HackerTube.dev

The first 20 hours -- how to learn anything | Josh Kaufman | TEDxCSU

TEDx Talks · 43.9M views · 2013-03-14 · 19:27

Open on YouTube ↗

If playback is restricted in your region, try opening the original video. Use Mark watched to add it to your marked videos.

Overview

Josh Kaufman's TEDx talk argues that you can reach practical competence in almost any skill with about 20 hours of focused practice, rather than the 10,000 hours often quoted. He describes how becoming a parent led him to rethink how adults learn, and lays out a short method for rapid skill acquisition.

On Hacker News

HN uses it as the standard counterpoint to the 10,000-hour rule and as an encouraging recipe for starting new skills.

Recommended by 5 HN people across 6 months · HN mentions 2014–2024

Topics

Productivity & self-improvementEducation & learning
Search by tags
20 hourslearningdeliberate practice10000 hour ruleself-improvement

What people said

santi_panti · 2023-01 · Recommendation

I remember watching a video about learning a skill in 20 hours. The topic boils down to 4 points that seems fairly straight forward. I can't do it good justice myself so here is a link to those 4 points: [LINK] And here is the video itself: [VIDEO]

Read the original HN comment ↗
vrajeshkanna · 2022-08 · Recommendation

The first 20 hours -- how to learn anything by Josh Kaufman - [VIDEO] You can be a top 10% in any given field with this. 20 hrs is worth the effort on skills you want to learn. My personal advice - Learn only if you put that skill into use immediatly for your good or for the greater good of the society around you. Growth for the sake of growth is the mindset of a virus

Read the original HN comment ↗
Edmar · 2019-08 · Recommendation

A while ago I saw this video: [VIDEO] is about "The first 20 hours" and there is a book as well. It's surprising how much could you can learn in just 20 hours. You can't be an expert by doing so little but you can learn some tricks for fun.

Read the original HN comment ↗

Sources

Video by TEDx Talks, played through YouTube.

Data and selection notes

HN summaries and labels may contain AI errors. HN dates refer to discussions, not video publication.

HN Library: HackerTube export (2026-10-31) and open-index/hacker-news. Upstream summaries and classifications may contain AI errors.

Views, duration and playback status refresh separately from the published catalog. When an update fails, existing data remains visible.

Selection checks
  • SaaS & AI candidates: Topic keywords do not match
  • Editor-approved picks: Editorial review is required

Rule matches identify candidates. They do not guarantee video quality or financial results.

About the library and its sources