If You are Not Updated, You Will be Outdated
It’s just matter of few days, few hours, few minutes or even few seconds the way in which new technologies are invented in today’s world. A brand new mobile phone that you bought is already an outdated model as you walk out of the shop. World is growing very very fast and so is the amount of information generated and distributed. It is measured that the fastest growing item on this planed is information. Major portion of this information comes from the “end users” like you and I through the social media websites, emails, blogs, etc which is only possible with technologies like Web 2.0.
Just think about how many Gigabytes of data or information you have created so far in your Facebook page, photos, comments, Youtube videos, Twitter updates, Blog articles etc. If millions of individuals across the world can add up to this every second, imagine the amount of information generated every day. With this exponential information growth, if we don’t learn new things faster, there are fair chances that we may loose out some of the important opportunities coming in our way.
One of my professors in my MBA class told us this “If you are not Updated, you will be Outdated”.
Here is something from the great management bystander Peter Drucker (he hates to be called as Guru) who coined the phrase “knowledge worker” in his 1959 book Landmarks of Tomorrow, wrote this in his 1994 essay: The Age of Social Transformation:
The great majority of the new jobs require qualifications the industrial worker does not possess and is poorly equipped to acquire. They require a good deal of formal education and the ability to acquire and to apply theoretical and analytical knowledge. They require a different approach to work and a different mind-set. Above all, they require a habit of continuous learning. Displaced industrial workers thus cannot simply move into knowledge work or services the way displaced farmers and domestic workers moved into industrial work. At the very least they have to change their basic attitudes, values, and beliefs.
Today, in the era of Information and Technology all of us are Knowledge Workers. Then the very need of continuous learning becomes essential not for our growth, but even for the day to day survival. True investment in knowledge society is not in hi tech machines or technologies, but in the knowledge of the knowledge worker. The best part of it is the worker can take this knowledge to anywhere he goes. Hence knowledge management becomes a high priority topic in the corporate board rooms.
Why should you make knowledge investments?
It’s unfortunate that knowledge investment is greatly neglected in general when compared to the interest and passion people have in financial investments. Do you consistently and consciously make knowledge investments…?
Continuous learning throughout one’s career and life has become essential to remain relevant in the workplace and society. Continuous learning could be easily achieved by formal education, reading books and research articles, trainings, workshops, increasing skills, work experience, etc.
Just sit back and think,
- Are you sincerely doing some little amount of knowledge investment for your better future…?
- Is that sufficient enough…?
- Do you think you need to spend more meaningful time and efforts in continuous learning…?
What are the magazines you’ve subscribed to…? What are the RSS feeds you’ve subscribed to….? Which are the good websites or blogs you read regularly…? What kind of books, articles do you read…? Have you participated in any workshops…? What is your knowledge investment plan for this year…?
Having asked so many questions, I’ll leave you here now for you to think and find answers for the above questions. In my next post I’ll make suggestions on how to effectively make knowledge investment, which is the most important investment one should make in life.
If you’ve any thoughts, opinions, suggestions please share below.
Thoughtful and well written. Engaging and informative. Thanks for sharing
Dear Sivakumar,
Indeed a necessary Drop at the right time to be Dropped in this Ocean to know about KNOWLEDGE INVESTMENT/ to be a KNOWLEDGE WORKER.
Few Points: After the Teenage one gets the Mental Maturity of realizing his past – Childhood days. one of the realization would be about missed opportunities during schooldays because of improper knowledge sharing to the students. This can be straighten up if Knowledge investment is inculcated with proper Value system ad Attitude.
So, Knowledge Investment/ Being Knowledge Worker is as important as basic needs for Human. – At Present and in near future.
Sridhar Chandrasekaran,Gowtham Daas Rvk, thanks for your comments and views.