I can remember growing up and not even thinking twice about how important it is to learn and be educated. My primary focus was on playing sports and enjoying time with friends - that was the most important thing. Throughout grade school and high school I basically coasted along, going through the motions and getting mostly B's with a few C's and A's, mostly without much effort outside of the classroom. This mind-set didn't change much, maybe even declined as I graduated high school and went to junior college at Harper and ECC. I barley went to class and had no desire to learn anything new. You could say I thought I knew it all as most teenagers assume - at least the males. I pretty much spent most of the time partying with friends and enjoying life, without even a clue as to what I wanted to do.
Moving on to my decision to go to a four year college in 2000. I felt I had to do something as I, and the majority of the people I was hanging with, really had no direction - and drifting through life. So I had a self-realization, so to speak, and went through (mentally) what it is I really like to do, outside of playing sports. I came up with two paths - both of which would enable me to move out of the mid-west and to the west. It came down to culinary school and film/audio school. Well, I chose to go to film/audio school at Columbia College Chicago. This is where things started to change for me mentally, as the subject matter and teachers at Columbia were intriguing, engaging, and informative. Although I had been more engaged than ever, I was still only giving about 75% effort towards learning, homework, and classroom participation. This could be attributed to just growing up and realizing how the world actually works or just slow to adhere to authority. Needless to say I graduated with a 3.0 average (not bad) and made the move to Los Angeles shortly after.
Not to lose sight of what this post is about, as it's not about me per-se but it gives a real life example to compare to; it's the fact that there is so much to learn and so little time. The amount of information out there that we now have instant access to is mind-boggling to say the least. This phenomena really hadn't occurred to me until recently. Learning is actually addictive, and the personal growth one can achieve through this access to information can be exponential. I say exponential meaning once your mind is trained to obtain and process information and you break through the misconception that you know everything and/or are content with who you are and what you know, the craving to learn overcomes and drives you.
Take for example my recent studies at Northeastern University where I obtained my MBA. The amount of information and knowledge I gained just by dedicating myself to learning the material has been a life changer for me. I like to describe it as a mental evolutionary leap. It was the first time I actually gave 100% effort towards school or any learning for that matter. Now, I can essentially talk business and economics with anyone, from Fortune 500 execs to Professors to regular people. To be honest, it has gotten to the point where I'd rather sit down and read a book or watch an educational documentary, or a TEDTalk than some mindless television show or movie. I've even contemplated going for a PHD, if it did not cost an absurd amount of money of course.
The point is, once you realize the importance of education and the value of being informed, the more you want to know and obtain, and the less time you want to waste on meaningless content - it's an addiction just like cigarettes or alcohol. Further, the more educated one is the more freedom one has and the less chance one has of being controlled by fear. Couple all that with the fact that life is short, even if you live to 90, that is only a blink of an eye in the broad scope of life on earth.
We are living in the information age, and now have access to everything and anything at the push of a button or by typing a few keywords in a Google search. Many of the top universities are now offering their courses online to anyone interested, granted you will not get credit or a diploma; however you will gain the knowledge which can be applied to your daily life and career.
Learn as much as you can while you can - you will not regret it - and no one can ever take what you've learned away from you. You can lose material things, family and friends, but what knowledge you have that is yours (outside of a mental disease or injury). In my opinion the most important thing to living is consuming information and growing as a man and as a human. And then passing that education/knowledge down to others willing to listen and learn.
As always, I'd love to hear your comments on this topic, so please leave comments if you desire.
PS - If you are in need of any Business and Marketing consultation for your small to mid-sized business/start-up feel free to shoot me an email at: modernbizstrategy@gmail.com.
Cheers,
ModernManTellsAll
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