Greetings Kamazooies! 

Just a little thought as we head into the weekend. I was discussing university education with my father and he told me that I'm not done yet. I have to be learning all the time so I did some looking around to write a bit on this topic.

The late, great Henry Ford said, "Anyone who stops learning is old whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young." 

Recently passed Nelson Mandela said about learning, "Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world."

Would you consider yourself to be a continual learner?  Here are some points from educator Michael Dillion, Ed. D, on how you can continue to learn throughout your life. 

How do you position yourself as a continual learner?

1. A continual learner must first have curiosity. This curiosity includes a willingness to recognize you don’t know, and being willing to be wrong and having your view of the world challenged.

2. You need to be present in the world. This means watching, listening, reflecting upon your experiences, and asking questions. Begin the day asking why and how of the world. Make a goal of truly inquiring from someone daily. Do this at work, the coffee shop, with your friends and family, and anyone! Don’t passively listen to people around you; ask open ended and deep questions, you might be surprised of the answers if you listen.

3. Remove clutter and noise. Consider how you spend your down time. Eliminate senseless noise and make space to pause and reflect. Start a journal in which you write some notes about your day, the learning that took place, and your curiosities.

4. Join or create a learning community. Take a MOOC (massive open online course) and meet with fellow learners in your area, join or start a Meetup, or use any means to make your learning social and full of rich dialogue. Learning communities can be formed around a curiosity, a podcast, a book, or just about anything. Be strategic with this by engaging in topics and people outside of your usual comfort zone.

Just like trying to remember to perform a small act of kindness each day or week, I'm going to try to heed my dad's advice and to find something each day that I can say that I have learned and can apply in the future.

I would love to hear what you've learned this week.

Have a great weekend everyone!!!