《外刊精读》Get新技能永远都不晚

你的新年计划里，还有学习新技能这一项吗？有人认为随着年龄的增长，自己不再适合学新东西了。其实只要多学习，学习速度就会越来越快，年龄并不是羁绊。从近期一项针对婴儿学步的研究中，我们了解到，新技能的养成需要一点时间和耐心，也需要不断挑战自己的能力极限。如何做到活到老学到老？如何让自己成为更好的初学者？一起来听今天的讲解。   英文原文  For New Year’s Resolutions, Never Think You’re Too Old to Become a Beginner  新年立目标，做个初学者，永远不晚  By Tom Vanderbilt  As we head into a new year there is one thing from the outgoing annus horribilis we should carry forward and even deepen: the spirit of the novice.  在迈入新年之际，有一样东西，我们应该从刚刚过去的这多灾多难的一年承袭下来并发扬光大：那就是初学者心态。  Many people, in the face of such disruption, decided that they wanted to learn new things. But there’s a caveat: The older you are, the harder you’re going to have to work. There’s a happy twist, however: The more learning that older adults take on, the faster they seem to learn—the more they become like younger adults.  面对被疫情搅乱的生活，很多人决定去学一些新东西。但有一种告诫是：年纪越大，你要学新东西所付出的努力越多。然而令人欣喜的转机是：年长的人越是多学习，就越能够像年轻人那样快速地学习。  How, then, to prepare ourselves to become better beginners? We can draw crucial guidance from a group of research subjects: infants learning to walk.  那么我们如何能让自己成为更好的初学者呢？我们可以从一组研究对象，即蹒跚学步的孩童身上，获得一些重要的启发。  For adults, the lessons are clear. One is that skills take time. Infants spend roughly a third of their day for six solid months practicing walking. So don’t worry if you’re still terrible at tennis after a few months.  成年人可以从中吸取的经验是很清晰的。首先，掌握新技能会花些时间。婴儿每天大致用1/3的时间练习走路，要花上整整六个月才能学会。因此，如果你学了几个月网球，但还是打得很烂，不要着急。  Infants also remind us that progress is often not linear. Infants seem to learn best “when operating near the limits of their current skill level.” In other words: Always be at the edge of what you can’t currently do.  婴儿们的经历也提醒我们，学习新技能的进展通常不是线性的。当婴儿们触碰到了自己现有技能的天花板时，他们似乎学得最好。换言之：始终挑战自己当前能力的极限。  None of this is easy. If it feels easy, you’re not learning. If you don’t learn to fail, you’ll fail to learn. So let “beginner” be your watchword for 2021. But watch for overreach in your resolutions.  这些都不容易做到。如果你觉得容易，你就没有真的在学习。如果你不学习接受失败，你就学不会。所以让“初学者”成为你2021年的口号。但是也要小心，在制定新年计划时不要好高骛远。