BACKGROUND
This quote, attributed to multiple sources including Albert Einstein (meaning the actual author will likely never be given credit), may not be 100% true. Random events (thank you chaos theory), natural patterns (rocks are hard, water is wet), and environmental factors also come into play. But if what you are getting isn’t what you intended or want to get, it may be time to change what you are doing.
Over the past two years the economy has wreaked havoc with most of our clients and friends, and certainly hasn’t been a friend to The MacXperts. Unfortunately this is only the bad news. I think the
really bad news is that the same people that may well be responsible for setting the stage for current events are the loudest voices telling “us” how to get out of it.
As with most (all?) things in life, I suspect the real solution to change is to be found inside of and with oneself. One area in which each of us can contribute to positive change is our own
Continuous Improvement. CI is a business process
defined in Wikipedia as: “An ongoing effort to improve products, services or processes. These efforts can seek “incremental” improvement over time or “breakthrough” improvement all at once. Delivery (customer valued) processes are constantly evaluated and improved in the light of their efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility.”
CI can also be applied to our own personal ongoing improvement. This improvement may be related to self, relationship, work, community, or society. But how can we, as over-worked, over-stressed, and overwhelmed adults find the time (and sometimes the money and energy) to “improve”? Though there are many avenues available, I’d like to take this space to explore just a few.
FORMAL EDUCATIONI’m a big fan of formal education. This may be rooted in having a Master Teacher as my mother more so than evidence, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it! While it is true that formal education from a brick and mortar college is a very rough task for a working adult, distance education has changed the equation. There are thousands of distance education programs, offering every major and degree except perhaps M.D. (you can even get your J.D. (law degree) almost entirely online). This allows one to study at their convenience, and with many programs, even at your own pace. I’m currently earning my MBA-IT through
WGU, and find it to be an excellent opportunity. Another incentive is that for many people fighting their own budget crunch, you may be eligible for up to $20,000 each year in student loans.
INFORMAL ONLINE EDUCATIONThere are a number of excellent sources of education online that do not lead to a degree, but offer subject-specific training. For example, you may want to learn how to program in Java. A quick Google search reveals hundreds of free sites to do just that. For those of you interested in honing your end-user skills with applications and technology,
Lynda.com at as low as $25 per month for all you can eat, remains my favorite. Also check out
Element k.
PODCASTSI no longer listen to music, talk radio, or news while driving. Podcasts now are in control of my radio via my iPhone. Though the iTunes store Podcasts pretty much define the expression: “You have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince”, it is well worth it. There are thousands of podcasts on every topic you might imagine. I am subscribed to over 30 podcasts, ranging from “Modern Manners Guy” (one can never be too polite–especially when carrying a gun), to law, medicine, grammar (ok, some podcast information doesn’t appear to sink in very well), the “Harvard Business Review”, and even how to be a better lover (hopefully this info will sink in better than grammar has).
If you haven’t strolled through the iTunes store Podcast department lately, take a few minutes and download a dozen episodes. There are sure to be a few that capture your attention. If you don’t know how to do so:
1. Open iTunes.
2. From the sidebar, select iTunes Store.
3. Once in the iTunes store, select Podcasts from the top tabs.
NOTE: Instead of clicking on the tab, press down to reveal all of the categories.
4. When you find a Podcast of possible interest, click on its icon to display more information.
5. In the more information window, you can either click on the Subscribe button to download all of the most recent episodes, and automatically receive all future episodes until you unsubscribe (from within the iTunes window), or click on just the episodes you want to have download.
6. Once downloaded, select Podcasts from the iTunes sidebar to display your available episodes.
7. Select the target episode, then click the Play button to play on your computer, or synch with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to listen when away from the computer.
ITUNES UInterested in more formal education via your Podcasts? Try out iTunes U. Also found on the iTunes store, but instead of selecting the Podcast tab, select the iTunes U tab. Here you will find lectures from professors of Harvard, Yale, MIT, and other centers of higher education–for free!
Whether or not the economy has impacted your work or life, all of us now need the best from each of us. The more food we provide our synapses, the better positioned we will be to think in new ways, see in a new light, and to create more, better, and different solutions to our personal, organizational, and societal opportunities.
Tags: education, continuous improvement, podcast, iTunes U, distance learning, iTunes U, iTunes U
