teach a class

there's a brutal test for whether you truly understand something: try teaching it to someone who knows nothing about it.

within five minutes, you'll discover every gap, every assumption, every fuzzy area in your knowledge. the student's confused expression is a mirror reflecting your own incomplete understanding. this is uncomfortable. it's also the most accelerated learning experience you can create.

the feynman connection

richard feynman, arguably the greatest physics teacher who ever lived, had a method: if you can't explain something simply, you don't understand it well enough. this wasn't false modesty from a genius. it was a learning technique he used throughout his career.

teaching forces you to do what passive learning never does:

identify gaps — you can't fake understanding when someone asks "why?" and you don't have an answer.
organize knowledge — scattered information in your head must become a coherent narrative that builds logically.
simplify complexity — stripping away jargon reveals whether you grasp the core concept or just memorized the vocabulary.

you don't need credentials

you don't need a degree or a certification to teach. you need to know more about a topic than the people you're teaching, and you need to organize that knowledge clearly.

platforms everywhere are begging for instructors. community centers, meetup groups, youtube, skillshare, local workshops. someone within your reach knows less than you about something you're good at. find them and teach them.

the selfish benefit

here's the part nobody talks about: teaching is the most selfish form of generosity. yes, the student benefits. but the teacher benefits more. every class you teach deepens your own expertise. every question you can't answer becomes a research project. every attempt to simplify makes your own understanding more robust.

studies show that people who teach material retain it at roughly 90%, compared to 10% from reading and 20% from listening. the learning pyramid is clear: if you want to master something, teach it.

pick something you know well. find an audience. teach it once. you'll learn more in that single session than in months of passive study.

if this resonated, share it with someone who needs to hear it.