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50 Great Ways to Learn Something New Everyday

“Knowledge is when you learn something new everyday. Wisdom is when you let something go every day.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, and poet.

Back in the day, knowledge was gained by checking out books at the local library, spending years at a university, or taking classes from a local photographer or beekeeper. Now, learning is very accessible online. You just need an internet connection and get onto Google search, and you can get the answer to many questions.

Despite this, a lot of us are using our limited amount of personal resources (skills, time, energy, attention, and money) to binge TV shows. Please give yourself a break from that and challenge yourself to be more productive with your free time. Let’s try to learn something new everyday as it will be worth it!

Learning something new everyday can benefit your mind, social life, and professional life. You will be happier, improve your brain’s performance, and be less likely to get dementia. Other people will find you more interesting as you can teach them about the stuff and skills you have learned. Also, new skills and information could help you advance in your professional career.

To help you get you going, this post has 50 amazing resources to learn something new everyday!

Please Note: The list below should be treated like a buffet. If you try to do everything, you will not accomplish much of anything. Your plate will be piled high, and you get sick and lose motivation. Pick a few items below that peak your interest and check them out. If you enjoy the samples, then go back for seconds, and take a deeper dive into the content.

10 Websites to Help You Read and Develop Skills

In the first group, I have included 10 websites and applications focused on helping you read and learn cognitive and language skills. Reading is important as it helps you develop your mind and helps you learn something new everyday. Language learning can also help you improve your memory, problem-solving skills, and critical-thinking ability.

Audible

Audible is an audiobook app, subscription service, and store. As a member, you buy credits every month to redeem for audiobooks or can purchase books outright. You can listen to the books on the app instead of physically reading.

Blinkist

Blinkist is a subscription library of book summaries in text and audio format. It lets you get the main takeaways from their library of 3000+ nonfiction books in 15 minutes or less. Blinkest offers a 7-day free trial here, so you can explore their library of summaries.

Codecademy

Codecademy is an online interactive learning website that offers free and paid coding classes. The website offers 12 different programming/markup languages, including Python, Java, Go, JavaScript, Ruby, SQL, C++, Swift, Sass, HTML, and CSS.

DuoLingo

Duolingo is a language-learning website and app, which offers 20+ languages. You can access the content for free or pay for a premium service. However, you should not use DuoLingo as a stand-alone language course. It should be a tool in your toolbox, as it is fun and easy to use.

Goodreads

Goodreads is a free book review and recommendation site, which will help you find your next read. The website allows you to search freely through its database of books, annotations, and reviews. You can also record books you have read or want to read. You should check out my book list here.

Grammarly

Grammarly is a writing app that works on your desktop or internet browser to help you write clearly and effectively. You can use it free or get the paid version to help you identify a lot more spelling and grammar mistakes than the free version.

Kindle

Kindle gives you access to the library of books that you buy or rent from Amazon or borrow online from your local library. Most people read using a physical Kindle, which is a small hand-held electronic reading device.

Lumosity

Lumosity is a cognitive training website that is an interactive way to learn how your mind works and improve your cognitive ability. The website provides science-based games designed to help you exercise your memory, focus, agility, flexibility, and problem-solving.

Memrise

Memrise is a fun language-learning app that offers 15+ languages, including French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and Italian. The app uses many flashcards, videos with native speakers, and entertaining games to practice your skills. 

Scribd

Scribd is a subscription service that gives you access to millions of documents, including audiobooks, books, magazine articles, sheet music, and more. You can get 2 months of free access to content with this link.

10 Podcasts that You’ll Enjoy Listening to

Podcasts are typically free audio shows to help you learn something new everyday on a wide range of topics. Below, I have included 10 podcasts that will make you think and learn.

You just need access to the internet and find a podcast platform that you like. The easiest way to access a podcast on your mobile device is by downloading the iTunes app on Apple iPhones or Google Podcasts on Android devices. Other popular podcast apps include Spotify, Overcast, and Castbox.

The Daily from the New York Times

The Daily is a daily news podcast and radio show by The New York Times. Political journalist, Michael Barbaro, hosts the podcast. The show includes stories reported from that day and interviews with other journalists.

