🧠 Smarter, Not Harder: Learning the Japanese Way
🧠 Smarter, Not Harder: Learning the Japanese Way
Have you ever wondered why we study so hard, only to forget most of it the very next day? The truth is—it’s not a lack of effort. It’s that most of us are using study methods the brain has already learned to ignore.
The Book of Mormon says it plainly:
“But O my people, beware lest there shall arise contentions among you, and ye teach that which is not expedient.” (Mosiah 4:30)
Sometimes even our study habits are “not expedient.” We feel busy, we highlight, we reread—but we aren’t really remembering.
🔄 The Forgetting Curve
Neuroscience tells us that unless reinforced, 70% of new knowledge vanishes within 24 hours. It’s like planting seeds but never watering them.
Japanese students, who memorize over 2,000 kanji characters, don’t fight this curve by working harder. They outsmart it.
🇯🇵 Five Keys to Lifelong Learning
💪 Active Recall
Instead of rereading, they force the brain to pull up information. Just like exercising a muscle, the struggle makes it stronger.🐢 The Kumon Method
Small, daily steps. No cramming. No burnout. Just steady forward motion.“Line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little.” (2 Nephi 28:30)
✨ Personal Story: Kumon isn’t just a theory for me—it’s personal.
My dear wife studied Kumon while growing up in Japan. Years later, after losing a job here in the U.S., she stumbled across a Kumon center next to a nail salon. She remembered her student days, looked into it, and just two days later found herself taking an advanced calculus exam for a franchise opportunity. Many tried and failed—but she passed.In time, she built a thriving center where she taught over 650 students. Many of them have since gone on to excel at top universities and in their careers—because they learned how to retain knowledge, not just cram and forget.
If this approach can help children master math and reading, imagine what it could do for us in our gospel studies. With the same daily steps—recall, repetition, steady progress—we can anchor sacred truths in our hearts for a lifetime.
⏳ Spaced Repetition
Reviewing information at just the right intervals—like watering a plant before it wilts.📈 Kaizen (1% Better Daily)
Tiny improvements that compound into mastery. Alma called it “experimenting upon the word” (Alma 32:27), little by little until it grows into the tree of life.🎯 Sue (Deep Focus)
Rituals that prime the brain for concentration—like praying before study, or setting aside a sacred spot. The Nemenhah Records teach this same principle of preparing our hearts before approaching holy things.
🌟 The Shift: From Input ➝ Output
❌ Input = highlighting, rereading, passive exposure.
✅ Output = recalling, reviewing, practicing, teaching.
The Savior said:
“Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man.” (Matthew 7:24)
Learning sticks when it’s lived, spoken, and practiced—not just read.
🏁 The Takeaway
Stop cramming. Stop mistaking highlighting for mastery. Start training your brain like Japanese students do: recall, review, improve 1% daily, and create rituals of focus.
This is the way to learn with power. This is the way to retain truth—whether it’s kanji, history, or the doctrine of Christ.
And sometimes—as I’ve seen in my own home—the Lord can use even something like Kumon not just to train minds, but to bless families, shape futures, and open doors to serve Him more fully.
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