It’s been a while since I’ve been out of school. But that doesn’t mean that I stopped learning, especially as I’ve navigated many career changes over the years. A few years ago, I started dabbling in online learning when I registered for the holistic health coach training program through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Then I did coursework to sit for the board-certified patient advocacy exam. After that, a friend gifted me a master class on writing with the author, Malcolm Gladwell, and it got me hooked on online learning platforms.
As a student, I never loved school. There were individual classes that I enjoyed, but I despised taking tests. I loved writing, but was often overwhelmed by the ridiculously long papers that I had to research. By the time I graduated, I was so burnt out that I scrapped my plans of attending law school the following fall.
Now, that many years have passed since my academic career and I’m more settled in my profession, I have enjoyed, what I call, my degree in continuous studies. Recently, I invested in a business container for creative entrepreneurs (more to come on that), and I regularly take LinkedIn Learning classes. The other day, I attended a thought leadership workshop on LinkedIn, and I recently applied for a patient advocacy master class.
It seems the longer I’m out of school, the more I love learning. Perhaps it’s because I get to dictate what I learn, when, and how. I can do it at my own pace or not at all if I decide I don’t like it. One thing I didn’t realize I missed from my days in academia were the interactions you have with people in your classes. I’ve been able to enjoy that again within my business group and it’s helped to motivate me to accomplish some new goals.
What will I learn next? Who knows! Maybe it will be a new language or something completely different, like jewelry making. But whatever it is, I know it will get me excited about what’s ahead.
Have you taken any interesting courses recently?
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