KNOWLEDGE VS. SKILLS

(A) KNOWLEDGE:

Informal knowledge (IK) is based upon the awareness and information gathered by using the five senses.

Sources of Informal Knowledge:

1) Family:

Child is born in a family generally. Mother, father, siblings, grand parents and others become the source of the child's learning and the child acquires knowledge. This knowledge refers to the child's daily routine, child's eating and behaving habits. Foundation for child's character is laid here. Good family values, better the character of the child. Senses and observations through the senses are the basic tools for developing informal knowledge.

2) Community:

Community plays a vital role in developing IK. Children born in hilly areas do not fear going to forests and do not fear the animals in forests. While on the other hand, children born in cities do not dare to go in dark. Children born in snow clad areas play bare-footed on the snow while the children who go to snow clad areas had to wear heavy snow and cold resistance coats. Similarly, mother-tongue is developed by the community well. It is not possible that a child born in a state may speak mother-tongue of another state or country.

3) Religion:

Religion here is self-regulation for living a happy life. Unbridled living cannot be happy. Self-discipline and creating self-behaving boundaries do contribute to make life better. This is informal knowledge. It includes, inter-alia:

3.1 Early Rising:

Getting up before the sun rise. It improves health. If not possible for all days, at least 4-5 days a week will do.

3.2 Self Management:

Managing the bed after getting up is a personality trait. Navy of a country has included this habit in the candidates' personality traits for selecting the candidates in Navy. The opinion behind this inclusion is:

If a candidate cannot manage own bed, how can he manage the ship?

Tidiness, cleanliness and neatness are very significant for making the mind of the candidate clean. If the candidate manages own bed, the candidate will manage room's neatness and our ship's neatness is the opinion for inclusion of this train in personality test.

3.3 Punctuality:

Time management is also learnt informally. If family follows punctuality, the child learns it suo-moto.

3.4 Responsibility:

Owning responsibility for actions done comes from family, siblings, elders and community at large.

3.5 Exercising:

Walking, exercising, yoga or stretching or even PT energizes the body.

3.6 Eating Healthy:

Eating light home cooked foods. Avoiding very hot and very cold foods, Avoiding outside foods build health for bearing more stress, creating patience, managing reactions to stressful situations and long life.

3.7 Etiquette and Manners:

They add value to personality. They change a man into gentleman. Learning those etiquette and manners is informal knowledge gathered from family, community, siblings and others around. Respecting elders and others is appreciated and is free publicity. Talk less, talk low, talk slow and developing empathy and sympathy are other traits acquirable informally. Welcome with a smile, love and kindness not only to humans but to animals pays permanently. Such value based habits should be developed for becoming BETTER HUMAN.

(B) KNOWLEDGE:

Formal knowledge.

Sources of formal knowledge:

1. Schools
2. Colleges
3. Community colleges
4. Training Institutes
5. Short courses.
6. More ........... (Add in comment)

As child grows, child is sent to school for education. A CHILD WITHOUT EDUCATION is like A BIRD WITHOUT WINGS.

Scriptures say: Those parents who do not get their children educated are worse than enemies.

Child learns in school for about 10 to 12 years. Then the child joins college or university for degree or post graduation.

Other providers of formal knowledge are :

• community colleges,
• colleges for adults,
• evening colleges,
• open universities,
• Open schools,
• skill development institutes,
• trade institutes
• and the reader may add more in the comment.

Highest formal education is Ph.D after graduation and post graduation.

So, formal education takes about 20 years of life.

(C) Having gained informal and formal knowledge, earned degrees, child (now adult) looks for a successful job or joins the family business.

Here the child finds himself quite alien.

Why? In the school or college, fees(money) is paid and mental friction is one way i.e. hearing and listening and then presenting what is heard, read, and listened and learnt.

But in real world, for the job or in the business, money is the reward for performance. No befitting work, no reward. Adapting body and mind for this is a BIG CHALLENGE for the adult child. Because whatever has been taught and mastered in formal education seldom found straightly applicable in real world. This is how a child feels. But, it is not so, real world needs taming and trimming of the knowledge gained in schools and colleges or training institutes. Education and knowledge is needed to be trimmed and tamed to fit the real work in real world. More the cooperation between mind and heart, better will be the result and satisfaction.

A child with formal knowledge is sharper mentally than a child with informal knowledge alone.

The adage: Learn, unlearn and relearn need to be applied. Many remain on Learn stage and suffer throughout life. Unlearning and re-learning is very important.

Informal knowledge: Tools are senses and general observation. (Learn stage.) (Y)

Formal knowledge: Tools are books, lectures by teacher, exams, role play etc. (

(Learn Stage) (X)

ACCEPTANCE: Real world and seeing it through the lenses of "Learn stage." i.e. X+Y= Z. It is very difficult but not impossible. Learn stage is MINDFULLNESS. Focus on the extra 'L' i.e mental load. In "Z" stage: MINDFULLNESS changes to MINDFULNESS. Real world is observed through the lenses of knowledge gained. Birds are free, light and fly. Same stage is to be acquired mentally.

(C) SKILL (s) :

Bruce Lee says: Knowing not applying and doing pays in life. All knowledge when turned into skill enables a person to be happy. But turning knowledge into skill is a tough task. Hence, this exercise gives a mental conflict. What the industry needs, that is not known to the child and what the child knows is not fit for the industry.

For the knowledge gained by the child, the industry or organization which is in existence for many, many years will change its course of activities. Turning knowledge and education into SKILL is re-learning. It requires SELF-MENTAL-MANAGEMENT. Others only help through guidance but real job is to be done by the person her/himself. Self-guidance through Self-talk (not loud) helps a lot.

IT IS DUE TO THIS REASON THERE IS A SKILL GAP AND UNEMPLOYMENT.

So, what is the solution?

After gaining formal knowledge, joining an industry, observe the senior, attend the in-house training, attend seminar, read the magazines, watch videos and accept mentally that you are most important for the industry. Don't run after money or salary. Once you are able to win the trust of your management, money will run after you.

Avoid office gossip. It is not going to pay you. But it will backfire. Enjoy work and life fully..