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Rutendo Gwatidzo, Changing Perspectives
In today’s rapidly changing world, education does not stop after graduation.
I remember as I grew up, I could not wait to reach a level where I could tell everyone that I had completed learning.
This was because there were people who would brag about finishing school. I was mistaken to think that finishing a certain level at school meant closing the learning chapter of life.
Is learning a hard thing? Many people deem learning as something hard.
This is because they confuse studying and learning. It is possible to complete studying however, learning should be a lifelong exercise.
The day you stop learning is probably the day you stop growing or becoming better. Growth comes with learning, the same applies to success.
I would like to believe that we all desire to be successful in what we do hence we should desire continuous learning. Learning is not about taking particular studies only, you should be learning something in everything you do.
Both positive and negative events of life should teach us something.
South Africa late former president Nelson Mandela once mentioned that the secret he discovered after climbing a hill is that there are many other hills to climb.
Martin Luther King Jnr once mentioned that it was important to keep on moving forward. He said , “if you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk. If you can walk, then crawl. Whatever you do, keep moving forward.
President Mnangagwa once said “success is not measured by how high we go, but how many we lift up with us.”
There are countless lessons we learn through the lives of other people who do better than us and we also get to learn from those who do worse than us.
Organisational status
One of the challenges in many organisations is that of having redundant leaders and teams who stopped learning.
The reason why many organisations are shrinking is probably because they are being led by managers and team leaders who have reached the maximum capacity of learning and they probably think that they know it all.
Others believe there is nothing else that can be done to improve the organisation because whatever could have been done has been done already.
In most cases such leaders do not want to give room to others to try new skills because they believe that they are everything that the organisation needs.
For organisations to keep on doing better they require teams that keep on learning to improve things.
Management should invest in continuous learning programmes.
Some benefits of continuous learning
Stay relevant in what you do – new technologies and skills are constantly emerging.
Lifelong learning allows you to adopt and remain competitive in what you do.
Enhance your creativity
Hearing new things keeps your mind fresh and sparks new ideas, leading to greater creativity and problem solving skills. Connect with others
Learning can be a social experience. It allows you to meet new like-minded people on whom you can build meaningful relationships with.
Increases overall well-being
Lifelong learning boosts self-confidence and fosters a sense of accomplishment leading to greater happiness and well-being. When you know what you should do, there is a certain joy and confidence that comes with it.
The beauty of lifelong learning is that it is accessible to everyone who desires to have it.
You do not need a degree or special qualification to be part of it, all you need is to make a decision and a commitment to be a student for life.
I know that someone may be wondering about how exactly does it work? The interesting part of it is that we get to learn from everyday experiences.
You can read news articles, engage in meaningful conversations with others from different backgrounds, take physical or online courses and listen to audio books or podcasts just to mention a few.
Come to think of it, how many times have you come across things probably on a daily basis that you tell yourself to either follow suit or stay away from?
Whatever reason for either or, becomes your lessons learnt. You need to be deliberate though in applying the lessons you learnt so that they become practical and yield results.
A lesson can only become relevant when it has accomplished that which it is meant to accomplish.
Allow your everyday lessons to make you wiser, mature, better or progressive.
Be challenged, encouraged and inspired to be a student for life and to keep on learning.
Never reach enough when it comes to learning. Once you become a big fish in a small pond, move to the sea and the ocean where you always find enough room to be the best version of yourself.
Rutendo Gwatidzo is the managing consultant at The HUB HR Consultancy – as a culture and change management specialist. She is a multi-award winning leader, consultant, speaker and coach. She is also an author of “Born to Fight” and “Breaking the Silence” books. Gwatidzo recently received the business transformation leader of the year award at Megafest Women’s Awards. Feedback: 0714575805/ [email protected] / Rutendo Gwatidzo_Official fb public page.
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