Being a Lifelong Learner
I recently attended my Strategic Coach session in Santa Monica. Once again, I was impressed by the attendees’ consistent commitment to learning and growing intellectually.
Two of my children have received dyslexia diagnoses, and spending time with the doctor who did the assessments was an emotional process for me. As the doctor went through the evaluation with my daughter, I felt as if he were talking to me.
I am not sure I have always had a love of learning. As a child, I did not love to read, though I didn’t have a clear reason why. I knew reading was difficult for me, but I was able to get through school flying under the radar without any clear understanding that I potentially had a challenge.
In my early 20s, I realized that to accomplish the things I wanted to accomplish, I needed to learn, and reading seemed like the way to do it. I figured the only way to get better at reading—and to actually enjoy it—was to do it.
I checked out lots of physical books and audiobooks on CD from the library. I set a goal to be reading or listening to one or two books at any given time.
I have not always kept track of all the books I have read or listened to. Some years, the number feels like an important milestone.
At this point, I am less concerned about the number of books read and more focused on the principal of continual learning. Being a lifelong learner is a value I am completely committed to.
I have heard many times that “we are the product of the people we surround ourselves with and the books we read,” so I try to be around good people and read as much as I can.
One of Menlo Group’s core values is success minded, which I believe is synonymous with being a lifelong learner. My family has also established core values, and one of them is to be a lifelong learner. We strive to teach our kids and install in them a love of learning.
My most recent read was The Almanack of Naval Ravikant. The book gives some thoughts about those who continue to learn through reading:
“I probably read for one to two hours a day. That puts me in the top .00001 percent. I think that alone accounts for any material success I’ve had in my life and any intelligence I might have.”
“Reading science, math and philosophy one hour per day will likely put you at the upper echelon of human success within seven years.”
“When you’re reading a book and you’re confused… you’re building mental muscles.”
“If you’re a perpetual learning machine, you will never be out of options for how to make money.”
“Explain what you learned to someone else. Teaching forces learning.”