WHEN DO WE STOP LEARNING?

When we're born, we're off to the races. We begin our process of learning. Knowing what response we get to our cries, we begin to improve our eyesight, we're adamant about walking and don't give up until we master this skill. The learning continues as we go to school, through to college and even get our graduate degrees. When we go into internships and jobs, we are wide eyed, open to absorbing it all becoming the best we can be to achieve success and grow. 

...we are wide eyed, open to absorbing it all becoming the best we can be to achieve success and grow. 

When does that change? Or does it ever? For some of us life long learning is a value we cultivate and that will never leave us. For others it's about how to best cut corners, find the easy way out and not put the effort in learning. 

I observe this in many different situations and I find it unfortunate and even sometimes downright despicable how people don't care to learn when they're in professions that impact others. When their position requires them to make improvements in people's lives and yet they don't improve. 

Just because we're out of school, do we have a free ride to stay stagnant?

When did these people decide to stop learning? Just because we're out of school, do we have a free ride to stay stagnant? Just be the same person without any growth while the world and people around us develop, becoming more aware, advanced and improved? Unfortunately in our society we have to tread lightly and not hurt people's feelings or seem like the bad guy when you bring your observation to them about the potential for them to improve. We've discussed this in previous articles where we have to weigh the risk versus reward in these situations and at times the risks are too high to say anything and so as a society we can diminish in our development because those people around us that decide taking the easy way out, the shortcut, cutting corners, faking it, can get them by and unfortunately it does get them by more often than it ever should. 

One of my favorite terms is Kaizen. I use it often as I think of life long learning and in my work with my clients. It means, Never Ending and Continuous Improvement.

One of my favorite terms is Kaizen. I use it often as I think of life long learning and in my work with my clients. It means, Never Ending and Continuous Improvement. It's a term that was created in Supply Chain/Manufacturing and is relevant to us all, not just to the cars on the production line. The beauty of this word is that it is simple and efficient yet the definition is quite profound. It is highly relevant to being a life long learner, being aware of areas you can improve upon and making every effort to be better. To seek help from those who have more experience, to find guidance, mentorship, any lessons that can help you grow. 

This relates to the philosophy that if you know better, you can do better. However some of us never care to know better so how can the expectation be to do better? If the desire is the least amount of work for the greatest gain, then learning isn't a true part of this philosophy. However if it's: I don't know everything and I never will but my intention is to learn as much as I can and improve throughout my life, then true learning is the foundation of this philosophy. 

Take a look around you and at yourself. Which category do you fall into in the different aspects of your life?

Take a look around you and at yourself. Which category do you fall into in the different aspects of your life? Perhaps you're a life long learner of playing the guitar but don't care about improving your career skills. Or perhaps you want to learn as much as you can about your loved ones so you don't have to repeat the lessons learned but you never completed that language course you started five years ago. And how about those around you? Are you influenced by the people taking shortcuts or by the wise people always putting in the work to better themselves? This is your reflection to be had as well as your decision to make on how you decide to proceed in your life. 

I was always a good student, meaning I didn't get straight A's but I knew I had to study to do well. In college I really cared about grades and if I didn't get a good grade I wasn't happy. When I went to graduate school, I changed my philosophy. I decided I wouldn't care about grades, yet focus more on learning the material, truly becoming a master of my craft. Guess what? The good grades followed, because I cared about the learning. Basically the successful results followed because I cared about the process of learning, the performance of truly absorbing and understanding the material rather than just getting the grade and forgetting the material next semester. 

This is the difference of life long learning and my belief that we absolutely can't ever stop learning and can never give ourselves the permission to throw in the towel and take shortcuts. Rather than just caring about results, when we pride ourselves on learning, it's for us, not to prove anything to anyone else, and it's a gift for ourself, a nourishment, a replenishment. Now we don't have to sit in a room with a Professor in the front of it to learn. We have more access to learning than we can absorb in a lifetime and in such creative ways. Who doesn't want to have a fun abundantly filled life with knowledge, lessons, growth and Kaizen? 

Think about it. 

Help me spread the #ThoughtfulThursday idea by commenting, starting a conversation with your thoughts, sharing this article with a friend and making improvements in your life by taking the most important aspects of what you read and applying them. 

My hope is that these ideas help you in the way you desire them to. 

Thank you,

Tamara

Fitness and Wellness Coach, Personal Trainer, Instructor

EdM, MA Psychological Counseling, NASM Personal Trainer, AFAA Group Fitness, Precision Nutrition Level 1

Check Out My Services, Subscribe to my Newsletter: www.TamaraNisanov.com

Contact Me: [email protected]

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @TamaraNisanov

Read/Add To My 5 Star Reviews: https://g.co/kgs/vFgrR4