Ongoing Learning

"When you are green you are growing, but when you are ripe you are starting to rot." That was one of the many quotes of Ray Kroc, the MacDonald's chain founder. I believe it totally. It is a natural law of the universe.

Only he know what he was refering to for sure. For me, it means you have to keep learning, keep experiencing new things and continually use your imagination. Healthy mental growth is a must. We need to keep feeding it. Like most things in nature. Lack of use means the end is nearby.

A simple concept to accept really. 

Kids know the value of this idea. They all soak up new information and new experiences. Actually, it does not have to be new. They will go over the same stuff day after day. Never tiring of it. They love the mental stimulation. That's why they go over and over the same material. Many understand it totally first-time, but that does not stop them repeating it. They're a perfect example of being “green” and growing.

Receiving new input or material on a new topic does contribute to mental growth. That's a wonderful place to begin this new journey. This exposure to new material is an excellent catalyst for growth. It’s addictive to many.

Use a young person as your role model for this exercise. 

You really want to be as curious as a little child about everything. Remember, you had the skill to do this at one time in your lives. It's time for you to go back to the level you enjoyed as a child.

Your mind will grow very fast as you learn new information and become exposed to new material. It is very healthy to be in this learning environment. This is the result you want to achieve.

Become a continuous learner right away. There is excellent online management training to help.

Let's discuss a couple of additional issues.

The first one is learning something new and exciting, but not taking any action with this new knowledge. It is a variation of an issue I have written about before. A small problem gets very big when no action is taken.

It's a big issue when we think we know "everything there is to know" about a topic. This is a very big problem for so-called experts or gurus. These can be the craftsperson at the top of their trade or a senior manager in an organization. Some trade associations try to fix this. Many of them have minimum numbers of educational hours every year. This additional education is designed to keep people from getting stale.

You could end up being in this “I know it already” predicament.

So what's a great way to know if you are vulnerable? If you ever find yourself verbalizing, “I know all about that”, that's a hint. This is a great limitation that's self-inflicted.

Take some time to think about how you respond in certain circumstances. For example, if someone starts to tell you about something and you interrupt saying, “Yep, I know.” Generally you'll cut off any more input. You have stopped communications.

Or, you will say "I know" or "I have heard this all before" in your mind and stop listening.

I like to think of myself is a perpetual student Many people think of me as being an expert in my fields of business development and management training. I think that's great they feel that way, but I prefer to think myself a student. I focus on attending any educational than I can. Whenever possible I seek out and talk to others in my field.

Hopefully, you'll find yourself adopting a similar approach to the one I take.

Don't sit around too long. Stretch your mind. Find a big issue. Click on this great article. It will help you out in your quest to stretch your mind.