I’ve been immersed in the science of learning lately, and one theme has been present in nearly everything I’ve read: most of us just don’t know how to learn efficiently.

Scientists know why, too. We gravitate toward learning techniques (like re-reading) that feel effective as we’re using them yet are surprisingly inefficient when it comes to building long-term knowledge. In the moment, of course, that’s not obvious to us.

Unfortunately, the inverse is also true: the most efficient learning techniques don’t feel effective (and frankly, often don’t seem to make a whole lot of sense). The topic of this article, interleaving, is a perfect example. Interleaving sounds a little bonkers and feels jarring, but it delivers results.

From the time we’re in diapers, we’re taught the Golden Rule: treat others the way you’d like to be treated.

As a rule of thumb, this is great advice. It’s certainly better than treating others in ways no one would like to be treated. But in Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It, Chris Voss argues that we’re better off tweaking the Golden Rule rule a bit.

How should we structure our schedule when it comes to big, important projects?

As I’ve argued in the past, we should schedule long chunks of time for our most important work. Long stretches dedicated to a single project usually produce much higher-quality work than an equivalent number of minutes spread out over many work sessions. Two hours, three hours, an entire morning—personally, when I spend that kind of time writing, tweaking a website, or just grappling with a thorny intellectual concept, I’m often surprised at how long I can remain productive. I often feel like I’m doing my best work during these periods.

Lifelong learning has always been important, but it’s now essential.

With the world changing so quickly, constant learning is now required for continued success in almost every field (not to mention, you know, a fulfilling life). Nearly every sector of the economy is being transformed (or will be soon), and if you’re standing still, you’re falling behind.

So, learning: how do you do it?

Think about it. When you have to internalize a new concept—understand it and remember it so you can apply it later—what do you do?

After months of focused work, a small tech company launches an ambitious new app.

What next? After the launch party, the wise thing to do is conduct a project post-mortem—a process aimed at extracting lessons and insights from the recently-completed project.

In the business world, project post-mortems are standard practice (especially among software and IT teams). But I’m a believer that they can be useful for individuals, too—in both our personal and professional lives.