“I never let education get in the way of my learning.”– Mark Twain

Michael Karnjanaprakorn, @mikekarnjCEO/co-founder, @skillshare

http://skillshare.com

I’d like to start with a personal story...

2004

Where I took an Economics class on Game Theory.

Which is a theory of competition stated in terms of gains and losses among opposing players.

I had a really hard time understanding the concept.

But I memorized everything for the final exam. And passed!

But, I was so focused on passing the test, I didn’t really learn anything.

I still didn’t understand Game Theory.

Sound familiar?

2010

I’m in Las Vegas with Annie Duke.

She’s a professional poker player.

She was also my poker coach.

Who gave me a lesson on...

Game theory and decision making.

Poker is a game of decision making under conditions of uncertainty.

So, my gains are exactly balanced by your losses (sum-zero game).

And my success depends on the decisions of others (game theory).

A topic that I found insanely boring turned into the most fascinating topic for me.

Because it was something I passionately wanted to learn about.

I finally understood the concept!

That day, I learned another very important lesson.

The difference between education and learning.

Education is what someone else does for you. Learning is what you do for yourself.

Education is about following a linear path. Learning is about following your passions.

Go to school

Go to college

Get a job

Get married

Buy a house

Have kidsRetire

Most folks will follow this path.And there’s nothing wrong with that.

But, there is a problem when others are forced to go down the same path.

Instead of taking the opportunity to learn about things they love, education forces them into a linear path.

They learn because they have to, not because they want to.

But learning is inherently personal. It can't be cookie-cutter.

Everyone’s journey is different.

It looks something like this.

Traditionally, education is organized while learning is something that happens individually.

But, what if we changed that?

What if education gave us the tools we needed to pursue our passions?

What if education and learning could be affordable, personalized, and adaptable?

What if education can be community-focused with collaboration and knowledge sharing at it’s heart?

We can do this with the Internet.

I believe the world’s most abundance resources are excess knowledge and skills.

It just needs to be shared.

"People learn best when pursuing something they find personally meaningful and useful, in collaboration with peers and experts, and working towards mastery of a set of skills

and/or body of knowledge in the real world."

We can combine the power of individual learning with the magic of communities.

I believe anyone can be a teacher.

Remember that old saying, “Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach."

Here’s a new one,“Those who can, teach.”

I believe we can start a teaching revolution.

Remember that poker story?

When I got back to New York, all my friends asked me to teach them what I learned.

Our vision is to democratize learning by empowering teaching.

Our mission is turn every city and community into a campus, every venue and address into a classroom, and every

inhabitant into a student & teacher.

Skillshare is for the doers, not the academics or theorists.

We exist on this planet to make education meaningful, collaborative and

accessible.

Learning is no longer confined to the four walls of a classroom.

Now, we can learn anything from anyone.

Anyone can be a teacher.

Imagine a world, where graduations became obsolete.Because everyone is a lifelong learner and teacher.

Imagine a world, where you could create your own learning path, aligned with your passions.

Imagine a world, where you could receive a brand accreditation from the folks at Nike.

Piquing your interest, finding new passions, and sharing skills should be a life-long process.

Everyone can be a life-long learner.

Better yet, everyone can be a life-long teacher.

Here are some from our community.

37 ClassesLess than $1,000

10 Mistakes First-Time Founders Make | Hacking Gmail | Financial Modeling for Entrepreneurs | Planting the Seed: How to Raise Your First Round | Charts for Great Good | 5 Ways to Acquire

Users for Free | Winning Negotiation in Three Steps | Startups Unplugged | Hustle 101: Get More Clients & Close More Deals | Managing Teams and Group Process | Hacking the Human

Body: Greater Results in Less Time | This Shit Ain’t Legal | The Art of the Cold Call | Life Hack: How to Live Rent-Free in NYC | Introduction to Ruby on Rails | Rock Your Board | Craft a

Gorgeous Web Application from Scratch | Tips for Early Stage Companies Looking to Break-Through | Hacking Incubators: How to get into Techstars | 7 Steps to a Successful Team | SEO

is Your Friend | What Measured Gets Done | Building a Product-Focused Startup Culture

Here are some more from Twitter.

"People learn best when pursuing something they find personally meaningful and useful, in collaboration with peers and experts, and working towards mastery of a set of skills

and/or body of knowledge in the real world."

To close, I’d like to share an email I received a couple of weeks ago.

“I’m imagining one day my kids might be able to get their education just from stringing together a curriculum of Skillshare classes.”

We can create a new world where people pursue their passions.

We can start a teaching revolution.

“Those who can, teach.”

Michael Karnjanaprakorn, @mikekarnjCEO/co-founder, @skillshare

http://skillshare.com