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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential by McMaster University

4.8
stars
12,867 ratings

About the Course

Mindshift is designed to help boost your career and life in today’s fast-paced learning environment. Whatever your age or stage, Mindshift teaches you essentials such as how to get the most out of online learning and MOOCs, how to seek out and work with mentors, the secrets to avoiding career ruts (and catastrophes) and general ruts in life, and insights such as the value of selective ignorance over general competence. We’ll provide practical insights from science about how to learn and change effectively even in maturity, and we’ll build on what you already know to take your life’s learning in fantastic new directions. This course is designed to show you how to look at what you’re learning, and your place in what’s unfolding in the society around you, so you can be what you want to be, given the real world constraints that life puts on us all. You’ll see that by using certain mental tools and insights, you can learn and do more—far more—than you might have ever dreamed! This course can be taken independent of, concurrent with, or subsequent to, its companion course, Learning How to Learn. (Mindshift is more career focused, and Learning How to Learn is more learning focused.)...

Top reviews

LV

Apr 30, 2020

I enjoyed this MOOC. It is very well-done and clearly covers the topics of mindshifting along with career advancement. Also--good illustrations and visuals/sounds which assist in the learning process.

DI

Oct 30, 2020

Great course! This is a lot more general than Learning about Learning but is also useful nonetheless. I like the focus on keeping positive and being confident in your potential despite our weaknesses.

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3301 - 3325 of 3,675 Reviews for Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential

By Tulika B

Jun 12, 2020

I was in doubt of many things on my mind , which got cleared in this MOOC. Like stacking up multiple skills , whether it is alright to be a jack of all trades and now , I'm confident about being one. I am more comfortable with my so called bad traits , I just need to be more conscious about them , from now on. I'm glad that my hiker brain , is afterall ,not an issue at all. The technique of verbalising my emotions to just get past through them , is such a tool , which is going to stay with me , forever. Pomedoro technique is a valuable tool. I've gathered a lot of knowledge and insights from this video. It surely did change my perspective on my stand for changing my career. I'm confident about that as well. Thank you

By Susanne O

Apr 11, 2020

I really enjoyed this course and both of the instructors. The information is so clearly presented and easy to follow, that it makes it a pleasure to tune into each lecture. I gave this four stars rather than five, as I had high expectations after taking "Learning how to Learn", and I felt like the course had room for more material. I would have enjoyed even more of a focus on the links between neuroscience and the practical aspects to apply to your own life, and more insight into the benefits of meditation. One of my favorite parts of the course was Barbara's interview with the Singapore entrepreneur, as he had a incredible wealth of wisdom to share from his experiences.

By S M N S

Jun 5, 2020

I am S M Nazmuz Sakib and am an instructor in Airtract. My course link is https://www.airtract.com/course/sakibs-diploma-in-history-of-psychology

& my Linkedin account is here- https://www.linkedin.com/in/s-m-nazmuz-sakib/

I have completed more than 200 online courses or MOOCs.

This course worths 4.5/5 though my review is 4/5 as 4.5 is not possible in Coursera ;)

Well, overall, I had a great experience. i am also an instructor and I teach psychology (Link given ^ ) .

This is a great course. Hoping, a Diploma course in Learning Psychology in future by the instructor of this course.

Thanks in regards

S M NAZMUZ SAKIB

By Taleh G

Jan 18, 2021

İt gives some impulse for learning especially how to learn through MOOC and how to get prepared for making MOOC, its something motivation plus some scientific facts how one can overcome procrastination along with using both focused and diffused modes. I read some materials for pomodoro techniques but this course gives me very detailed and thorough view of this technique and how to use. You can ask why you didn't give 5 stars, the answer is simple: Even the best course giving some impulse towards learning will not fit 100% to my needs and features of learning, its like opening door for intensive learning

By Marco M

Apr 24, 2020

The course it's interesting, it gives you a good amount of notions and tools for making better choices in terms of picking the on line classes, making better decisions on what courses you should take to push your career or it gives you extra help if you feel stuck in a rut and you don't know what to do. The professors are very compelling, easy to understand even if english it's not your fist language and they make the classes very easy to follow. I think this Mooc fits more in the self help area, rather than the area of technical skills. PS: i do apologise for my written english.

