Many years ago, I heard a story that, for me, held a lot of truth. The story was about an old grandmaster in Judo. This grandmaster was lying on his deathbed after living a long life. Upon reaching his final hours, he knew he didn’t have that long to live. While lying there, he requested from his students, “when you bury me, I want to be buried in my Judo suit, and I want to be dressed wearing my white belt.”
Now, if you know Judo, a white belt is the place every student new to martial arts starts. The grand master’s students were in shock when they heard his request. They said, “but master, you are our grandmaster, how can we even think about burying you in a white belt?” And the grandmaster replied, “for I will forever be a student.”
I believe learning and educating ourselves never ends. Also, I think that there is an unquestionable connection between the level of success and wealth a person has in their life, whether it be in a relationship or their bank account, to the level they are willing to commit to their self-growth and self-education.
I am going to dive a little deeper into the concept of learning and share with you my top 3 keys to increase your learning capabilities.
Unlearning
The more you know, the more value you bring to the marketplace. You might think that you need to learn loads and know everything about everything because of this notion.
From my experience, it’s not necessarily about piling on more information. It’s about unlearning the things that you might have thought to be true but simply are not.
So before you learn anything new, you need to take a step back and unlearn the untrue things because “false” notions will ultimately anchor you down. Step into learning with an open mind. This enables you to make more connections in your brain and remember information more easily.
Relevant
What you learn needs to be relevant. It’s no use just learning any old thing. What you learn has to be an add-on to what you already know. It will deepen your knowledge.
The world is hungry for specialists.
This concept can be scary because specializing will force you to choose an area of expertise. You can’t be a specialist in everything, but the more specialized you are, the more valuable you will become.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way
People learn in many different ways. Conceptually, audibly, visually, and through doing. If you find reading difficult, listen to the audiobook. Follow webinars, seminars, and podcasts if you’re better at absorbing information through listening.
Watch YouTube videos if you enjoy the presented information and follow training if you enjoy learning through doing. Figure out which one suits you best. Remember, it doesn’t matter how you get there, as long as you get there.
Readers are Leaders
Based on my experience, readers are leaders. As someone who didn’t finish school, didn’t go to university, and doesn’t have the fancy certificate hanging on the wall, I believe one of the primary reasons for my success is because I read the books, took and continue taking courses and seminars.
My edge in the marketplace is my constant hunger to learn, grow, and most importantly, to invest in my self-education continuously. I believe that education is the key. Remember this, ‘’if you refuse to educate yourself, the marketplace will!” And that’s an expensive bill to pay!
Want to meet and work with Arnon? Join one of his upcoming webinars? For more information about classes or coaching, check out his website www.arnonbarnes.com or contact his office via [email protected]
Arnon Barnes started his first business at age 11 and built and sold his first multi-million euro company by the age of 28!
In the past 7 years, Arnon has personally trained and coached more than 90 000 people from well over 65 different countries including, The Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, the UK, Brazil, Singapore, and South Africa to name a few.
Arnon is an explosive international speaker, author, investor, and one of Europe’s leading and most exciting business mentors.