What kind of life does a “life-long learner” have? This is a very powerful question. My answer to this without reservation is a VIBRANT LIFE. A vibrant life is pulsating with energy, power, and strength. I believe we have no choice but to be lifelong learners. We all have dreams, desires, and a destiny stirring within us! To move forward with our ideals, we must be on the cutting edge of best life practices with an arsenal of fresh strategies, systems and smarts. Exercising our self-leadership muscle, we must acquire knowledge relentlessly not in pursuit of self-satisfaction but to share our wisdom in service to the world.
Leadership can be defined as influence. And influence is diminished by blind spots and overused strengths. Therefore, we vibrant types must become a lifelong learner in order to identify and correct our blind spots and overused strengths. Otherwise, we limit our performance and, in the long term, create a ceiling on our ability to take possibilities and turn them into probabilities.
I celebrate learning as the most reliable route to enlightenment. Enlightenment is being free of ignorance and misinformation about ourselves and the world we live in. The proverbial light bulb comes on when we create a foundation of self-understanding and develop a plan to lead ourselves well through intentional personal development.
The first stage of enlightenment is the utilization of assessment. Assessment is a continuous process of gathering details of our life’s journey in order to develop our dreams. Our assessment stage may include a formal assessment of personality using an instrument such as the Path Element Profile or it may simply be the compilation of journal entries written over a space of time. All of this information is captured for the purpose of creating a perspective around how we show up in the world.
Next, we are invited to bring balance to our lifestyle by defining an ideal persona. There is where we construct a plan of action that will propel us to a new level of productivity, which ultimately delivers positive results. To reach this new level of productivity, we must engage in a due diligence process. We must take stock around the following:
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The structure and pitfalls of our daily lives: the opportunities and restrictions
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The scope of our roles: including the unspoken but real responsibilities
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Our inner strengths: which are frequently unrecognized that will propel us through the challenging journey of learning
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Personality factors: that have tripped us up in the past or might derail future development
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Finally, our level of self-awareness: our impact on others and the ability to handle conflict and uncertainty
This is an exercise in “learning to learn” which can itself create a challenge. At this point, we see we need to make a change. It’s likely we’ll experience internal conflict as old and new meanings or values clash. We begin to feel discounted fro past habits. We feel disoriented, as new skills require new behavior. We must have new knowledge to make a change.
Here are ideas to become a life long learner:
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At all times, be formally engaged in some kind of “classroom” learning environment.
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Learn with the intention of teaching others what insight you gain.
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Keep a “To Learn” list.
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Ask others for feedback about your performance.
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Seek out social groups that encourage learning such as a book club.
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Watch Educational Videos on YouTube.
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Subscribe to podcasts that feed your dream.
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Start a blog.
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Join Toastmasters International.
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Volunteer for a cause.
Embracing a lifestyle of lifelong learning can provide the essential fresh strategies we need to live into our dreams, desires, and destiny.
