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I have been out of school far longer than I care to admit
but one thing I miss most about those days is the easily accessible source of
knowledge I was given. I didn't really pursue a higher education (ie: college,
university) as it was much too expensive to go into without a set goal in mind.
I didn't want to gather a degree for a career; I wanted to learn, to explore,
to open myself to new ideas and discoveries.
Which is basically what this post is about - taking
knowledge into your own hands. There are so many different ways I gather
information on my interests and maybe you can take one of these away to use
yourself. Always be curious. Always learn. Teach yourself if others cannot. The
moment you stop, you waste away. Your very being exists to grow and gain
experiences and knowledge. Don't waste that!
Read books that interest you.
This is the non-fiction sort, of course. When I was 16 I
stumbled across Tudor England. You know, King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I.
And to this day, I still have such a strong passion to read everything I can
about this period of English history. What interests you? A particular time in
history maybe? Feudal Japan? Ancient Egypt? Colonial America? Or perhaps it’s
more in the science area! You can find anything about subjects ranging from
Forestry to Astronomy to Psychology. Take a day to visit your local library and
browse the aisles until something catches your eye.
Watch documentaries.
This is an easy one! You can find such a range of topics on
Netflix or even YouTube. I recently watched Pompeii - The Last Day and Happy.
Animals, earth, emotions, culture, society... you can find a documentary on
probably anything you might be curious about. And this would be a great place
to start, especially if you aren't a reader by choice.
A puzzle a day.
There are so many apps you can download for your tablet or
smart phone. As I posted just recently, I play a lot of word games. This helps
my vocabulary. Every day I come across a new word and I like to find the definition
of that word so I can challenge myself to use it in a sentence. Sudoku, word
finds, hidden objects, tangrams... anything that keeps your mind active and on
the ball helps you in the long run. There have been studies about this!
Learn a new word.
Open a dictionary and find a word you aren't familiar with,
then challenge yourself to use it at some point in the day. I have a horrid
memory so I often can't retain all of these words as I don't use them often
enough but the simple action of this ritual opens new ideas and ways to think.
And I do remember quite a few of them! It gives me pride to know I taught
myself something as simple as a single word!
Talk radio.
Ok. This can be a boring option for some people. I know
quite a few that have confessed to talk radio making them sleepy. But I love
it! I now have the habit of listening to NPR on the drive to and from work.
Sure, they give regular updates to the daily news but many of the programs they
offer are very educational! I especially love Science Friday and StoryCorps.
This summer I listened to the NPR Cities Project. It really opened my eyes (and
ears) to things I never took account of!!
These are just a sample of ways you can grow your brain! There
are many more ideas that I use for self-education. Which I will have to make a
follow-up post about! I’m excited just for writing these down. Yay for
learning!
Do you have any habits of self-knowledge? Share them in the
comments below! I love to find new ways I can open myself to knowledge.
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