Our Most Valuable Asset is Our Mind

I never felt compelled to attend school or even graduate when I was in high school. My parents never made education or even graduating from High School a priority in my mind, which almost resulted in me dropping out of school. If it weren’t for some family friends who intervened to make sure I graduated, I most likely wouldn’t be where I am today.

But even after graduating from High School, my attempts to go to college never really stuck. I just couldn’t get engaged and I didn’t really have much of a desire to learn as at the time, it didn’t seem necessary or even relevant.

It wasn’t until I was in the military where I got exposed to lifelong learning and its benefits. The military required education credits to get promoted. We would sign up for courses on different topics around leadership which would last about 4 to 6 weeks and receive credits towards our next promotion. I didn’t realize it at the time, but this exercise stuck with me and even after the military, where I would seek out courses to help me learn more.

Lifelong learning is defined as any learning activity that is voluntary, self-motivated, and undertaken throughout life. Simple enough, right? To me, yes but I’ve found for others, not so much. It seems we have a habit of letting “life” get in the way of pursuing learning opportunities. I’ve heard just about every reason from financial, children, family obligations, too busy, or it’s just not the right time. While some reasons I find are formidable, others are not so much. It seems that we overthink our educational opportunities rather than thinking small. Learning doesn’t need to be a multi-year full time commitment!

Let’s start with our mindset. What does it mean to be a lifelong learner? First, abandon those commonly held beliefs that learning is a one and done proposition. Instead, think about learning as a nonstop career transport system. As you move through your career, you need to keep learning to evolve, remain agile, adapt, and keep up with the needs of the organization or the industry. The new skills, knowledge and abilities learned will keep you on the transport system. Second, this is about you. Personal development often gets lost as we get involved with other demands throughout our life. I typically need to remind others that as Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs indicates, self-actualization or achieving one’s full potential, is at the top of the pyramid. Nothing in the Hierarchy that indicates the need to put oneself last or put others before yourself.

Professional development is the process of learning that reinforces your skills, confidence, and above all, your mind. Further, improving your self-confidence also strengthens your self-esteem, job performance, and ability to adapt to quickly changing environments. A professional development mindset also fulfills our need to explore, learn and grow which changes and evolves over time. For example, during my military time in Okinawa, I was curious about history and culture. So I traveled to other countries and read about their history. After the military, while I still traveled and read about different histories, I became curious about business and management. Curious about the healthcare system and leadership. Taking courses throughout your career can inspire you, keep you mentally sharp and give you an edge in the workforce. It doesn’t really matter the subject; take a course in something that interests you to re-ignite what makes you tick as a person. Diversity in learning indicates your desire to progress and engage in life. It also gives you an advantage in the workforce.

For example, I’ve learned and participated in many different careers. I worked as a teacher (math), real estate agent, travel agent, electrician, research analyst, web application designer, network designer, database administrator, and desktop support technician, to name a few. While all diverse endeavors, each experience has given me an excellent background to work in ambulatory healthcare operations. To supplement experience, I’ve completed bachelor’s and master’s programs while taking smaller and shorter courses to become certified in areas I thought would be important to my professional development like Lean Six-Sigma, change management, and organizational design.

And for those that think it’s too late… It’s never too late. Lifelong learning truly means lifelong. I received my bachelors when I was 42 and my masters at 48. I’ve seen others get their degrees in their 50s and 60s. It was a matter of getting out of their comfort zones and not settling for the status quo. It was getting beyond the fear and excuses we feed ourselves to move into a zone of finding new purpose and conquering our limits. Every time we get out of the comfort zone, we learn something new; even if we fail, we learn.

I often tell others it doesn’t matter the course or activity; it matters that you are learning and doing something that matters to you. Challenge yourself and take responsibility for your future; seek out opportunities to learn and grow. Don’t think “Mountain,” think “transport system.” Stretch beyond what you think is possible and start small.

“Commit yourself to lifelong learning. The most valuable asset you’ll ever have is your mind and what you put into it.” ~Brian Tracy

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