Learning Mathematics
This article is going to be short. I’m just going to share that maths is actually fun. It’s not scary or impossibly hard like people often say—once you understand the fundamentals. If you have maths phobia or anxiety, then you’re reading the right article. I know because I used to have maths phobia too.
I still remember how I’d react when I came across anything maths-related—I’d quickly (and emotionally) avoid it. It’s like smelling durian when you don’t like the smell. You can’t handle it, so you just turn away.
I’m not someone who knows a lot about maths or is especially good at it. I’m just an amateur who loves to explore and discover new patterns in maths. There’s still so much I don’t understand, and I make plenty of mistakes—like struggling with factoring, messing up integration by parts, or forgetting to put "+ C" while integrating :). But here’s what I’ve learned: the fundamentals are always the hardest part of learning anything, and that’s exactly why they’re so important to master.
When it comes to learning maths, I think the most important thing is to develop a mathematical mindset—in other words, learning to think mathematically. This means truly understanding the basics. For example, asking questions like:
What are addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division?
What do they actually mean?
Is multiplication just the reverse operation of division?
What is an equation or inequality, and what do they represent?
Once you understand these basics, you can start asking deeper questions, like:
Why, for any non-zero number 𝑎, does raising 𝑎 to the power of zero always produce 1?
What is a function, and what are its properties?
Why do we avoid dividing by zero or taking the square root of a negative number when finding the domain of a function?
These questions might sound intimidating at first, but they’re the foundation of thinking mathematically.
Of course, before you can dive into the basics, you need to deal with your maths phobia first. And here’s the hard truth: the only person who can remove it is you. (Unless you’re planning to ask a neurosurgeon to remove it from your brain—but I wouldn’t recommend that!)
For me, the most effective way to overcome maths anxiety was to change my mindset. I started telling myself:
"Hey brain, maths is just patterns. It’s the language of patterns. There’s no pattern that can threaten your life, so stop treating it like a threat!"
Once I reframed maths in my mind, I started gradually exposing myself to it. At first, it felt painful—really painful. I’m not joking. But this is how we learn. In the beginning, it’s hard and uncomfortable, but if you stick with it—say, for 66 days, long enough to form a habit—it becomes easier. Your brain adapts, and eventually, maths stops being painful. It becomes a habit, a skill, and even something fun.
Anyway, I think this article is already longer than I expected. So, before I end it, I want to share a couple of resources that helped me when I started learning maths two years ago:
The website MathIsFun – This is a great supplemental resource. Whenever I got stuck on a specific topic, I’d check this site for a simple and clear explanation.
The book Thinking Mathematically by Robert Blitzer – This book (and almost all his books) is great for understanding mathematical thinking and the basics.
The AoPS Introduction Series – This series is excellent for building a strong mathematical foundation. It covers problem-solving techniques, logical reasoning, and deeper insights into math beyond standard school curricula.
Terence Tao’s blog – This blog by Terence Tao has fantastic posts with advice on learning maths and improving your skills.
In my experience, the website MathIsFun worked best as a supplement while I was reading Thinking Mathematically and AoPS. But ultimately, it’s up to you to choose the resources and methods that work best for you.
As Richard Feynman once said:
"Study hard what interests you the most in the most undisciplined, irreverent, and original manner possible."
And always remember: maths is just patterns—the language of patterns. Once you see it that way, it stops being scary and starts becoming fascinating.
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