Educating Ourselves ~ Chuck Morris

EDUCATING OURSELVES

Lby Chuck Morris Lifelong learning and personal development can be the means to steadily improve oneself and position you to take advantage of good job opportunities when they arise. Many of us read as often as time allows, and that is a good place to start. Reading is good, and if some of the material you read is motivational and career enhancing, so much the better. However, have you thought about continuing education? Take a look around you, and you may notice some of your peers attending night classes, distance courses through Thompson Rivers or other colleges and universities. How do they make the time to do this? Why are they adding to their work load? Many of these people work ten or eleven hours a day and then they spend another two to three on studies! Don’t they have a life? Yes, they do have a life. Albeit a busy life, they are laying the groundwork for an even better one! We know that investing a little more in the way of resources on a project will make it better, reducing downtime and additional costs. Life is much like that when it comes to education and enhancing your time on this earth.

In our jobs, we are continually bombarded with new technology, improved methods to accomplish specific tasks, conservation ideas that can save thousands of dollars for the district, and much, much more. How do YOU keep abreast of these things?

The simplest way is to pick up a book and read it. That can be a start. Oh, it does not have to be a three inch volume on energy management, but something much smaller and to the point. We need to begin somewhere!

“But (you ask) where do I look? I can think of a few issues that I need some information on, but not much else.” Do not underestimate education and your needs. Even IF you THINK you know it, you still need more on that topic. Take customer service as an example; in our jobs, we deal with thousands of customers! Teachers, students and parents are our customers. Treat them like anything else and you will pay for it. We can always learn more to improve our customer service, energy management, interpersonal skills, duty to accommodate or ethics. Get the picture?

You need to remember, this is as easy as picking up a book. But don’t stop with that book! There are lots of them out there. Walk into Chapters or Indigo Books and cruise the Leadership or Management sections. The number of books will floor you as you stand in front of the shelves reading titles like You.INC!, Make Your Life A

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Masterpiece, Making Work-Work, Transforming the Art of Leadership and so many more. Pick some up and look through them. Find the type of writing that works for you. Do you like the style that is varied and easy to follow, or do you like tightly packed text that really spells out a message? Both styles of writing do the same job. Start with something!

If you are really getting into it, why not (once in awhile) pick a book that is based on history or geographical locations. Just expanding your reading will not only allow you to broaden your knowledge base but expose you to words and sentence structures that can help you with everyday life. See! Skill sets can become easier to obtain but you need to make that first step. Reading is one fantastic way to begin moving down that wonderful, colorful, exciting road! Now then, how about going the next step?

Peruse the continuing education offerings at your local college or university or even your school district. The offerings vary widely, and so does the time commitment. Most courses dealing with Continuing Education at a local school take up two nights a week for two to three months. Sign on with a local college, or go online (what a terrific way to achieve a goal) and learn with others. Actually, online is really nice because you can do some of the courses offered at your own pace, either in your own home or at the office after your hectic day is over.

The bottom line is two-fold. You CAN expand your knowledge base, which will enhance your current job, and perhaps even open a few doors for a job elsewhere. That usually means a salary lift if you move on to greater responsibilities and trust. Education really does work. Being out of school for the past thirty years does not mean you have stopped learning. It means you may be a little rusty, but the door has not completely shut…so push it open! Lifelong learning and personal development has a place in YOUR life. Do something with it!

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