The art of learning for entrepreneural development
The art of learning for entrepreneural development
THE IMPORTANCE OF LEARNING
What is learning?
LEARNING in its pure context has been described as the acquisition of Knowledge and Skill
The Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary defines knowledge as "the sum of what is known: the body of truth, information, and principles acquired by mankind," and skillas "the ability to use one's knowledge effectively and readily in execution or performance".
From this, we can deduce that knowledge and skill are not the same. A comprehensive learning process will be the one that encompasses these two dissimilar but complementary aspects of personal development.
Observing the basic distinctions of learning content, and seeing how they both affect each other and more importantly the way they affect the youth in their personal development process, will be of great advantage for our youths of today as we stand to produce greater future leaders.
In a nut-shell, the acquisition of both is essential for a true personal development, more so for an entrepreneur. One is not truly valuable without the other. In that case, we may have to examine the said distinction and see the symbiotic relationship between them.
Knowledge and Skill --Two words that describe a person's competence.
At first glance, knowledge and skill may seem one and the same but if given some thought, one would realize that both of them are very different concepts. This is because the two words can be interchanged in a statement without destroying its contextual meaning. Hence the need to buttress the point with relevant examples coupled with the following common and relevant philosophical insights.
Knowledge refers to the understanding of concepts, principles and information regarding a particular subject(s) by a person through books, media, academic institutions and other sources.
Skill refers to the ability of using that information and applying it in a context.
In other words, knowledge refers to theoretical information acquired about any subject whereas skills refer to practical application of that knowledge (i.e. successfully applying that theory in practice and getting expected results).
In nearly all questions that lead to true creative thought, one key word is involved. It is the tiny word "why?" Why are most cars made of steel? Why do eyeglass lenses have to be made of glass? Why do oceans surge? Why gravitational pull do seizes to apply in the space? Etc. Some of these questions remain to be answered, while to some of them the answers are apparently known; but all such questions have one thing in common: They force you to unlock your mind to ideas, not necessarily to create a new product or method, but at least to think about ideation.
The summary of the above exposition is that:
Skill has to do with the acquisition of Know-how
-- (the ability to produce some action or the ability that enables you to actually accomplish something)
Knowledge has to do with the acquisition of Know-why
-- (a conceptual understanding or the information you have in your head)
In other words, knowledge is what is learnt, while skill is the ability to use the learnt information. This requires practical exposure and can also be inherent in the forms of gifts, talents, passion or hubbies.
For instance, the key to being an employable graduate is having commensurate skills that the employer is looking for in the person that is expected to handle the available vacancy. Meanwhile, the key to being successful in your chosen career or as an entrepreneur is being knowledgeable amid your skills.
One commonly distinguishing factor between knowledge and skill is that knowledge is what is contained in the head and skill is that which is done by the hand. From a philosophical perspective therefore, knowledge is intangible but skills can be made tangible by applying those skills to a context and getting the desired result.
Ultimately, both knowledge and skill is required to master a field of study, and according to Marie Simmers, "The difference between knowledge and skill is practice."
Skills only give teeth to knowledge. If any particular skill is only partially known then it becomes a blunt tooth. Hence, each skill should be learnt to sufficient depth.
Though knowledge has already become the primary industry (the industry that supplies the economy the essential and central resources of production), skill on its own remains the common denominator of all the efforts channelled towards production. For effective personal development on any profession/trade therefore, one has to be fully baked with essential knowledge and skills.
Our youths must greatly embrace personal development in order to place premium value on their lives and endeavours. The point to remember here is that this can only be gotten through learning (a search for skill & knowledge). Our youths must learn how to work harder on themselves than they do on their pay jobs. Working on themselves means working on their personal development. According to the saying that "what you become by working on yourself is far more important than what you get", our youth must therefore realise the fact that a man who does not learn is like someone who has a perfect sight but no vision. Such a person is merely looking without seeing. Such a person is worst than a blind man.
