Students, always keep learning – even an AI expert encourages this as the most valuable skill in the future. Techniques and tactics change over time, but principles are timeless. The importance of learning is one of those principles, and if an AI expert is advocating this, maybe we should all sit up and take notice. Of course, as an educational professional, I have an obvious bias towards the value of continuous learning. But even Bill Gates cites continuous learning as an important key to success.
The Real Learning Begins After School is Done
It may sound cliché, because it probably is, but learning should not stop once you leave school. If anything, after school is done is when your REAL learning should begin. For example, in my professional field of engineering, although we learned a lot in school, the really good stuff is never taught in classrooms, nor does it appear in textbooks. The really good stuff must be learned on the job, “in the trenches” so to speak. I suspect this is true for most professions. If all you do is rely on the textbook, then your competition (or the enemy, if you are a soldier) can read you like a book and easily defeat you.
Learn, Adapt
We must adapt, innovate, and overcome – just like the US Marines always encourage. Flexibility of mind is important. The most successful species on planet Earth are not necessarily the fastest, strongest, or even the smartest. Rather, the most successful species are the ones that adapt most readily to changing conditions. We must constantly be learning, so that we can adapt as the world changes. An associate I met through networking in the local business community mentioned this when he advised me to be ready and willing to pivot as needed, to adjust to changing situations and customer needs. For example, as an engineer, new technology appears regularly. A good engineer will stay current and learn about that new technology, eager for a chance to apply it appropriately to their profession. The most obvious current example of this is AI. I actively encourage students to learn how to use AI wisely to help get additional practice to enhance their learning and study. I find AI useful for summarizing recent news without having to search various news sites myself, and also for quickly finding information and analysis regarding the stock market and possible investments.
Many Learning Modalities
Pick up a book and read. Watch YouTube videos explaining new things that you have not learned yet. Make meaningful connections, and ask people about topics they are well-versed in so that you can learn from their expertise. Take a class to learn something new and interesting, or to deepen your understanding of an existing skill. Be willing to always ask questions and challenge your assumptions. Often when I tutor a student, I advise them to check the answer I helped them arrive at, saying “What if I’m wrong? What if I’m lying to you?”
Apply Your New Skills and Knowledge
Look for ways to practice and apply what you learn. Recently read a book about martial arts? Try out some of those new techniques with your training partners in the dojo. Did you recently read a book about improving communication skills? Look for a chance to use those skills next time you talk to your spouse, a customer, or someone else you want to have a positive influence on. Did you recently read about situational awareness to avoid violent crime? Start practicing those awareness techniques the next time you leave the house, even if you are just going to the local supermarket to buy groceries.
After you practice those new skills, ask yourself what you did right, and what areas you could improve on. Armed with that knowledge, try do better on the next go-round. Get in the habit of being in a constant learning loop, honestly analyzing what you can do to improve, and then taking action to actively improve consistently. Feel free to ask friends, family, and other associates for help monitoring you and providing suggestions on how you can improve. If you have the right friends, they will be happy to help you improve yourself. Even if you only improve by 1% or a fraction of 1% in a day, by repeating that every day consistently over a long period of time, you can make significant advances in your learning and your skills.
Teach Others
And when you have learned something new, a great way to help reinforce it in your mind is to teach others what you have learned. I read online (I think it was on Facebook) that a sensei (teacher) is merely a student who continues their learning path by teaching others. Sharing the gift of knowledge is one of the most satisfying activities I have found in life. One of my former classmates at UC Riverside once said “see one, do one, teach one – that’s the Army way.” That is good advice for life, even if you never serve in the military.
What do you think? Please leave a comment below. Thanks for reading this post!