Adopt a Life of Learning

Application is the fruit of knowledge. You can understand something, but if you have not learned to put it in its rightful place in your own life, it does not fully exist inside of you. Learning is doing, and doing is evidence of learning.

Imagine if you did not let learning pass through you without putting it into application. Many of us read a good book or watch an inspiring video but let it pass through us a few minutes later. That is not true knowledge. It is true when it is displayed, when you can see how something has adjusted, pivoted, or transformed your life. Whether it is a small behavior that no one notices, a piece of information that shifts your perspective, or a life-transforming decision, learning is meant to change us. To push us towards excellence.

Take someone’s career, for example. Something about someone being excellent at their craft speaks volumes about who they are. It does not matter the craft either – it can be both for the plumber and the lawyer alike – excellence is always honorable. But this is because their learning is not taken for granted. The excellent plumber did not become so overnight, but by dedication to applying the learning, over and over. Each piece of information through both training and trial and error showed him how to learn his craft, and he continued adjusting. Transforming. So the same goes for us.

Excellence does not just exist for those decades into a career, though I hope you get there one day. It exists for each of us personally, where what we put into our brains can be manifest in our behaviors. Your life should seem like it’s learning because you are always applying it. Learn to adopt a mindset of personal excellence, and what you learn will be shown in what you do.