Every day for the last forty days, I have posted something I have learned to this blog. At the risk of sounding “meta,” I want to share something I’ve learned about learning. It is a lesson that is obvious from the outside, but only revealed to the practitioner through experience.
Almost all of my posts in the last month have been about writing. Why? Because that is what I am trying to learn. I have sought out advice and lessons from other authors and entrepreneurs through their books, podcasts, articles, etc. so I can learn to grow as a writer.
I am best known as a writer on spirituality. I write books and create resources for Catholic ministers, specifically religious educators. Yet, almost all of that work hasn’t appeared here in the last few weeks. Why? Because, sadly, I haven’t been seeking to grow in that area. I’ve been putting in a lot of work, but I haven’t been seeking to learn new things.
I read more than 30 books this year. Not counting the Bible, which I read almost every day, only a few of the nonfiction works were focused on spirituality. The others focused on creativity, business, and writing.
So here is the simple lesson:
You will learn based on the inputs you choose.
What books are you reading? What podcasts are you listening to? What articles and authors are you turning to for inspiration? What email lists are you subscribed to?
You will grow from the outputs you create from these inputs.
What are you writing? What content are you creating? What are you teaching others about what you have learned?
If you want to grow in a certain area, think deeply about the inputs and the outputs.
If you have a certain expertise, continue to find new inputs and create better outputs to improve your expertise.