By Amandine L

Apr 6, 2018

The title is a bit misleading I think because it addresses more career change than learning itself but it's still very interesting. Good addition to learning how to learn for people who are not students. Learning how to learn gives more techniques and understanding of neurosciences but Mindshift repeats nicely some of that learning with helps anchoring the knowledge gained previously. At the end I have more the impression of having gained inspiration than proper knowledge but overall the experience was great.

PS: I loved Nelson Dellis videos/ memories tips which are very fun and pratical

By Brandon E

May 13, 2017

I thought that the course was very helpful! Although it had a lot of what was in Learning How To Learn, there were some helpful tips that were not in the course. I enjoyed the focus of this course, since it was on specially mindshifting, ultimately how we can switch from one subject to an entirely different subjects, whereas LHTL was on learning in general. I would have appreciated more neuroscience/cognitive science in the videos. Also, many of the tips were obvious and/or oft-quoted in other related places. Overall, I liked the course and I thought it was very interesting.

By Peiqi H

May 28, 2020

I like this course. It gives some new ideas that are helpful for balancing personal passion and career development. However, since I had finished Learning how to learn before this one, by comparison, personally I feel this course is not as clear as the Learning how to learn and was not that surprising. I still appreciate the advice and mental tricks introduced which definitely helps me. I give 4 four stars does not mean it is not awesome, it is because I compared this course with Learning how to learn. And I wish coursera can allow me to give 4.5 stars.

By Benjamín A G

Jan 4, 2021

This course was really good, but it can be improved upon... Barbara is pure magic, her lessons are perfect and she´s very fun to listen to. The other instructor´s lessons (i can´t remember his name) where a little bit harder to follow, as i couldn´t see the reason why he was explaining some topics.

Mindshift has definetly changed how i see the world. I WILL definetly apply most of the tips and knowledge on my day-to-day life and also in my long term planning. I reccomend it, whatever background you have, it´ll probably be useful.

By Olexander T

Dec 23, 2017

This courser is very good, but little bit weaker than the previous one.

Maybe my expecatations were very high (because your LH2L course and book are AWESOME), but I felt something wrong about this.

I liked lots of ideas from this course: slow/fast learning, where creativity comes from, П-career model. But some topic were off-topic. E.g. creating MOOC.

It is very good course and it is much better than lots of other courses, but it is little weaker, than LH2L.

Thank you, Barbara, for these awesome courses and books.

By John A S

Jun 12, 2020

Professor Oakley and Professor Sejnowski are knowledgeable and engaging teachers for the subject. They have created a good course. Despite their passion and charisma displayed here, I can agree in some of the cons in the reviews that it the concepts displayed here are the same with the previous MOOC "Learning How to Learn" or book "A Mind for Numbers." The difference however is that in this course, they encourage lifelong learning to different passions for our 21st century technological world.

By Hamel M

Jun 4, 2022

Very well presnted and thoughtout course. Should be required course for all students as early as high school. The instructor is phenomenal, really the right person to teach this class. She relies on a lot of personal experience in accentuating the various topics in the course. This made the course more relatable the instructor more authentic. On the downside, because of the heavy reliance on personal experiences, the sources cited lack diversity. That was my only objection to the course.

By Deleted A

Sep 27, 2017

This course does an excellent job of motivating you that you can change the course of your life through learning. It contains lots of useful and accessible material on how lifelong learning works. The course feels like a bunch of random (but useful!) topics presented in arbitrary sequence instead of drawing a connected, integrated big picture. Be prepared to spend time integrating the ideas together into your own life if you want the ideas to stick.

By Mikhail G

Mar 5, 2021

Well, It was intresting experience. But After that course I have mind that it's crumpled.

It has pretty manyissues with Russian translation in subtitles and materials is intresting but ther is no sense of completeness.

