“Accepting, allowing and interacting with your life as though it is exactly as it should be, without making yourself wrong (or right) for what you discover is the way to Self-Realization.”

~ Ariel Kane

It’s awful, but we’ve — you and I—become socially conditioned into believing that unless we have something tangible (a house, a family, a dog, whatever it may be), that we’ve accumulated very little in life and consequently accomplished very little also.

I think the important thing is to begin by questioning this type of reasoning because often we accept what is as ‘the way it is’, which only serves as another way in which we undervalue ourselves.

As a recent University graduate and as a novice acquaintance with life experience, I’ve found myself in a variety of questionable circumstances. Many of these experiences have led my mind astray, but in time, they have allowed me to experience various introspective moments. I’m proud of myself for accomplishing many personal goals, yet at the same time, where I currently am seems to question many of the previous assumptions about where I would be.

I’m living in a paradox.

Sometimes I explain my merits with confidence, other times I undervalue them by the very way that I refer to them. When I do this, however, I fail to understand the point … I am in a situation that isn’t ideal, I suppose, but I’m in this situation because I’m trying to better myself … and there is nothing shameful about that. And who decides what my ideal situation is anyway — my family, my peers, society? Shouldn’t my ideal be focused on the very thing I’m doing — growing?

If THIS is logic as we see it – relating experiences at face value—then it’s a wonder that our world nurtures anything but distorted minds. Self-loathing, unsure, confused, we’re constantly looking for reassurance in tangible means. Yet, this way of thinking is only something that has been put into our subconscious mind by the world that surrounds us. We define success in tangible means, therefore are definition of success in life equals only what we can see. And even though I realize this, and maybe you do too, it’s a perpetual way of thinking that I find hard to separate myself from — it’s a consciousness that permeates our world and culture.

What to do?

A good starting point: Start by dissecting this type of logic. Think about the things you are proud of in life now. Write them down. Reflect on them.

Bring on the Learning Revolution

“The important thing is not to stop questioning.“ –Albert Einstein

I once read an article by a twitter friend,Ivan Campuzano, called How to Reclaim Your Childlike Creativity. Ivan suggests that freeing ourselves from social conditioning is what emancipates us from a  perpetuating process of creative loss as we grow older.

What is social conditioning you ask? Social conditioning begins when we are children — as we develop a sense of self-awareness and slowly begin to understand that we are a part of the world surrounding us. As we develop awareness, we begin to react to the experiences we encounter and try to find a place for ourselves within them. Our parents begin to tell us what is expected of us – no more picking our nose in public and eating it, that won’t do—and we begin school and are given a set of standards for how we ought to act. Slowly, yet persuasively, we are formed into the person we will someday become.

3 questions of consideration:

1) How is it that we can truly be ourselves in a world that is constantly telling us what we should achieve, how we can categorize and capitalize off of success, while maintaining what is socially appropriate?

2) Are we constantly summoned through life, prescribed values, beliefs and a set of guidelines that dictate who we are?

3) Can we argue that the choices we make are defined by who we think we are, which means that if society dictates who we are, then we allow society to determine the choices we make?

Most people spend their life time pondering questions relevant to who they are, whether they are fully aware of it or not.

Children as role-models:

Children are constantly living in the moment, for every moment is a new moment, one which has not been tainted by prescribed behaviors or guiding principles. Being liberated allows the young mind to live each day freely, without worry or constraint.Take a second and watch a young child — they dance, they yell, they say what it is that they believe. They ask questions in attempt to constantly discover the world around them. They live freely. That’s until they are tainted by the values, beliefs and materialization’s of cultural and societal circumstances.

“The important thing is not to stop questioning” says Albert Einstein.

Today, who decides what you can or can’t do? Take a minute and think about this.

“Many individuals find little comfort in their experience with public education.”

Public education — the product of culture and history — is often scrutinized because of its hierarchical, standardized, “one shoe fits all” approach.  However, with the insurgence of technology and the ease of access to like-minded individuals, the road towards educational reform is no longer a distant vision.

A short history of public education:

Industries needed workers and people needed jobs; the Industrial Revolution was taking place.  Students, like the products and services of the industrial revolution, were mass produced to meet the needs of this era and public education was formed.

Learning is a process, and should not considered a means to an end:

Ken Robinson, who is one of the leading visionaries on public education and its need for change, argues that schools overvalue certain abilities (logical), while undervaluing others (artistic).  Many graduate from high school with little understanding of what they’re actually good at; they are lost.

