Introduction of physics- Physics Essentials

Why do most people believe physics is too hard? Most people get hung up by the feeling that they do not 100% totally understand what is being explained. They get very frustrated and stop trying. 

First, please understand that each person who learns any subject will learn it in their own individual way. Physics is about the basic rules that help us figure out how things work. Each person has to figure out the ins and outs of being able to apply them in any given situation. There is no one correct way to apply them. But if you can correctly predict what will happen, given a set of circumstances, you can understand those physics rules as well as anyone who has learned physics before you, your teacher, Newton, Einstein or the many sometimes very frustrated high school and college students.

But it does not stop there, you can always add to this knowledge, and I am still  learning about physics now even though I have studied it for two years in high school, four years in college, ten years during graduate school and five more years teaching it at different levels. If you can treat the whole process as a fun challenge to try to explain what we see and experience every day, and go forward with an open mind, you will be rewarded, occasionally, with the exhilarating feeling - "Oh! Now I understand what they were talking about!"

Now with that pep talk over, here are some methods that I have found helpful to at least some of my students. You will discover what works best for you, but it never hurts to try another one if you are experiencing difficulties.