Jim Rohn says "To Have More, you've got to become more than you are". Our youths that are presently seeking for paid employment or entrepreneurial adventure should also be reminded that income rarely exceeds personal development. The famous French actress Sarah Bernhardt reminds us that "Life begets life. Energy creates energy". This quickly reminded me of the definition of Energy as we were taught in elementary science that "Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, but can only be transformed from one form to another". The energy stored in us (our potential) is quite latent in its present state. It requires that we wake it up by transforming it from its present form to a more active and useful form by simply challenging ourselves on how to overcome all sorts of human contrivances through research and personal development. It is by spending oneself on such discoveries and then transforming the discoveries into innovative enterprise that we become rich. At this juncture, every youth will agree with me that, it will hurt them like hell when their world (i.e. parents, friends, family, government etc.) won't invest in them. (That is, when a young and vibrant youth full of zeal and strength could not be given an opportunity to showcase his competencies). But, looking at it from the other perspective, it'll be much more excruciating, almost more than they can bear, when they do not believe and invest in themselves.
When a youth learns an art/science, (i.e. he acquires knowledge and skill about something) he is actually driving his energy. The knowledge can be described as a source of potential energy that is stored up in the brain. The skills acquired can be described as a mechanism for converting the latent potentials into a more useful and dynamic format. The skills drive the knowledge and you'll have the ability to achieve results with much ease.
As earlier stated, our skill(s) will give teeth to our knowledge. This implies that a sharp-toothed saw for instance, would require lesser energy or effort in cutting through a piece of wood than a blunt-toothed one. So also are our day-to-day activities. When we are able to acquire sufficient skills, our knowledge of a particular subject will be so accurate and sharp so much that its application at any circumstances will be an easy task. Then we'll be accorded a title of "a man of wisdom". In summary, inappropriate or insufficient skill may not drive your potentials accurately; it's merely a blunt tooth. Your skill is supposed to add teeth to your knowledge.
When you sincerely learn (acquire knowledge and skill) something, you will tend to deliver results with less effort and you will add value to yourself and your services. You must remember that people do not pay for EFFORT, but people pay for RESULT. Since people do not pay for effort, then you have to learn how to deliver results with as little effort as possible. A very relevant example that I use often to drive home this point about effort and result is the concept of Mechanical Advantage (M.A =Load / Effort) as we were thought in secondary school physics. It states that a system will have a positive (and better) mechanical advantage if it carries a load with as little effort as possible. The limit is when the mechanical advantage equals 1, i.e. when the load equals the effort applied (or available). In financial terms, we can say that is when the efforts break-even with the results.
The youth therefore needs to constantly renew his knowledge through learning by dwelling in a positive learner-centred environment that fosters creativity, academic excellence and lifelong learning. The information that we take in becomes part of us. As we get older, we grow more diverse and individualistic because our viewpoints and outlooks are shaped by our own peculiar collection of information experiences. We are what we read. In both our personal and professional life, we are judged by the information we peruse. The information we ingest shapes our personalities, contributes to the ideas we formulate, and colours our view of the world.
A school of thought states that "he who learns by finding out (i.e. knowing why) has sevenfold the skill (i.e. knowing how) of he who learnt by being told". Therefore, your investments in self-study always yield the good profit. You would be able to uncover much truth about your career. Your mindset will be on how to innovate through your knowledge storehouse and skills level.
The following philosophical insights have been carefully assembled from my teachings and also from the various teachings of my favourite authors to prepare the youth for excellent performances in their various enterprises through learning.
The one who graduated yesterday and stops learning today will be uneducated by tomorrow. This is because virtually everything in life is evolving. All facets of life from science, to sociology, to psychology, to law and also to engineering are in constant dynamics. One has to continue learning in order to level-up with the trend of new discoveries, inventions and innovations.
It is possible for our youths to stop learning at about their age, but they should also be reminded that it's impossible to stop things worth learning from happening to them and their endeavours. The youths therefore need to learn a lot about their profession and their environment in order to develop both vertical and horizontal profile in life. By so doing they will not always be in ignorance of very many situations around them. They would have developed the required knowledge and aptitude for survival through learning.
In life everybody experiences far more than he understands; this infers that there are so many riddles in life that we must constantly think through in order to solve. By so doing, our day to day experiences will affect our thoughts, our thoughts will shape our actions, our actions will reveal our characters, and our characters will define our behaviours. We can therefore conclude that it is our experiences in life, (rather than understanding) that influences our behaviour.
