GET ON THE BUS!

Life-long learning is a very fun ride! 

Greetings!   

Fall is my favorite season of the year. While the back to school activities are not in my routine these days - I still think of this time of year as back to school and everyone preparing to learn. I still enjoy learning something new every day. Patients will tell me about a great book they have read and I will order it to see what new things I can learn. You don't have to learn how to speak a new language or build the next great electronic gadget - just do something that speaks to you.

According to Dr. Amen, a double board certified psychiatrist, teacher, author, and the Founder of Amen Clinics, states that the best way to maintain our brain function is to always be engaged in learning something new. Fifteen minutes per day of a completely different activity than you usually do is more effective than learning something new in an activity you regularly engage in. For example, a cook learning a new recipe is not as effective as a cook learning to play the piano. If your brain is learning new things it makes new physical structures. If it is not learning, it deteriorates as you get older. It could be something small like learning how to shoot a video on your iPhone and share it with friends or on U-tube!  

According to Dr. Amen's, most of us have one or two areas of knowledge that we strive to know very well - things related to our jobs and maybe a hobby or two. While it's important to develop a deep understanding of the things that matter most to us, it is just as important to develop a broad understanding of the world in general.

There are a lot of good, practical reasons to make learning something new a part of your daily routine, but the best reason has nothing to do with practicality - we are learning creatures, and the lifelong practice of learning is what makes us humans and our lives worthwhile.

 Good to Know:

• Learning across a wide range of subjects gives us a range of perspectives to call on in our own narrow day-to-day areas of specialization.

• Learning helps us more easily and readily adapt to new situations.

• A broad knowledge of unfamiliar situations feeds innovation by inspiring us to think creatively and providing examples to follow.

• Learning deepens our character and makes us more inspiring to those around us.

• Learning makes us more confident.

• Learning instills an understanding of the historical, social, and natural processes that impact and limit our lives.

• Refreshes your mind.  Learning can become addictive. It feels really good to renew your mind in some way, every day.

• Gives you something interesting to talk about. Who doesn't want to be known for being interesting? Not knowing what to talk about makes people feel less confident in networking or professional settings. Increasing your learning can give you more topics to share.

• Helps you serve others. Not everything you learn will be immediately useful to you. But it's possible that you could learn something that will change someone else's life. Your new knowledge could have a profound impact on a co-worker or friend.

• Exposes you to new ideas. A mind once expanded, never returns to its original shape. New ideas can make you more thoughtful and knowledgeable.

• Fights boredom.  Sometimes we all get stuck in a rut or fall into the same routine. Learning something new breaks up the monotony.

• Makes you feel more powerful. Sir Francis Bacon said, "Knowledge is power". That power comes from being more valuable on the job, in your family, and in your community.

• Stimulates your intellect. You can encourage intellectual thought by reading a book or watching an informational video. Your local library and the internet put the world at your fingertips. You can learn about anything from cooking to technology.

There are numerous good reasons to gain new knowledge daily but the only reason that matters is that one that resonates with you.  Have fun and learn something new today! 

Many blessings for a beautiful fall!

Lynn