Most of us spend more than 90% of our under 20 years following formal education. For some, very fruitful years, for others seemingly a waste of precious years that could have been used to ‘get ahead of the game’.
Whether or not you look back on these years fondly or with sweet relief, one thing is for sure: you were learning. But what of your learning now? In the span of a day or a week, how much are you actually learning?
Where to start?
One thing that I have noticed is that we tend to get so caught up in our day-to-day lives that we forget to keep growing. We forget to keep our inner kid satisfied by answering the never ending string of ‘why’s’. Could be that for a lot of us, that same kid is sitting in the corner of our minds, hushed into silence and reminded that school is over each time that curiosity strikes. If this is the case for you, even if it’s only occasionally then definitely take stay tuned.
Tell me something and let me throw in some business terms, while I am at it: If we are our greatest asset, why would we stop investing in ourselves? You are probably no stranger to the phrase: knowledge is the best way that we can invest in ourselves. Or something along those lines. BUT, I want to take it one step further and say that it is HOW you use the knowledge that you acquire that makes all the difference.
Let’s take it one step at a time though. First, we need to focus on acquiring knowledge. Below, I have compiled some great resources based on my personal experience and that I really enjoy using. I have also included some other resources that I have not tried yet but that also come highly recommended.
A small collection of useful resources
Note: Keep in mind, though, that I compiled this post for general knowledge enrichment. For topic-specific learning, there are probably many other great sites that I did not mention here.
1. Online Courses
This is where it all starts for me. I am a visual learner, so if I can find a course on it, I am happy. Whatever it is that I am trying to learn, I like to start of with a course. These are my go-to places to help me build a solid starting foundation.
Others:
2. Lectures
Sometimes it’s nice to mix it up from more formal learning (online courses) to informal learning (personal stories).
Others:
3. Tools
I used to be a post-it and scrap paper fiend but now I have gone digital. Luckily, this has made me more organized, believe it or not with the help of the following:
- Evernote : Note taking app
- OneNote : Digital notebook
- Wunderlist : Great all-round organizer for lists, reminders etc.
Evernote and Wunderlist are both for personal use, to capture daily ideas and recommendations. You know how sometimes people recommend books, movies etc. Well, this is where I used to scramble for any piece of paper I could find. Knowing full well that I would probably lose it in that same week. I cannot get enough of OneNote at work. This is where I keep all information together. Even outside of work, if I am watching a Ted-Ed video and I want to quickly jot something down, most likely it will end up in my OneNote (It will go in my personal development tab under general notes). Then when I am thinking of new ideas for here, I can refer to these notes.
Others:
- Feedly : Keep up-to-date with all of your online content in easy to read feeds. Easy minimalist reading without the noise.
- Pocket : Save information on the go, from everywhere. Similar to Evernote.
- Mind Meister : Mind mapping tool (First 3 maps are free)
Takeaways
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, if you haven’t already, start investing in yourself. Never stop learning. Find what works for you and go explore the vast sea of information resources out there. Remember, don’t let your inner kid be silent any longer; feed your curiosity!
Feel free to leave a comment about other tools that you have found useful.
Also, I will keep updating this post as I come across new and exciting resources.
Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. Somehow I feel that I need to explicitly mention this here.
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“Ancora imparo / I’m still learning”
— Michelangelo
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