Freakonomics Radio with Stephen J. Dubner

Freakonomics Radio is by Stephen J. Dubner, one of the co-authors of the Freakonomics books. Each week, Dubner helps you explore socioeconomic issues from a different perspective with Nobel laureates, intellectuals, entrepreneurs, and many others. 

Hardcore History with Dan Carlin

In Hardcore History, Dan Carlin, a journalist and broadcaster, takes you on his wild ride through historical events using his contrarian ways of thinking. These entertaining and dramatic podcasts will show you history through a different lens.

How I Built This with Guy Raz

In NPR podcast, How I Built This, Guy Raz takes you behind the scenes of the founding and history of the most renowned companies in the world. In the show, Raz interviews innovators, entrepreneurs, and idealists to dive deep into the ideas and empires they built.

The Jordan Harbinger Show

Jordan Harbinder interviews the world’s most intelligent and creative minds, including prolific writers, intelligence agents, and visionary disrupters. The show provides new strategies, perspectives, and tactics that you can apply to your own life.

Making Sense with Sam Harris

In Making Sense, neuroscientist, philosopher, and best-selling author, Sam Harris, dives deep into the most important and intriguing questions in our world. He dives deep into topics, such as the human mind, society, and current events.

Philosophize This!

This education podcast helps you understand philosophy, without needing a formal education. The podcast lays out the episodes in chronological order of the thinkers and ideas that shaped our world.

Stuff You Should Know

In the Stuff You Should Know (SYSK) podcast hosted by HowStuffWorks writers, Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant. In SYSK, they cover many topics from science, history, and pop culture, with the occasional conspiracy theory for fun.

TED Talks Daily

In the TED Talks Daily, journalist Elise Hu exposes you to thought-provoking ideas from a multitude of subjects, including philosophy, science, and technology. The talks are given by prominent visionaries, experts, and inventors around the world.

The Tim Ferriss Show

The Tim Ferriss Show is one of the top business podcasts of all time. Best-selling author, Tim Ferriss, interviews amazing people in finance, sports, business, and art. He helps you understand their ideas and apply the tactics, tools, and routines to your own life.

10 YouTube Channels that will Get You Hooked

On YouTube, you have access to millions of original video content. Below, I give my list of 10 amazing YouTube channels that will allow you to learn something new everyday.

C.G.P. Grey

CGP Grey is an educational YouTuber and podcaster who creates short explanatory videos. The videos cover a wide range of subjects, including politics, geography, economics, history, and culture.

Crash Course

Crash Course was started by brothers, John Green and Hank Green, to provide high-quality educational content for free. The channel has over 15 courses in many subjects, including science, literature, economics, and history. “Don’t Forget to Be Awesome!”

HowStuffWorks

This channel is by the education website, HowStuffWorks. They are committed to helping you satisfy your curiosity and understand “how stuff works” in the world. 

Numberphile

Numberphile is a channel with videos discussing the many fields of mathematics. They break down complex math principles and topics such that it is understandable for the average, non-math person.

Real Engineering

Real Engineering explores the engineering marvels that make up our world. The channel aims to inspire the current, and next generations of engineers to make our world a better place.

SciShow

Started by Hank Green, the SciShow channel dives into many topics in science. These videos will spark your curiosity and defy your expectations about the world around you.

SmarterEveryDay

SmarterEveryDay helps you explore the world using science. Engineer, Destin Sandlin, started the channel to get smarter, share his acquired knowledge, and educate his children.

TED

TED is committed to spreading great ideas worthwhile to everyone. The TED Talks channel features the best talks from the TED Conference, where the world’s leading thinkers and doers give an inspiring talk in 18 minutes (or less). They also have sister channels, for independently organized TEDx talks and educational TED-Ed talks.

Vsauce

Vsauce is by the YouTuber, Michael Stevens. The channel helps you understand many topics, including science, philosophy, mathematics, technology, and psychology.

Wendover Productions

Wendover Productions by YouTuber Sam Denby is a channel dedicated to helping explain how the world works. It covers a range of topics, such as travel, economics, geography, and marketing.

10 Websites for Video Courses and Documentaries

Video content can be available in many ways to help you learn something new everyday. Below, I include 10 websites that specialize in online video courses, content, and documentaries.

Coursera

Coursera is an online learning website designed to help you learn from massive open online courses from renowned universities like Stanford, Yale, and Michigan. You can join for free to watch but will have to pay for access to graded assignments or certificates.

