Why Our Education Shouldn't End With Formal Education.

Formal education is great... but what then Or maybe you couldn't afford it, to begin with... what then.png
Photo by Vasily Koloda on Unsplash

Since childhood, we hear about the importance of a good and formal education.

The majority of young people strive towards making good marks in order to qualify for tertiary education.

The reality though is not always that nice. There are students who definitely have the potential to get further educated after school. But if they are not successful in obtaining some form of bursary, funds are often just not available and they miss out on the opportunity of going to university.

Then we also have the situation where young people get influenced, or sometimes it even appears as if they are forced to study in a direction which they don't even have any interest in. This is sadly often a "family problem".

The student might be passionate about business or some form of art, but the parents believe it is better to study for a legal degree. This is just an example though...but I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.

In some cases, the student might not even be sure yet about what he/she wants to do with his/her life. But due to peer pressure, it's the "in" thing to go to university and they just enroll in the first course that comes their way.

I cannot say this as a fact for the rest of the world, but I'm sure it will be pretty much the same scenario... In South Africa, we have numerous people with degrees - highly qualified in a certain field or area of expertise - yet they follow a career of a completely different nature to what they have studied for.

Even this dilemma can be caused for different reasons. Sometimes there are just no vacancies in that particular profession which this person studied for.

But often, it is a case of that person finding something which he/she is more passionate about than what he/she has studied for.

In my opinion, I think that we should keep in mind that none of us knows what the future holds.

We make decisions based on the information that we have available at any given moment. There is no sense in beating ourselves up if things turn out differently in the future than what we expected when making a decision.

You cannot go back into the past to change things, neither can you see into the future. All you have is the present.

If, for any reason, you are not able to enroll for further education now, yet you know exactly what it is that you want to do, you should not become passive. See if you can earn an income through employment or even some form of business or activity of your own.

In this way, you can at least start earning some income and when you are ready to start studying part-time, you can fund your studies from your own income.

In the event of someone who has completed their studies, and now either hates what they do or maybe cannot find employment in that particular sector...see if there is anything else you can do. Whether you like it or not, the education that you have received is something that nobody can ever take away from you. It is an asset. Never regret having such an asset. Somewhere in the future, you might be grateful for the knowledge you have acquired through your education.

Never regret the decisions you have made in the past. Remember, at the time of making the decision, it was the right decision for you at that time, based on circumstances and knowledge or facts available to you at the time.

So, make the best of it.

Life throws the bad things at us to make the good things all the more worthwhile. ~ Anonymous

There is another saying too which is very popular, which says, "when life gives you a lemon, make lemonade".

Always try to find something you can learn from whatever happens to you.

Another quote I would love to mention at this point is what Jim Rohn said.

Formal education will make you a living. Self-education will make you a fortune. ~ Jim Rohn

That means we should always be open-minded. We should be flexible. We should always be willing to continue learning and educating ourselves, irrespective of the formal education that we have.

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Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

It is a known fact that there are people who never had the opportunity to have formal education to a high level. Yet, they become multi-millionaires vs people who have multiple degrees and can only afford to live a mediocre lifestyle.

Do I say that formal education is a waste of time and money? Not by a long shot. That is definitely not what I am saying. As I have mentioned earlier, the knowledge that you gained through your education is an asset that nobody can take away from you. I am merely emphasizing the importance and value of self-education. The value of the ongoing process of learning.

I personally believe that the day we stop learning, is our final day when we leave this earth. That is why you would sometimes hear people refer to "the school of life".

Why don't you share with us some of your own experiences where you had a breakthrough because of self-education?

Tell us about it in the comment section. I would love to hear from you and I'm sure there are many people who can benefit from reading your testimony.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I do appreciate it.



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Hello @jacoalberts! I completely agree with you. Formal education should be just the start. Our brains and neural connections ar built for life-long learning, and why wouldn't we make the most of it?

In my case, my formal education was very deficient, a disadvantage commonly found in third-world countries. Therefore, I've been practicing self-education in various areas for at least 10 years. English as my second language is an example of that. Currently, I'm fully invested in learning all about the crypto world.

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HI @beautifulwreck. Yes, our brains and neural connections are built for life-long learning indeed! against the popular belief that the brain loses functionality as we age, it has been proven that the brain will actually keep on developing as long as we use it, irrespective of our age.

I am so glad to hear that you didn't allow the deficiency of your formal education to slow you down! And now it seems like we have something in common. English is also my second language and currently, I am also learning as much as I can about cryptocurrencies.

Thank you for stopping by and for giving your input. I really do appreciate it!

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Awesome post @jacoalberts
Will be honest i did not learn anything at school.
I did the streets of hard knocks LOL
Literally i lived on the streets of London for years.
It really wasn't till i was in my mid 20's did any formal education start for me really.
Have a blessed day
Youre-Amazing.png

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(Edited)

Wow, @benthomaswwd! What a testimony! That goes to show that nobody really has an excuse. Living on the streets of London with no formal education till your mid-20's.

