What is Just-in-Time Learning vs. Always-On Learning?

Just-in-Time Learning vs. Always-On Learning •

In the digital age of information (and opinion) overload, it’s easier than ever to consume: scrolling social media, reading blogs, checking news sites, watching videos, listening to podcasts, you name it.

I’ve personally found myself spending more and more time consuming information. While all of the information is nice to have, typically little to none of it impacts the current task at hand. Instead, it’s always-on learning that will maybe be useful at a later date in the future. While learning is inherently good, this constant consumption can rob you of hours each and every day (and, as we know, we all only get 24 hours a day).

One thing I’m working on this year is something known as just-in-time learning. My personal definition of just-in-time learning is forgoing or holding learning until it is relevant to something you are acting upon now.

For me, I read. A lot. Instead of consuming precious time reading a variety of articles on a bunch of different topics, I’m now saving them to Pocket. I can use Pocket’s search functionality to find articles I’ve saved with specific keywords.

Just-in-Time Learning Example:

Let’s say my goal for the day is to optimize the SEO of my website. I may have a multitude of interesting articles about many different things in my email inbox, see articles that pique my interest on Facebook or Twitter, etc. If those articles aren’t related to SEO (for instance, if they are about philosophy, finances, slow living, or anything else), I can save them to Pocket to read later. To stay on task, I can search Pocket for anything I’ve previously saved about SEO as well as supplement those saved links with intentional Google research. All in all, this also helps with digital minimalism.

Have you ever experimented with just-in-time learning? Share your own experience in the comments.

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