However, a new revolution is taking place – the technological era—and with this, industrialism is seeing its decline, and so too is the effectiveness of strategies and policies that schools use to educate students.

Video games, social networking and new literacy:

The internet, video games and new means of communication are highly effective when it comes to learning, why?

They allow the individual to become part of the process of learning by creating meaningful connections.

Video games, just like the internet and technology, require that one participates in their learning by focusing on what is being done,  rather than simply learning a set of facts (rote memorization). They are important because they require problem solving skills through challenging situations — knowledge is derived from problems that are effectively solved.

Social identities are inextricably linked to processes of learning, which is why social networking is coming to the forefront. Social networking sites, such as Twitter, are highly influential examples of learning to do, rather than learning to know, because they require that people network and build relationships with others. People connect through their own interests and experiences and become participants in the process of knowledge acquisition, which again, creates meaningful connections.

As the future dictates that we embrace a new cultural mindset: innovation, creativity and awareness, we must collectively re-asses our values about what learning entails.

Check out #edchat on Twitter and Ken Robinson who is one of the chief advocates on educational reform.

“Realize deeply that the present moment is all you have. Make the NOW the primary focus of your life.” — Eckhart Tolle

I’ve done very little traveling in my life, but have always felt worldly through the diverse experiences of my adult education. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always wanted to travel, but because of the cost of education and living, I continually re-assured myself that I would embark on world travels *someday. About to go into my 6th year of post-secondary school,  I realized this year that I needed to stop living for the future and start experiencing the things I’ve always wanted to do,  now. I decided that I could accomplish this by finding a job that required travel, and I searched vigorously to find one. Meanwhile,  a friend mentioned to me that I should apply for a program called Explore, which is a language acquisition program that the government offers at various Universities across Canada;  I quickly brushed off the idea. Yet, my research surfaced few opportunities that paid as well as my current sales job, and I simultaneously realized that paying for living arrangements in two places – as I was signed into a yearly lease –  was not in my current budget. Yet again, my travel plans fell through.

But wait, what was this program my friend had mentioned to me… Explore? hmm.  I quickly applied and sent my forms express.

Finding myself, one exploration at a time:

I left for British Columbia on May 19^th. I had applied for the program on a whim, but quickly realized that my spontaneity was one of the best decisions I have ever made. The program facilitated English classes for 135 people and French classes for 65, the vast majority being from Quebec and French speakers. Quickly our lives and cultures meshed. Our differences, however, led to misunderstandings initially – for instance I walked around calling myself hot/ attractive for about a week, at the cost of some Francophone’s believing I was conceited, when in actuality I was explaining my temperature (how embarrassing! ). But, the confrontations and differences quickly dissipated and friendships formed. We lived together, we ate together, we traveled together, we slept in unison and most importantly, we discovered a life of our own making.

Living in the moment:

Although I’m not fluent in French, nor am I bilingual, I acquired general speaking capabilities in French as a result of my travels to BC, along with an appreciation for French language and culture. More importantly though, I lived a life of exploration, a life of learning and a life that seemed far distant from the reality I had left at home. I disconnected  from the world around me (yes, Twitter and all) and embraced my surroundings. I can authentically say that I lived in the moment.

Live, learn and Explore:

Ironically, I bought the URL Learntoexplore.com far before I had heard of the program Explore. Yet, I feel that my experiences were the ingredient I needed to begin my blog and perhaps in many ways, destiny.

The point?

So many people believe that that life begins when you retire or graduate from college or University; yet, often these people fall short of their aspirations to live and experience their dreams. They become trapped in a job, money and a lifestyle that isn’t exactly easy to pry away from. Not to mention that life dramatically changes when responsibilities begin to build up and the once free-spirited, “I can do whatever I like” frame of mind vanishes.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing –  it simply means that you need to be more creative, every day.

“Do one thing every day that scares you.” - Eleanor Roosevelt

Things happen for a reason, but often we have to take ourselves outside of our comfort zones and be willing to jump on board something new — this entails doing things that aren’t necessarily planned or thought through. This could be something as simple as calling an old friend, paying a compliment to someone, beginning a conversation with a random person, and so on. The possibilities are endless. When we try new, exciting things, we release endorphins, which are what create content and happy feelings.  So … Be spontaneous! Do something  outside of your normal sphere of daily activities.

Try something new today. I can almost guarantee that you will learn something  about yourself or someone else, which is an amazing feeling!

I know that I did… and it was one of the best experiences of my life.

photo credit:

Chantal Burnett

Edited by Shauna Robar, Learntoexplore.com