I am still working on being consistent on my learning but the one thing that I find very discouraging.  My study schedule is very errant due to my varied external commitments and inevitably I end up having long gaps in my study.  When I get back, I find that what ever I have picked up two months ago are again new to me :(<p>So one of the biggest stumbling blocks in independent learning is to actually retain what you have already learnt over a period of time.  I am in the process of putting anki ( spaced repetition memory training program) to the task but I am not sure of the effectiveness yet.<p>Of course, I would be very happy to know if anyone has faced this issue and solved it!