You cannot do today's job with yesterdays knowledge and be in business tomorrow. Examples of these can be found in auto mechanics that does not have knowledge of electronics and thermodynamics. He/she will lose patronage as new cars of today are now preferred to old cars with mechanical controls and energy saving features. Another one can be found in refrigeration and air-conditioning trades-men who cannot follow the global trends and see how it affects their trade. (E.g. Ozone Depletion, Global warming, New refrigerants, Green house gases emission controls, Energy conservation etc.)
You should make certain that each new job develops you in one way or the other. A five developing years in various related jobs is better than 15 years of experience doing exactly the same thing. Even if you are in the same organization for the 15 years, one needs to move around other departments by simply making oneself available for service without any excuse or a mindset of been used. When you are used, you will become polished through corrections, reprimands, training, endurance and perseverance. You'll become an authority, full of knowledge and skills to execute any given assignment. Hence, in order to become a knowledgeable and successful entrepreneur; to challenge your aptitude; you need to keep learning from every level and situation.
Read outside your expertise; this will endow you with unparalleled negotiation power. You will be able to see from your opponent's point of view and prepare early enough for any forms of surprises. You should make sure that you become knowledgeable and skilled even outside the school system; because now, you are not confined to any syllabus and you do not only have to read to pass exams. The way to gain knowledge in school is to observe, to study and read. Good students are known to be voracious readers. Being curious and interested in many things helps you to become knowledgeable about them.
At the advent of the information age, there was a believe that computers will replace many employees in the business world (industries, commercial centers, trade centers etc) thereby rendering many youth jobless in the labour market. The truth is that since then, computers has not been replacing anybody on the job, but people who know how to use the computer has been replacing those who are not computer literate in a competitive environment. The computer literate were the ones who responded to the wake-up call of the computer revolution. Despite their skills on the job, they lend themselves to acquire the requisite knowledge in computer usage. The same argument above could also be related to the belief that robots will replace people in the work force; rather, the advent of robotics has made the worker's lives more interesting and less hazardous. "Robots are as good as the people who program them".
Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow. You'll become complacent with outdated ideas and methods of doing things. Above all, your aptitude will be truncated and you'll be operating as a local champion who cannot see beyond the nose. Fixing these negative attributes means that our youths needed to be more knowledgeable about what they have already mastered. When a youth has become well rounded with knowledge and skill on his job, he will be able to see when others are looking. He'll be able to see from a broad perspective. He'll become more proactive and organized. Such a youth will be able to take calculated risks while avoiding unnecessary ones since he's armed with all necessary tools to take accurate decisions.
In a nut shell, your skills are your tools, knowing what to do with it is your knowledge.
All you can be is defined by the content of your experience. All you are is what you are aware of. To live in ignorance of your abilities is a clear picture of being incomplete. You cannot take strength or an advantage from the good part of yourself that you do not know nor exploit however great it might be. If you want to see the world most clearly, turn your eye inward before you look outward.
It will also be of great advantage if our youth could realise early in life that total dependence on their skills alone in an endeavour will only make one to look backward to what has been achieved in the past; be it products and services that have been traditionally offered. But, if one is able to compliment the various skills with knowledge, one will be able to look inward to discover what else can be done really well, thereby consolidating on the past achievements. He'll by so doing be developing more competencies, and invariably generating more streams of income through innovation.
In his book "Beyond Workplace 2000", Joseph H. Boyett made a submission about the difference between resources and competencies. Taking this as a reference, it can be demonstrated that skill can be compared to resources of a business that is owned, controlled and also accessible for use in generating value for its customers. But these resources by themselves typically have little, if any, strategic value to the business (company). It is only when these bundles of resources are put together and used to the benefit of the customer that they gain value. The role of knowledge in this case therefore lies in the recognition, coordination, combination and deployment of the various bundles of resources to generate value to the benefit of customers. In other words, it is competencies (defined by the skills & knowledge of a business), not resources per se, that ultimately determine whether an enterprise develops a sustainable, real, competitive, and strategic advantage over its rivals.
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