Creative Live

Creative Live is an online learning platform that offers courses in photography, art, design, crafts, marketing, business, and entrepreneurship. Some courses can be streamed for free, however, most content is charged per class or by the paid membership.

Curiosity Stream

CuriosityStream is a video streaming service that mainly delivers nonfiction documentaries and series related to science, nature, history, technology, society, and lifestyle. The streaming service is not expensive and can be charged on a monthly or yearly basis.

edX

edX is another online learning site to learn from massive open online courses from major universities like Harvard and MIT. edX provides free and paid college courses, which include business, computer science, data analysis, humanities, and so much more.

The Great Courses

The Great Courses offers over 500 courses from professors that have the gift of teaching. These courses are available in many digital formats or can be accessed in their subscription service, which is known as The Great Courses Plus.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is dedicated to providing a free, world-class education that can be available to anyone, anywhere in the world. The website offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized dashboard to encourage students to learn at their own pace. They cover many subjects, including math, science, history, economics, and more. 

LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning is an education and certification website dedicated to teaching you skills to help you accomplish your goals. The platform houses thousands of courses specifically on the topics of software, creativity, and business.

Nebula

Nebula is a paid video streaming service that offers entertaining, informational videos from many educational creators. The website was started by YouTubers CGP Grey and Philipp Dettmer to support creators and help YouTubers test-drive new content. 

SkillShare

Skillshare is a subscription learning platform with online classes taught by the world’s best practitioners and creators. They offer many thousands of classes in design, photography, web design, social, and more. You can get two months of Skillshare free by using this link.

Udemy

Udemy is an online learning marketplace that allows anyone to create a course or pay to take a course. Most courses are skill-based topics, including programming, marketing, data analysis, and more. Note, courses will be heavily-discounted in order to get you to buy them.

10 Email Newsletters that You’ll Enjoy in Your Inbox

Email is so powerful as we habitually check our emails. Studies show that 58% of adults check email in bed, and 42% of adults check email on the toilet. Emails can be intimate and gratifying, so why not subscribe to some awesome email newsletters. Below, I give 10 email newsletters that will help you stay informed or learn something new everyday.

3-2-1 by James Clear

This weekly Thursday newsletter, known as 3-2-1, from the NYT Bestselling author, James Clear, will give you 3 ideas, 2 quotes, and 1 question to consider this week. About once or twice a month, he also sends out longer articles on how to live better.

1440 Daily Digest

This 5-minute morning brief picks the top news stories from hundreds of sources each day. Topics include sports, tech, culture, business, politics, and more.

The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday

This short morning newsletter from the NYT Bestselling author, Ryan Holiday, inspires you using Stoic philosophy. This email will help you cultivate vitality, insight, and wisdom to live your best life.

Finimize

This 3-minute daily newsletter demystifies two financial stories by making them easy to read, understand, and relevant to the reader. You can choose between various editions: US, UK/European, or Global.

“Mindf*ck Monday” by Mark Manson

Each Monday, NYT Bestselling author, Mark Manson emails you his three best ideas for that week. He hopes that his Monday email newsletter helps you start the week off on the right foot.

Morning Brew

This 5-minute ”Daily Brew” picks the latest news from Finance (Wall Street) to Tech (Silicon Valley). Their other topic-based newsletters are the “Emerging Tech Brew” and “Retail Brew.” 

New York Times Morning Briefing 

The New York Times brings the day’s top news and ideas to your inbox, with their journalists help you make sense of what is happening and why it matters.

NPR Life Kit

Some of us need help adulting and living in this world. This weekly newsletter will help you get your life together, including topics from personal finance, health, parenting, education, journalism, and art.

Pocket Hits

Pocket is an app that helps you discover great content, save this content, and lets you return to it later on any device, at any time. Their curated newsletter, Hits, highlights the best stories from across the web using popular and handpicked articles from Pocket readers and editors.

Robinhood Snacks

This 3-minute newsletter provides digestive financial news with several major business stories. Originally, it was called MarketSnacks and was based in NYC before being acquired by Robinhood.

Next Steps

When you give yourself breaks, I hope this post will inspire you to learn something new everyday instead of defaulting to binging TV shows. If you need help getting motivated, check out this blog post on productivity quotes.

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