Biggest insights I gained from Acing Calculus
It's not what you think
These aren’t just some generic “work hard, study, and you’ll pass” type of insights.
Math isn’t just for “math people.”
Getting an A in calculus taught me that the concept of “math people” is entirely bullshit.
You’ll often hear people say, “Oh, I’m not a math person; that's why I study liberal arts.” This is exactly the way I thought. I used to do really well in subjects like social sciences and English, but when It came to math, I was a B or C student at best.
But suddenly, I became interested in calculus. Everybody always told me how powerful calculus was and how incredibly different it was from the math I had learned before.
I had spent my entire college degree avoiding doing calculus, but after I obtained my degree, I decided to go and see what calculus was all about.
Interest is the main thing that matters.
You’re not a “math person,” or a “writing person,” or a “history person”. You’re just a person. And people generally get good at whatever they feel like getting good at. It's that simple.
Your teacher matters
I had to drop pre-calculus due to a bad teacher. Now, sure, I could have just worked harder, and I probably should have. But after dropping pre-calculus
I went on to get an A in Calculus 1.
How? I relearned the fundamentals on my own, and then I searched around my school for the best Calculus teacher.
Got a 95 In the class after failing pre-calculus.
Do you know what my pre-calculus teacher said? “If you get an A in pre-calculus, you might pass calculus 1 with a C”
Yeah, maybe the way he taught it.
Nobody could understand him.
The biggest takeaway, get a well-spoken teacher who is easy to understand!!!
I’ll reiterate that:
get a well-spoken teacher who is easy to understand!!!
You don’t need a special “math brain” or stimulant drugs to do well
You don’t need Stimulants. Ok, maybe if you’re taking Calc on top of a huge course load, but there’s plenty of stuff I’d try before Adderall, like caffeine or nootropics.
You also don’t need to be a gifted math wizard. I sure wasn’t. You just need to work 5–10 problems outside of class for every new concept you learn.
Many people recommend more, but honestly, If you get a good teacher and pay attention, it won’t be necessary.
You just need to work 5–10 problems outside of class for every new concept you learn.
It will Expand your mind.
Calculus will force you to get good at the fundamentals (algebra & trigonometry).
You’ll learn some strange new concepts that are unlike anything you’ve seen in math previously.
And there are plenty of practical applications for this math as you go deeper into your respective field (I’m still getting there myself).