Yet, look at you today! You didn't allow those circumstances to keep you under! Well done. You are a great example to many.

Thank you for sharing that information with us. I'm sure it will be inspirational to many who read this!

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Thanks for your kind words @jacoalberts
I started out as a self employed window cleaner once i got off the streets, i was sub contacting work from a company till i could afford to go to college.
Don't even know why lol
I completed the course.
There i trained to be a chef NVQ 3 but after doing a few jobs i then went back to window cleaning because i could make more money quicker LOL.
Now we are both here, funny how life works out sometimes.
Have a blessed and successful day my friend:)
Have a Blessed Day.png

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(Edited)

Absolutely awesome. This is proof of how you can create your own opportunities. And as you say, you were able to afford your college fees from your own income.

And even though you went back to window cleaning, you could now choose. You have put yourself in a place where you could now choose what you wanted to do!

Yes, it is funny how life works sometimes. But I salute you and I respect you for what you have achieved! Well done!

You must have a blessed day too!

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I got my degree and didn't enter that career in the least - but I have put every bit of education to use in my life! hahaha

Not only the education, but the training and discipline required to successfully complete University. It's not just about a grade necessarily or how you ranked - but the type of character that was developed during that time.

It's funny that you mentioned that people will often get degrees in SA that have nothing to do with the job they have. I used to ask a lot of our friends in Nigeria what they were doing, and they'd say the same thing. They would often say they studied this... but they are really passionate about that. It surprised me over and over until I finally asked why this is! hahaha

Because here - you study what you love (well, unless parents - as you say, tell the children what they'll be studying hahahaha)

Also - I completely agree with your assertion that we should never regret the decisions that we've made. Every step along the way is a tool for the future! :)

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Not only the education, but the training and discipline required to successfully complete University. It's not just about a grade necessarily or how you ranked - but the type of character that was developed during that time.

I love what you say here. It is truly about much more than just education. It teaches discipline and responsibility which are essential in building character.

Over here in SA, (besides the parents telling the children what they'll study), I think one of the biggest problems why people end up doing something totally different from what they have studied, is the fact that there just are no job vacancies in that chosen field.

In my opinion, it is actually of great concern. Because unemployment is a big problem here. Yet I was listening to a discussion the other day, where they were discussing the situation of how many of our professional people are leaving the country, seeking employment abroad.

The answer from the government side was that it's not really such a big concern, seeing that as our local people leave the country, they just "import" professionals from abroad.

This is actually part of the problem though. Because the sequence of events is not always as the picture was sketched in this discussion. The "importing" of these so-called professionals often takes place first...which is why our local professionals then decide to leave the country to seek employment elsewhere.

The other questionable area of concern is where these imports are coming from...

I don't really want to get into a discussion of this nature, as it tends to go into politics, and I try to avoid such discussions at all costs. But I will give you one example that took place recently.

During the recent breakout of the Covid pandemic, we had numerous, highly qualified medical people in South Africa who were unemployed and desperately seeking employment. Yet, numerous medical staff was "imported" from Cuba to come and assist in our "state of emergency"...

When these things get pointed out and the government gets confronted with them, the explanations and answers are so absurd and ridiculous, you don't know whether you should start laughing or get angry about it. The fact is...you get to the point where "funny" is not funny anymore...

Anyway, enough about that...

Thank you for giving your input and sharing your view with us. I'm sure many will agree if I say you are a great example of practicing that discipline and being of great character here on the blockchain.

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wowwwwwwwwwwwwww.... I know what you mean about politics - I'm the same!!! but my goodness, when you see things like this happen?? how can the conversation be avoided, right???
It's just a tragedy that they would look to imports when they have a valuable resource INSIDE THEIR OWN COUNTRY that they're not valuing.

Its just all backwards!!!

hm. and i know just what you mean. laughing just so you can stop being angry. but then laughing turns to crying!

whew.. LOL i get you!!!!

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It's a sad situation. I suppose you can understand now our motive behind what I have discussed with you a while ago in DM's... (can you remember what I'm referring to?)

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yep- i never stopped thinking about that discussion and often wonder about the progression of it!

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Things are making progress. I'll tell you more in DM later...

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Learning in school is only the beginning. Nothing can replace practical education.

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I totally agree with you, Lisa! Well said.

Thank you for your input. I do appreciate it!

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You're very welcome, Jaco! Have a great Monday and start to your week. 😀
!ALIVE



Made in Canva

-- @lisamgentile1961

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@jacoalberts! You Are Alive so I just staked 0.1 $ALIVE to your account on behalf of @lisamgentile1961. (2/10)

The tip has been paid for by the We Are Alive Tribe through the earnings on @alive.chat, feel free to swing by our daily chat any time you want.

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Thank you for the tokens. I do appreciate it!

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I agree. Our formal education is just a starting point, it's the basics or the foundations for things that we learn from the real world.

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the foundations for things that we learn from the real world.

I like that. It gives us a foundation to build upon from what we learn in the real world.

Thank you for giving your input and sharing your view with us. I do appreciate it!

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