An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. – Benjamin Franklin
What does that mean?
The saying is pretty straight forward. If you want to get a good return on yourself, your time, your effort and your money, invest in yourself, specifically, in your knowledge. Remember, Ben was big on self-education. He considered it to be so important that he wrote books full of witty sayings and established folklore, to help spread knowledge as far and wide as he possibly could (for a nominal fee, of course). He formed the first public lending library in the United States, and was an avid reader, experimenter and all around curious person. To me, this is just stating a good portion of his life’s work.
Why is knowledge important?
I don’t know. But seriously, Ben is talking about practical knowledge in most cases. His inventive side probably invested in some fairly abstract knowledge, but for the most part, he seemed to be, first and foremost, about the practical. When to plow, when to plant, when to harvest, when to get up and go to bed. The things you needed to know.
Without knowledge, what do you know? Facts are the basis of what we use to make judgements and decisions. If you wanted to buy something, you could just buy it on impulse, and then regret it later (anyone with kids knows this one all too well). Or you could do your research and find out that others bought it and rated it on the net as a waste of money, perhaps recommending a better product. Armed with this knowledge, you can make a more knowledgeable decision, resulting on a better return on your investment.
Where can I apply this in my life?
Let’s look at a couple of different places we can use this. First, do you know what you want to do with your life? If you already know, then you’re half way there. If not, you might want to brainstorm some ideas, then write down some of them. If you’re having problems doing this, see these posts on exceptionalism and passion for help finding things you might want to do with your life).
What hobbies would you like to pursue? Brainstorm some ideas and write them down. Any skills you would like to learn or improve? Time for more brainstorming. How about some games you would like to learn? Languages? Places of interest you’d like to know more about (perhaps part of planning a vacation visit)? Anything you are interested in, but lack familiarity with, could be on this list. Subatomic particle physics (the Large Hadron Collider had been making news off and on for the last few years)? Kind of quirky, but still a valid topic to become more familiar with. The plan is to get some background on yourself, some ideas on what you want to know more about, so that we can proceed in the quest of knowledge. Now that we have some targets, let’s move on to the investment in knowledge.
Because you are reading this, I am going to presume you have some access to the wild and wacky World Wide Web. Even if you’re on a phone, you can still use search engines and tap into sites like wikipedia.org, as well as other subject matter sites. This kind of research is fairly straight forward, plug in your words and click on “search” and become buried in possibilities. Similar results can be achieved at most public libraries. Some of the smaller libraries might not have the book you want in stock, but it is likely that they can get it through an inter-library loan. That just means it’ll take a couple of days for the book to get there, and the fines will be stiffer if you keep it too long. This might also happen if the topic is a bit out of the main stream of public library fare. Also, most libraries have internet access, so if you’re having trouble finding stuff, the library is likely to have someone there to help you out both on searching the library and searching the web.
Where else can I get knowledge, I mean, it’s hard to learn how to play tennis online or from a book! Great point. Many communities have, either through the Parks and Recreation or through the local Community Colleges, athletic programs for beginners wishing to learn a sport. Some even have classes for those returning to a sport, who need to brush up or are looking to move their game to the next level.
Some people like to build things. If this is what you wish to do as a profession, you will need to look into the local trades and their schools (carpenters, masons, etc). They will fill you with a world of knowledge. If it’s just as a hobby, perhaps a mentor, community group, or an evening or weekend class at a trade school or the local Community College will suffice. I learned carpentry from a Master (grandpa), and welding from some car club buddies. Quite a lot can be done with some simple skills.
Perhaps you want to know more about crafts. The same sources apply. Friends, community groups, books, internet, library or classes. Same with self improvement, such as exercising, yoga, pilates, eating, cooking, gardening, arts (performing and otherwise)… The list is practically endless!
If you are having problems with which you need assistance, there are community groups dedicated to helping people with any number of difficulties. From addictions to parent’s night out groups, and everything in-between, there are people out there with knowledge that they are willing to share, to help make your life better. They are investing in you by teaching, you are investing in yourself by learning. Everyone wins, which to me is the best kind of transaction!
In each of the cases above, you have invested in yourself, and invested in knowledge. Some of it may have made you smarter, others may have made you better at a skill, still others have brought pleasure, pride or comfort or perhaps more than one of the above. The payout depends on what you were looking to gain, but if you followed the plan, and learned something, you have made a good investment.
Now go through the lists you made earlier in this post and select a few things you wish to know more about, and put together a quick plan – where are you going to get the knowledge from? Who, How, When, Where (you should already know What and Why). I would suggest you write them in pencil, as this will be a dynamic process. As you find out more, you may change direction or find something else even more fascinating. Welcome to the world of a Life Long Learner.
And the interest? It’s the payout when you’re done. What did you get out of it? Knowledge, is more difficult to lose than a monetary investment. And unlike most monetary investments, knowledge will continue to pay interest for the rest of your life. Yeah, piano lessons as a kid were not much fun, and I never played in a rock band, but it’s nice to relax with a piano and just noodle around, or play a lullaby to a cranky baby.
From: Twitter, undocumented feed (my bad)
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/b/benjaminfr141119.html
