For some you can spend 15 years of your life there. For something it can be over 20 years. For most, you leave without having experienced the world or developed emotionally to face the world. School consumes a huge part of our lives. School can have its benefits, but it also has its drawbacks. In my book I discuss how the world we live in now is one of intangible skills rather than tangible skills. So what is the one thing you should unlearn and learn from school immediately?
So I’ve been out of traditional education for well over 10 years now and in my opinion, the school system is broken. I’ve experienced traditional schooling, apprenticeships, virtual University, a menial job, an enjoyable career and running a business.
Education today should be tailored towards the needs of the individual. That however, has its difficulty due to cost and supply. That is why personal development and investment into your own education is essentially, more important once you leave school and beyond. However, there are two important aspects to school education that you need to learn and unlearn.
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You don’t need to memorise everything
Think back to all those theories and useless facts, how do they serve you today? Do they serve you in building relationships? Do they serve you in creating wealth? Do they serve you in understanding how to deal with emotional stress? No.
In school we were programmed to cram in as much as we physically could into our brains and memorise as much as possible all to pass a test. A test that didn’t prove how clever we were. A test that didn’t prove how successful we’d be in the future. A test which did categorise us into smart or stupid. None of that will teach you how to handle life.
The biggest think I believe should be unlearnt from school is that you don’t need to memorise everything. Everything is accessible on the internet, in a book or from learning from someone else (such as a Mastermind). A test doesn’t prove who you are.
There are very specific professions which require testing and memory, but this is the few and this still doesn’t help you discover who you are or lead your life.
Remember, just because you fail a test as you don’t have great memory (like me), that does not mean you’re a failure in life. You can do so much more. Maybe you’re like me, someone who learns from practical life experience; the art of doing. If that’s so, then follow that path. Focus on self invested personal development and learn from life. The next section is what I believe should be learnt from school.
Be adaptable
One great thing that school does have is variety. You meet so many people, try new activities; such as sports, arts and sciences. The best thing I discovered is that you should learn how to be adaptable. If you aren’t great at something, try it, improve and adapt. Talk to different people and adapt. Take as many experiences from school as you can and adapt. This skill will serve you much greater in life than memory.
Adaptability is one of the core areas of a leader. Practising being adaptable and being open to changing will prepare you to face any challenge in life. I’ve often been asked:
- “Why do you never seem phased under pressure?”
- “Why are you so calm?”
- “Why do you always have the answer?”
The truth is not because I’m some wise old man, it’s because I’m adaptable. I learnt early on in life that in order to make the best of any situation I need to adapt and learn from life. I explain this more in my book if you’re interested.
Thank you for reading, JT.
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How to reference this page
Toor, J. (2020). What you should unlearn and learn from school? Available at: https://pmgrowth.co/what-you-should-unlearn-and-learn-from-school?