbersome but effective

Method #3: Digital

Spaced Repetition

• Computer + Phone

• Highly Portable

• Organized

• Less complicated

• Optimizes based on

performance

Software Example

#1: Anki

• Popular in language learning

community

• Windows, Android and iOS

• Strictly Scheduled

• Many Extensions

• Very Utilitarian

Software Example

#2: Brainscape

• Web and iOS app

• Visually Pleasing and Game

Like

• Flexible Usage

• Visual feedback and rating

system

Caveats for Flash Cards

• Avoid pre-made flash cards

• Learn how to make effective flash cards

• Avoid overly detailed or long answers

• Detailed and Clear Questions

Other uses of Testing Effect

Practice Tests and Quizzes

• Seek out practice tests and quizzes

• Only use Trusted and up to date sources

• ie. SWE App, Bubbly Professor, Guild Somm

SWE Online Academy

• Easily one of the most effective resources

• Testing before learning to find weak points

• Testing while learning to check comprehension

• Testing after learning to check learning

• 3 Sets of test minimum per module

Other Uses of Spacing Effect

Scheduling extra materials

• Use a spreadsheet, app or simple calendar

• Schedule podcasts, articles, chapters, videos about

topics to cement information

• Ok to use very basic spacing

Spacing Effect and

Tasting

• We forget tasting involves a

large memory component.

• We usually taste topically and

linearly.

• Revisit areas often.

• Taste minimum once a week.

• Throw in ringers.

• Coravin + Spreadsheet = Blind

Tasting SRS?

Memory Techniques

Making the information Stick

Chunking

• Break lists into smaller pieces

• Any more than 5 items becomes difficult

• Break information into branches

• Forms multiple anchors

• Examples:

• Bordeaux

• Burgundy

Simple Verbal Mnemonics

• Some easier items work as verbal mnemonics

• Acronyms

• Phrases

• Short Stories

• Associate unknown term with similar sounding term

Incorporate Visual Memory

• Associate words with images

• Doesn't have to be literal

• The sillier, more unusual or sexual the better people

seem to remember

• Incorporating sounds, movement and smell into imagery

increase retention

Incorporating Spatial Memory

• Method of Loci or Journey Method

• Visually a familiar location or path

• Insert Visualizations Into specific places in location or

path

• For ordered lists place in specific order through journey

or palace/loci

• Astoundingly effective

Other Memory Techniques

• Peg or Ladder approach useful for ordered lists

• Various number techniques less relevant to wine

• Try a book or two on memory techniques and practice

Bridging it all together

1. Find Efficient Study Materials

2. Fill in big picture

3. Build solid foundation

4. Practice active reading

5. Practice thinking of potential test questions

6. Create Q&A pairs

7. Insert into spaced repetition system

8. Use spaced repetition system constantly

9. Use memory techniques for tricky bits

10.Write practice quizzes to gauge progress and cement information

Other Concepts to Explore

Teach

• One of the best ways to learn is to teach others

• Join a study group and take turns teaching

• Write blogs about topics you are learning

• Explain it to someone else

• Forces you to be realistic about your strengths and

weaknesses

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction

• Stress and Test anxiety both slow down success

• MBSR is "meditation" based anxiety treatment

• Simple fears to severe anxiety disorders

• On par with CBT and often more effective than

medication for anxieties

• Not what you probably think of: Mindful Eating/Drinking

Questions

• Contact

• Twitter: @Jdcowe

• Email: jordan@oenosity.com