I have fallen into a trap. I love learning, reading, researching, investigated, studying methods, structures, and discovering tested results. There is always more to discover, one more how-to book another master study video packed with useful tips, proven formulas, and essential processes.

My head swims in data, opinions, and self-serving advice. I need help to escape the onslaught of self-proclaimed gurus and charming charlatans whose primary goal is beguiling fools. Their intent is to separate suckers from their money while offering regurgitated axioms lifted from their peers. Thankfully, I have finely tuned BS detector, and have seen my share of long copy sales forms, Call to Action ploys and countdown clocks.

When did learning devolve? Goggle grants us easy access to popular answers to any question asked. How many classes must we attend? How much research is too much? How many questions must we ask before we realize we learn best by doing? Hard work, effort, and failing are life’s finest teachers. If you claim to be a painter, you must pick up a paintbrush, dip the bristles in paint and apply it to a canvas. A would-be gardener should have dirt under their fingernails. A comedian ought to consider telling a joke or twenty. Perhaps a writer might want to entertain the thought of stinging a few words together.

Like George Carlin’s saleswoman implies, helping kind of defeats the purpose of doing it yourself. The work creates a deeper understanding of the rules. It provides a tangible context where we experience the consequences of our decisions. We internalize the process, and we truly learn.

When do you jump into the doing part of learning?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer