Stop Trying To Understand

In this video I discuss a very important issue that happens with math and other subjects. At what point should you simply move on and accept that you don't understand? Do you have opinions or advice for others? If so, please leave a comment below.
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[jayloncarter]

As someone who ALWAYS needs to know WHY something works. This is some insane advice.

[buzinaocara]

I'm not sure I understood the message here. Guess I'll rewatch this video 10 more times until I get it!

[yangchen]

“Young man, in mathematics you don't understand things. You just get used to them.”
― John von Neumann

[philliparnesen]

I failed algebra 2 times before I had a math teacher say this to me. Stop trying to understand, memorize the steps, do the steps, and eventually it will start to make sense. Math for me is a field where you have to run before you can walk.

[DadsCornerLew]

This is profound. My self-study has been hindered by my insistence on fully understanding each and every concept, and formula before moving on.

[cristalmyth]

"The important thing isnt can you read music, its can you hear it". Let me tell you dude, I was having a full on awakening during my last college class

[Nerfunkal]

I'm early in my career of learning college math 20 years after highschool and emotionally this is the biggest change for me, when I start to think "But why???" I replace it with "ok textbook I believe you" and I move on. I've also found that for some of these concepts as you say later it is clicking. Before I could not move on and would also give up as these frustrations built and my foundation weakened.

[DoltonI]

I know what he means. Here's an analogy: imagine you're asked to explore and memorize a forest, so you can lead a group safely through it. So you go into the forest to start exploring, and you come across a strange tree that looks like it's important. So, you spend time memorizing this single tree's location in the forest to later tell the group about. Then, you move on, and come across another strange tree. You once again spend time memorizing the location of a singular tree. You try to continue, but you find yourself stopping at every single bizarre tree and memorizing each position.
"Here's tree number 46, tree number 47..." and so on.
Soon, the sun sets, so you return to to the group. They ask if you found a source of water. You tell them where you found a tree. They ask you what the safest route is. You tell them where you found a tree. They ask you where they can find food. You tell them where you found a tree.

In the end, your efforts were unproductive! You spent so much time looking at the trees instead of the forest, that you're just as clueless now as you went in.

In other words, you need to see the bigger picture before small things make sense. It's okay to walk past a strange looking tree without memorizing it (it's okay to be confused and not fully [emphasis on fully] understand something), later once you've explored the entire forest (learned the full scope of something), it'll be easier to remember where that tree is (understanding something becomes easier with more context)

[surrealistidealist]

Understanding the explanations in math is like understanding poetry: you need experience, especially with relevant problems, so that the words have more meaning for you and resonate better.

[wingnutmcspazatron]

This feels like life advice more than it does just mathematics

[saiello]

This is such an important message. I suffer from same. The intense need to UNDERSTAND a particular point before moving on. Its a bit like the social media FOMO, the 'Fear Of Missing Out'. The fear of not understanding something that could seriously impact you later. Understanding is all about context. If you dont understand something at a particular point then your brain isn't READY to understand, it doesnt have the necessary context. But thats OK, that context will come. I think if more lecturers gave this pep talk right at the beginning, I think more students would spend less time fretting and more time enjoying studying.

[davidwalker]

The most surprising part about math is how it'll suddenly teach you practical lessons for life.
One of my biggest problems was solving too quickly and making extremely minor mistakes. It became such a problem that it made me dispise math.

It wasn't until I decided what the problem was because I knew I wasn't stupid, and I knew I was capable of doing hard things. I eventually deduced that all I needed to do was to simply slow down. There is no shame in being painstakingly considerate of every single stroke of the process in solving hard problems.

Then, I started to relate it to everything in my life with logic. Math has made me appreciate the process, and to love the process. I've developed a deeper appreciation for life, and I have a deep joy in the hard things.

[mediccjh]

When I was a Paramedic student in 2000-01, I asked an ER Doctor how he remembered everything. He said, ” Don’t study to memorize. Study to recognize this way when you see it, you know what to do.”

I carry that with me every day, and always told my students the same.

[connorholmes]

Hey man this is I believe the second video I’ve watched of yours and I just want to say as a 19 year old struggling to figure out the equation of living a good life I can’t put into words how thankful I am of the person you are and the teachings you give, I love these videos you’re awesome man

[flashbarry]

Glad it’s not just me! 😭 sometimes it just feels like I’m trying to understand everything in my engineering classes.

[MnkyKing]

Agreed. The better you are managing your stress and anxiety, the more successful you’ll usually be in all areas of life. So many of us want to know everything in order to have a greater impact/image on our respective disciplines, and forget the role of community, peers, teams etc.

[mingmiao]

It took me a long time to realize this as well. Sometimes you just have to focus on the task at hand and try to “black box” certain important results and focus on what you can apply with them

[alittax]

The message of the video is clear. The title is a bit misleading. You shouldn't stop trying to understand ever again. Instead, you should stop trying to understand immediately. Thank you for your video!

[coreygraham]

Lately, I've been writing any math problems I can't solve on the last page of my notebooks. It's easier to move on when you know you can come back to it on a rainy day or something.

[jaaaaaked]

This is helpful advice for any arena of life I feel. As a filmmaker (and YouTuber) I get so worked up, frustrated, anxiety-ridden over every little video that I make, overanalyzing whether it's funny, watchable, entertaining, why it didn't get more views/likes/subscribers, worrying that it sucks horribly and I should've never made it.... when I could just finish the video/film, put it out there, let it exist, and move onto the next film project.

Thankyou, time to finish watching the video lol.