Learning is a part of doing and continued education is not just for certain licenses and such.
I wrote my first work of fiction, a sci-fi story when I was nine years old. Wildfire was 50 pages and illustrated by me. The characters’ side profiles, FYI, lacked noses.
No noses in profile.
At the age of 13, I typed my next complete work. Once again it was sci-fi, clearly influenced by Tron, called The Secret Computer World. It was 36 pages, and I cannot recall if that was double or single-spaced. I wrote it on an Apple IIc or IIe in 1985 or so.
In High School, I took a creative writing class, and was told, as I know many have been, to “write what you know.” Did I write about my personal life or something in the science fiction realm?
Nope. I wrote a technothriller. I may have been reading too much Tom Clancy at that point. Secrets Withheld had a car chase, gunfight, and other elements most 17 year-olds do not write about.
I started a number of other stories and potential novels over the years, but none ever got completed. Until, in 1998, an epic fantasy scene popped into my head. Then another, and another, and before long I had a complete novel. Then, two. The Source Chronicles came into being, and Seeker, the first book, got a professional edit done to it.
Since then, I have completed and published two other full novels, and two novellas. Additionally, I have been blogging at least once a week for eight years, and daily for almost a year, now.
Even with all the writing I am doing, I am still learning. Continuing to educate myself improves both me and my work.
What and how am I learning right now?
Currently, I am learning from three distinct resources. Each is teaching me something different, and each will be uniquely applicable to my life.
I am listening to an audiobook for the second time in less than a month called The Book of Ichigo Ichie: The Art of Making the Most of Every Moment, the Japanese Way by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles. If you have read any of my blog articles you know that this falls right in line with my Pathwalking philosophy, and work in practicing mindfulness.
Currently, I am reading a book on author branding called The 10 Commandments of Author Branding: Embrace Authenticity, Gain Book Ambassadors, and Create Your Tribe by Shayla Raquel. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about this as part of my overall process, and it’s been a good read thus far. I am making use of this to work on better branding myself and the work that I do as a creative artist.
The third learning I am currently doing is practical and experiential. I was hired as a freelance writer by a business in an industry I have never worked in before. Initially, I was to create content for their unfortunately incomplete website. In beginning to work with this, however, since it’s a WordPress site -like all of my own websites – I offered to begin by fixing broken links.
As I got into it, however, I started to do more than just fix broken links. I rebuilt pages, changed and constructed menus and widgets, and made all kinds of necessary adjustments. Each time I went into the site to update it I learned something new.
Learning by listening, reading, and doing is common. Doing each at the same time works for me, but may not work for everyone.
Why learning matters
All of these things I am learning have practical applications in my life. I can and will make use of each as I strive to make the most out of my self-business as a creative artist (writer, editor, voice-artist, worldbuilder – because I think that one just looks super cool).
When you are doing something that you desire to do, odds are you want to do it well. Part of the doing is doing whatever it is in a way that is not just making you feel content but pleased.
Along the way, there is always room for improvement. Knowledge to be gained. When you are open to learning that becomes not just possible, but essential.
Learning is life. Plain and simple, to me, this is what is most exciting about life. There is so much to do, see, and experience – and that is often best done via learning.
Learning can be formal or informal. Often you glean new information as if by osmosis, and before you know it, with little or no intent, you have discovered something new. That can be amazing, and so empowering.
Everything you learn empowers you. Knowledge is power, or more realistically, knowledge is empowerment. The more you know the more potential there is for you to become better aware and connected to the world around you.
Don’t let the negativity overwhelm you
The interconnectedness of the world today has both major advantages and disadvantages.
The biggest advantage, in my opinion, is how much each and every one of us can grow and evolve. Nobody is trapped in a single point of existence, with zero choices or options, unless they themselves choose to be trapped there. Don’t know an alternative? Google it. Odds are, you will find a path you didn’t see before.
Then there is the disadvantage of all the connectedness. Overwhelm. In particular in the face of so much negativity. Between the clusterfuck that is politics, recent news about the so-called Doomsday Clock being adjusted ominously, fires burning Australia, climate change, and other general awfulness it is far too easy to just feel bombarded. Like playing dodgeball and being hit again and again with no idea where all the balls are coming from and no end in sight and nowhere to dodge to.
You can choose whether or not this will overwhelm you. I, for one, am making several conscious choices to not be inundated with it all.
For example, I don’t watch any news programs, ignore non-legit news streams, and overall only dig past headlines and outlines if I feel I REALLY need the info. Overall, I can’t do much of anything about any of this shit, so why let it depress me?
I am putting my focus on my own life and choices. Why? Because that is all inside of my control. Practicing mindfulness opens me up to consciously creating my reality. Being aware of my current thoughts, feelings, and actions lets me learn more and more.
Continued education is not just for certain licenses and such. Life can be, and frankly is, one huge learning experience.
What am I going to learn today? What will you learn today?
Thank you for taking part in my ongoing journey. Thank you for joining me, and for inspiring me and my words.
This is the forty-third article exploring the creative process. Please take a moment to check out the collection of my published works, which can be found here.
Feel free to explore the rest of the website, which I am working to evolve and change for the better…much like I am doing for myself. Also, visit Awareness for Everyone to check out my weekly podcasts.
Enjoying the website and my endeavors? I’d be grateful if you would consider becoming a patron through my Patreon.
You can subscribe to my newsletter. Fill in the info and click the submit button below and receive your free eBook.
Follow me here!
You must be logged in to post a comment.