The Benefits of Learning and Education

The very birthright of every human is learning. The desire for knowledge is one of the most insatiable and strongest desires in all of mankind. Many of you are probably skeptical of this claim, but it is so true that your very happiness depends on it. Everybody enjoys learning about something. Even the 7 year-old boy that claims to hate school enjoys learning; perhaps he only enjoys learning about hockey players or snails, but he enjoys learning nonetheless.

As such, learning is a fundamental part of the human experience. Your happiness depends upon it. Like it or not, you'll want to learn about something at some point before you die. It might be one of any number of things-God, philosophy, your family, other people, cooking, business, literature, movies, sports, another language-but you'll want to learn something at some point. To deny this is to deny our very existence. Our consciousness of the world around us is the only thing that really separates us from the rest of the universe.
Shouldn't we, then, try to embrace this reality? There are several reasons for doing so.

The Fun Factor

Learning is fun. I'm not talking about the boring kind of learning you may have done in school. In school, people are forced to study and learn certain things because, even if they aren't enjoyable, they have been deemed important by a few "really smart" people. You can spend the rest of your life learning about things that you don't like, but, despite any success you might have with your education, you probably won't be very happy.

Spend your time learning about things that interest you. There must be SOMETHING. Find that "something," and start learning about it. If you think that you won't be able to spend the rest of your life learning about it, you're probably right. But that's okay. Eventually, your interests will branch out, and you'll start learning about other things-which brings us to the next point.

It Grows

Learning breads more learning. Remember the 7 year-old that I spoke of before? He may only like hockey players now, but he'll eventually outgrow that stage. He'll move on to other things, which will lead to other things, which will lead to other things, and, twenty years down the road, he'll be getting a PhD in linguistics.

My point is that you don't have to worry if things like "Shakespeare" don't interest you. Many "educated" people may enjoy Shakespeare and other things that you couldn't care less about, but that doesn't mean that you have to enjoy Shakespeare right now, or, indeed, ever. You *can* give yourself an education that is both useful and enjoyable. If you only enjoy reading romance novels, then keep reading them. However, if you read a lot, it is likely that at some point your interests will broaden and you'll be able to enjoy literature in general. And if you keep reading beyond that point...there's a very good chance that not only will you be able to read Shakespeare, but you'll even be able to enjoy and appreciate it.

Cashing In

The best part in all this is that all of this learning can, indeed, be extremely beneficial to your financial life. There are people all over the place willing to give money to people who have certain knowledge and skill sets. I'm not saying that amassing as much money as possible before you die is good or bad, but it's probably not a coincidence that the word "success" has come to mean something like "level of comfort based on financial success."

Beware of learning for the sole reason of making boatloads of cash, however. Remember where we started? Fun. That innate human curiosity and desire for more knowledge is where this started, however primitive or silly it may have been. "Fun" is the fundamental principle in making learning a successful and enjoyable enterprise. If you abandon this principle, I cannot guarantee that you will enjoy learning.

With that being said, there are, of course several ways to go about learning. In your learning exploits, just remember to avoid getting ripped off. You can learn by paying to go to a college or university, but you can also learn for free by taking a walk to the local library. There are many ways to go about the process, but, if you pay for something that is supposed to aid you in your quest for knowledge, you had better be sure that your hard-earned cash is well worth it.

Embrace your birthright, and good luck in your exploration of the wonderful world of knowledge!