How to learn any technology

I close this chapter with a section on how to learn any technology. Does it sound like I have overpromised? Keep reading.

If you want to learn any technology you just have to be willing to feel stupid. I often talk to people about technology, and they always say the same thing: “I don’t know how to do that.” To which I respond, “no one was born knowing.”

I’m writing this book using Dragon naturally speaking dictation software. (Curiously, it did not get NaturallySpeaking right in the last sentence, although it did in this sentence. It is not a perfect technology.) I didn’t know how to use this software until two days ago. Truth be told, I still have a lot to learn. But, I do the best I can, fumble along, make some progress, feel stupid, and before long I will be dictating three or four times faster than I could ever type. What a time to be alive!

You just have to be willing to feel stupid for a while.

My daughter got a new cell phone recently. I was eager to see it. I started clicking on a few buttons. Soon I felt frustrated. I could not figure out how to make a call. I could not figure out how to compose a text. I threw the phone down. No problem in this case, because it is not my phone. I don’t need to learn to use it. You don’t have to learn every technology. But you can learn almost any technology if you will keep the phone in your hands. Keep punching buttons. Keep feeling stupid. Keep trying. Eventually, the lights will come on. You can learn almost any technology if you’re willing to feel stupid for a time. If you don’t have a Facebook group, click around, ask a friend, feel stupid for a while, and before long you’ll be up and running. If you don’t know how to text, remember this: no one was born knowing.

Technology can be a great friend to the Effective Bible Teacher. Of course, it can’t do the most important things. It can’t pray. It can’t love. It can help you study the Bible better and quicker. It can help you keep up with people.