Few decades back, information was power. Our access to information depended on the availability of books and magazines – be it from good libraries or our ability to buy. I remember the best debater in my school used to make notes from books and maintain paper cuttings from magazines / newspapers throughout the year on a range of topics. This became her arsenal during debate season.
Internet has changed all that; any information is available at click of a button. As per Datareportal Jan 2022, 4.95 billion people worldwide are using Internet, almost 62.5% of world population. Of this ~92% access it via mobile devices…
Indeed, information is at fingertips and most of it is free! Internet has truly democratized information.
What about learning? That’s an all-together different matter.
In today’s world of information overload, what differentiates individuals, teams and organizations is the ability to learn…more importantly the willingness to learn to learn.
Four interconnected aspects that make a difference are:
- Am I CURIOUS to understand things that I don’t know, or never knew existed? Do I have the openness to consider ideas from anywhere / anyone, from seemingly unrelated fields?
- Do I OBSERVE others in action, be leaders or co-workers (or even children, family, and friends)? What’s in their behaviors that is working? How are they solving problems / making decisions? What’s their choice of words? Which behaviors / actions might I benefit from?
- How do I APPLY it to my context –what works, doesn’t work, why so? What do I need to adapt to my context?
- Do I have the courage to engage in honest SELF-REFLECTION? It’s the foundation of our ability to learn: What am I doing well? What is not working? What should I do differently? Who can help?
“If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.”
Zig Zagler
Perspectives 