So I recommend to take this course ONLY after finishing "Learning ho wto Learn".

In that way you may look on this as a good addon.

Like Heroes Chronicles in HoMM3 :)

Barbara, Terry thank you very much! anyway You're the best.

Good luck!

By Emmanuelle R

Dec 22, 2017

Une synthèse vraiment riche et objective des certains livres probants et pertinents en matière de self-développement. Des outils importants pour apprendre à progresser dans l'apprentissage dans des voies parfois différentes de notre formation initiale, en évitant de tomber dans certains pièges. Appui nécessaire et stimulant des neurosciences...Une formation utile pour apprendre à apprendre en mettant en exergue ses traits de personnalité.

By Sumaya A

Aug 23, 2018

This course is a great one. It really helped me a lot to shift my mind. Now I think I am able to learn anything. I restored my old passion of studying physics and astrology. My only objection was that the content didn't have many exercises. It all depends on the videos and writing your thoughts in the discussion forum. But I think as an amount of information, It is still enough. The information affected me greatly. Thank you.

By Mario S

Mar 29, 2021

A feel good course with a lot of value, although an easy and sometimes fast pace. More homework and depth for some of the topics like procrastination and the advantages of slow learning would be welcomed. The course is meant to leave you with a positive attitude towards mindshift, but the onus of the effort is on the student. Make sure to pause after each video and think how you will apply the lesson in your life.

By Dr. P M

Sep 15, 2017

I have enjoyed this course , gained new knowledge, but I feel this course was not as good as "Learning How to Learn", where a high standard was set by dr. Oakley. I felt more interviews could have been done with people who made a career change, How difficult or easy it was for them and also how they are progressing or have progressed in the new career. If they regret it or believed that was a great success.

By Claire R

Feb 9, 2018

I've giving this only 4 stars because I'm comparing it to Learning How to Learn which I took first. Though the production values are better for this course it seems more scattershot in what it covers. Really interesting though. I learned things which I think will help me improve my life. But for me this class is a really beneficial add-on to the Learning How to Learn class. Thanks!

By Rommel J P

Oct 26, 2020

Highly recommend this course before taking any online (or offline) course as it can help you be more effective in learning. On the other hand, some things I already learned from Learning How to Learn from the same professor. It's still a good refresher and there are enough additions, especially the memory tricks. More interviews from other Mindshifters would have also been useful.

By Amber C

Mar 26, 2023

If you're feeling unsure about learning something new, be it due to age, skills, anxiety about change, etc., this course is great at breaking down those barriers. Barb, one of the professors, changed course completely and has lived through that kind of a mindset shift herself! There is strength where society says there is weakness and this course helps one identify that.

By Kantesh G

May 9, 2017

Excellent intro to how to improve your learning in a learning-crazed world! As the pace of change gets faster and faster, the ability to quickly absorb and learn new stuff is going to be critical for us to thrive as individuals in whatever stage of life we are at. This course gives you ideas about how to learn quickly and retain it and gain from it for a long time to come.

By Akif H

Jul 7, 2020

Firstly , i don't have any idea about this MOOC , but eventually i feel very content because this MOOC showed me more towards life decisions and how to learn and all that stuff . also, once again they proved that nothing is impossible in a scientific approach.

I appreciate you and your teams time and effort to make this beautiful fun filled informative MOOC .

thank you all.

By Victoria B

Jun 12, 2022

Insightful and helpful, I found this course to be quite interesting. Barb and Terry upped the presentation of material from their initial MOOC, Learning How to Learn. For me, I enjoyed the former more than the latter; probably because the focus was more on neuroscience and less on how to make a MOOC. That said, I gained knowledge from Mindshift, which is always valuable.

By ΓΙΑΝΝΗΣ Ε Κ

Nov 17, 2017

the good stuff

catchy videos, nice videos simple , easy to watch and follow, giving just enough information without many (boring?) details. In general is fun to watch and learn :)

the "could be a little better" stuff

I think that in-lesson quizes and in general the quizes could be a notch up in difficulty , and I don't that would hinder the whole experience of this course.