Imagine if what you've been told about learning is a myth. For example, many people believe that learning ends when you leave college, or that you need to have a high IQ to be able to learn easily. And it's also a common belief that only young people can learn new things. Now, not only are all these beliefs completely wrong — but they're also incredibly harmful to people who buy into them. The truth is that the ability to learn is available to everyone, including yourself. You just need to find the desire, motivation and purpose to get the 'learning habit'. That's what this article is all about. I'm going to show you the incredible benefits of lifelong learning. And I'm going to inspire you to start traveling down this glorious road so you can transform your life. Ready to get started? Then read on as I reveal five amazing things that will happen when you never stop learning.
1. You Have a Sharper Mind
Continuous learning helps to keep your mind fresh and your memory sharp. In fact, research has shown that learning in general has beneficial effects on the brain, including lessening your risk of dementia.((Research Gate:
Benefits of Lifelong Learning)) To give you an example of this in action, let me tell you about one of my life coaching clients. He initially came to me as he felt like he had lost his way in life (he was in his mid-40s at the time). Upon speaking with him, it became obvious to me that not only was he directionless, but he also lacked the spark of life. You know what I mean, that drive and energy that you get once you're excited about something. During the course of several one-to-one sessions with him, I was able to help him find out what he wanted to do in his life, and I also instilled in him the power of continuous learning. I did this by asking him to learn at least one new thing a day. After doing this for a month, he called me up to say that he was feeling enthusiastic about life again. He'd fallen in love with being curious about things and was learning new stuff everyday. He also told me that his mind and memory had never been sharper.
2. Your Confidence Is Boosted
If — like the person I mentioned above — you feel you've lost your way in life, then I'm guessing that your confidence has taken a knock too. This is where learning new things and taking on new challenges can really help. For example, imagine that you made the decision today to learn how to rock climb (even though you're afraid of heights!). You might initially read a book on the topic, or watch a few videos on YouTube. After that, you'd probably want to enroll in a professional rock climbing group. That way, you could learn to gradually overcome your fear of heights, while at the same time learning the essential techniques of rock climbing. Within a few weeks, you could be climbing to new heights!
3. Your Interpersonal Skills Are Improved
When you become an active learner, it's almost inevitable that you'll widen your social circle and improve your interpersonal skills. Let's say you decided to learn how to play chess... At first, you might learn the rules and some of the basic moves by playing against a computerized opponent. But keep doing this often enough, and eventually you'll want to test out your skills against a human opponent. This might be a friend, family member or colleague. But whoever it is, your mental battle with them will mean that you share a common experience. One that you're sure to talk about often. And if chess eventually becomes a favorite hobby of yours, you might well join a local chess club. This would allow you to meet lots of new people — all who love the game as much as you. This type of learning can extend your social circle, attract new friends, and enhance your relationships.
4. You Adapt Change a Lot Better
Greek philosopher Heraclitus revealed a timeless truth: "Change is the only constant in life." I'm sure you've experienced this in your life. However hard you try to avoid change; there's no holding this force back. Once you know this, though, then the secret to success is to be able to adapt to the changes that come your way. Learning can definitely help you do this. That's because through the learning process (say learning how to drive a car), you develop skills such as persistence, understanding and
resilience. All key skills that can help you deal with any changes in your life that you're forced to encounter. Learners are strivers. And strivers know how to turn challenges into opportunities, and adversities into blessings.
5. You Open Up New Career Opportunities
If you want to climb the career ladder or start your own business, then it's vital that you're constantly learning. But not just random stuff. To be effective, your learning should be primarily focused on your
career goals. For instance, if you wanted to set yourself up as a freelance business consultant, then I'd recommend that you did your research first:
- Who are your likely customers?
- What can you offer them?
- How much should you charge them?
- Can you secure enough work to pay your bills?
To find these answers, you probably need to read books and watch videos related to business consulting. But you'd also want to speak to likely customers, to see if and how you could be of help to them. These customers would also be able to give you an idea of how much they would be willing to pay for your services. If you decided to go ahead with pursuing this career, then the above research will be a good start. But you should keep learning how to improve your skills (including communication and marketing skills), and you should also seek feedback from all your clients — as this will be sure to reveal your strengths and weaknesses. When it comes to your career, the bottom line is this: By continually learning relevant, new information, you'll keep yourself ahead of your competitors. And you'll also keep yourself in demand from your clients.
Final Thoughts
So, as you can hopefully see from the above, a commitment to lifelong learning will turbocharge your health, happiness and success. And of course, there are more benefits to learning than the ones I've listed above. For instance, you're likely to earn more, you'll rekindle your zest for life — and you'll have fun! In my experience of managing dozens of staff and working with hundreds of life coaching clients, I've noticed that those people who have a love for learning, also have a love for life. They're naturally curious about everything. And this curiosity drives them to seek out new knowledge and skills. They're also unfazed by change (some of them actually thrive in these circumstances). If you feel that you've lost the 'learning bug', then please don't give up! Reignite your passion for learning through reading self-improvement books, watching inspiring movies, and most importantly... by learning new things! When you learn how to learn again, your life will be filled with progression and excitement.
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