Learning on a Jet Plane

Since the wonderful day the Netflix app enabled offline viewing, binge watching TV shows and movies has been my go-to time killer on long flights. Most trips start with the grand aspiration to “get some work done on the plane,” but the small seats and nonstop jostling make using a laptop miserable. I usually give up on work and resign to Netflix and chill before the drink cart rolls around.

This summer, I'm committed to making more productive use of my airplane time by binge watching LinkedIn Learning courses instead of Netflix. (The LinkedIn Learning mobile app lets you download courses for offline viewing.) My goal is to leave every flight feeling a little bit smarter than before we took off.

As an engineer, I tend to gravitate towards programming courses and other technical topics, but I’ve found that in-flight learning is the perfect time to focus on neglected soft-skills. The soft-skill courses tend to be short and easy to digest so you can complete them on a single flight. Also, being trapped in a flying metal tube gives you personal time to quietly reflect on the course you just watched and how it relates to your own life.

Here are the first 5 courses I plan to tickle my neurons with at 35,000 feet:

1. Overcoming Procrastination

Why I picked it: The LinkedIn Learning algorithm recommended this course to me immediately after I wasted 2 hours wandering down a YouTube-hole. How does it know me so well?

2. Professional Networking

Why I picked it: I understand the importance of professional networking, but doing it always weirds me out. I want to learn proper networking etiquette so I can do more than just winging it.

3. Gary Hamel on Busting Bureaucracy

Why I picked it: I just spent 7 years in a bureaucratic organization called the U.S. Air Force. There are plenty of leaders trying to bust through its bureaucracy, but it's been built up over decades and feels impossible to untangle. Maybe Gary has the magic answer.

4. Foundations of Fiction

Why I picked it: One of my personal goals for 2019 is to finish writing a novel I started last year. Progress has been slow and I fear it may roll over into a goal for 2020. Hopefully Jessica and Joanne can get my creative juices flowing again and inspire me to get it done.

5. Grammar Foundations

Why I picked it: If I’m going to write a novel, it needs to be readable. I feel confident in my own grammar skills which means I’m probably doing a lot of things wrong.

Let me know if you have any other recommendations for in-flight learning or productive ways to spend airplane time.

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Barron Stone is an electrical engineer and author of LinkedIn Learning courses including Programming Foundations: Object-Oriented Design and Electronics Foundations: Fundamentals.