It’s that time of year again! The clothing stores are transitioning to fall lines, grocery stores are depressing us with Halloween candy, and almost every kid you know is either cramming to finish their summer reading or getting ready to move into college, while their brains prepare to soak up as much new information as possible in the next 9 months.
We place such an emphasis on education for over 13 years, but as we become adults and enter the working world, the learning aspect of our lives seems to get pushed to the back burner.
In today’s world, that can’t happen anymore. In order to meet growing demands of the marketplace (no matter what field you’re in), it’s absolutely crucial to stay up to date on new information.
With the steady flow of changes happening every day, how do you maintain awareness on what’s new, exciting, and important?
Read Books. It may seem counter-intuitive to turn to one of the older forms of learning for current information, but there are many books being written on new trends in advertising, consumer behavior, social media, and more. Search Amazon.com, support your local bookstore, or research college and graduate level reading lists for some suggestions if you’re not sure where to start.
Join Clubs. Connecting with other people with experience and expertise in your shared field is extremely important in expanding knowledge. Groups give you a flow of information and thought-provoking interaction, not to mention they add to your network. If you don’t have time to make it to meetings, ask a club member to jot down some notes for you, or check to see if the meeting minutes are posted online.
Visit Forums, Subscribe to Blogs and e-Newsletters. Try to do this on a daily basis. Joining topic groups on LinedIn, subscribing to industry blogs, and joining in on forums are all great ways for new information. Joining e-Newsletter mailing lists also gives you a steady flow of updates and information, but not so many as to be obnoxious (most of the time).
Try to take five-minute pauses throughout your workday to check for updates, read interesting articles, or scroll through comment feeds. After work, try to make it through at least one chapter of your book of choice. Take notes on what you learn, and think about how it applies to you.
How are you planning on getting back into school mode? Are you reading any books? Have you found any thought-provoking articles or come across any interesting discussions? Let us know what’s in your backpack for 2011!
