Personal Development MP3: Learning
Stuart Tan asked:
I’ve been lucky to have picked up the skill of accelerated learning in my earlier years. It’s the single most important thing that has allowed me to be the person I am and fit into the knowledge economy. Having said that, I know a lot of people are struggling to develop their capabilities. Their main excuse is that learning is difficult and that they have been born with a poor memory.
That’s not really all true. I think everyone who can learn better can lead better, earn better and live better. It’s a basic requirement for anyone who is striving to achieve goals. Without the ability to learn, relearn and unlearn new and useful skills, you won’t be able to progress with new initiatives, because new concepts may not be compatible with your old way of learning.
Take for example, IT. If you realized by now, some people who have refused to learn to take up basic information technology are now sidelined. What’s worse, IT is more complex than it was 10 years ago. Today, you have new emerging technologies that require even more time to pick up. And guess what: people who are in the field of business are making their millions tapping into the knowledge of IT.
There are two starting points to this. First, accelerated learning. You must know the basic technologies. Second, neurolinguistic programming. As a meta science, it focuses on modeling what is working, and therefore, helps the individual practitioner learn more about the people around him or her.
Imagine this. You are employed in a new workplace environment. What might happen if you could learn faster than your peers? What might you be able to contribute in a meeting? Or in a project? What might happen if you could digest enough information to save the organization $5m in costs? Or help see opportunities simply because you are more widely read?
Learning is a significant skill, and it’s a pity that we are putting a lot of our priorities backward. For instance, people spend more on a branded pen than learning how to learn. The first step is easy: pick up a book to learn or attend an accelerated learning course. The next steps are much harder: applying it. And that is where you have to build and maintain the discipline and commit to becoming a lifelong learner.
