You want the short answer? Well, the only antidote to knowledge stagnation is probably embracing the habit of lifelong learning. For the long-winded answer, read on.
Have you ever had an experience where a colleague approached you and asked about something technical and you do not know the answer? Or have you ever been in the middle of all-hands-on-deck, mission-critical situation and everyone is waiting for you to push the button, but you can’t figure out the right button to push? How about getting caught in a discovery meeting unprepared and you are expected to provide a solution to a baffling issue that everyone expected you to have an answer for?
You probably don’t want to find yourself in those situations. I have, and I lost count of the number of times those happened in the past. Embarrassing as it may, I just have to admit that. And if you are like me, you probably did too. The good thing is we acknowledge these shortcomings, and we are more than willing to fill the gaps. We make up by delivering more of the things that we know and going beyond the extra mile. Then we go back and pick up the things that we don’t know and learn them.
Technical people with years of experience in their field are expected to deliver answers where needed as needed. But we may find ourselves stuck not knowing what we’re supposed to know and even confused when caught off-guard. How do we minimize the occurrence of such lapses?
Identify the Gaps
List the things that you were asked but didn’t have the answer for. Identify all the related concepts and the scenarios those might be applicable to. Ask the experts in your field or consult other resources such as forums, books, podcasts, webcasts, paid training, and many others. ChatGPT will provide you the shortcuts but vet them thoroughly. Live events such as conferences are great venues to find knowledge gaps. Test the concepts and apply when you’re sure they work and that only after determining that they are the appropriate solutions.
Set System Instead of Goals
The biggest hurdle to sustaining any learning habits is consistency, or the lack thereof. It is harder to sustain progress when you are goal oriented. Focus on your processes and establish other habits that complement your learning habits. Cultivate a productive mindset. Create a personal learning system that is anchored on processes established on top of your learning priorities.
Establish a Schedule
Establish a schedule along with setting up your learning habits and systems. If you don’t prioritize it, it won’t happen. Of course, this is easier said than done. If you are like me, you also struggle to stay consistent. This is why it is important to set aside a time for this purpose. Life happens. The chance that things are going to get done is higher when they are scheduled than when they are not.
There are tons of ways to avoid knowledge stagnation. The key is to establish a robust learning system that you can sustain.
The post How to Avoid Knowledge Stagnation first appeared on SQL, Code, Coffee, Etc..
The post How to Avoid Knowledge Stagnation appeared first on SQL, Code, Coffee, Etc..