Rediscovering the Joy of Learning

When I was young, my education was developed by memorizing specific facts and information to pass a test or get a “good” grade in school. There were systems in place to reach a standardized mark, and you were measured by either passing or failing. This system of education engrained in me a pattern of learning what I only needed to know to “pass,” which led to me rushing through the material and focusing on just the necessary information to get to the next thing.

I certainly did not enjoy or have a passion for the things I needed to learn to meet the standard. It became a trajectory that I would carry throughout my college years and then trickled into the workforce. What did I have to learn to get the degree I wanted to obtain? What did I have to learn to get the job I hoped to have? I moved from checkbox to checkbox and didn’t lean into a love or desire for learning. 

I worked in the media field for 15 years and certainly used the skills I had “checked off” for obtaining the career I had during that time. But, I had found myself on the road of complacency and eventually burnout because I had been so programmed into this system of gain-knowledge-to-get-to-the-intended-outcome. I had peaked by “meeting the mark” and “obtaining the goal"  in my career, yet felt dissatisfied because I questioned, “Is this all there is?”  I should have been happy or at least content for checking all the boxes and finally busting through the tape at the finish line in my career. But, I didn’t. Why did I feel this way? Shouldn’t joy spur from learning and achieving? The truth is that I had never seen learning in a way that was enjoyable and meaningful, but merely a means to an end. 

Fast forward a few years later, I had a major career change from the corporate world to working at home and homeschooling. It was during this time that I fell in love with learning and untangled this idea that learning meant only taking in the information I needed. I had freedom to immerse myself in good books — hearing stories of other people’s lives and events in history, taking time to sit, ponder and think critically about what I was reading from another person’s thoughts and actions, and learning valuable life lessons from what I had read. By simply reading a varied feast of stories and literature, I felt a revival in my spirit that opened up my mind, heart and soul to a range of ideas. This kind of learning was exhilarating and delightful, and it stimulated an awakening in me. I not only flourished in my personal relations with ideas, but ventured to branch out in learning new skills I had never thought to learn before because it wasn’t on my list to obtain “the prize.”

I began my own self-education and learned to watercolor, embroider, play the piano (I never learned as a child), cook using spices and ingredients I had never heard of before, start a garden, and others. As I spent more time working outdoors, I developed a passion for nature and the beautiful creations within. I started studying the different kinds of birds that would visit our home, their names, their calls and their behavior patterns. When we went to the beach, I picked up a shell I had never seen before, marveled at its exquisite pattern design and acted on my natural curiosity to find out what it was. That led to years spent studying, collecting and classifying sea shells out of a love of learning about them. I had no mark to meet, nor prize to obtain in acquiring knowledge about all these things. It was this innate desire and love of learning for just the sake of learning that showed me that education is all around us in our life, that it is to be continuously pursued and enjoyed. Just like our bodies need food and care, so do our minds need to be nourished to grow and get the most of life. 

In the workplace it is easy fall into the system or habit of only  “checking off the boxes” to get to where you want to be or only doing what is required to “meet the mark.” 

That’s not good for the organization or for the individual. Organizations thrive when their employees are continually learning new things (whether within the company or in their personal time). It brings diverse experiences and innovative ideas to the table to help the organization grow and succeed. Individually, people flourish when they have a passion for learning and not see it as a chore. 

Analyze yourself and see if your heart posture toward learning is positive or negative. Do you enjoy learning or just see it useful in achieving an aim? I would challenge you to take some time to think about learning in a completely different way — each day that we have in this life is an opportunity to learn something that we have never learned before. Learning should be a lifelong, joyous journey that enriches one’s life, not a burden.

Here are some questions to consider:

• Am I hesitant to learn new things/skills? If so, why?

• Are there things I have always wanted to learn, but have not? If so, what are those things?

• What am I passionate about? What are some ways that I could learn more about these things?

• Are there time wasters in my life that are hindering me from learning? How can I make time to learn more?

• What are the areas in my life that it would be useful to learn more about? 

• What are some books that I have been wanting to read?

• Are there people around me that I could talk to/shadow/have as a mentor to teach me new things?