Secret of Success: Learning, Unlearning, and Relearning

Secret of Success: Learning, Unlearning and Relearning

"The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn." These were the words of Alvin Toffler, an American writer, futurist, and businessman.

Your success in any sphere of life is dependent on what you know about that particular thing. The famous English comic writer, Alan Moore says "knowledge like air is vital to life, like air no one should deny it." Knowledge is the facts, information, and skills acquired through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject. It is also the familiarity, awareness, or understanding of someone or something. Knowledge is power.

Knowledge is a product of learning. Learning is a continuous process of life that never ends. Sociologists argue that human beings evolve from biological beings to social beings through the process of learning and interaction. Knowledge is vital for success, and you acquire it by one form of learning or the other.

Learning is therefore a part of human growth and existence. You will agree with me just like Michael Scott said, "the day we stop learning is the day we die."

However, learning is not sufficient, you must adapt other forms of learning like unlearning and relearning so you can afford the success that you desire in one area or the other of life, especially in this 21st century when the world and our society is changing at the speed of light. New knowledge, skills, inventions etc are being developed everyday and the methods and technologies of doing things are advancing day by day. Success in any field now therefore depends on the ability to learn, relearn and unlearn as much as we can can just as Alvin Toffler said, so as to catch up.

Anyone who desires to be successful must be willing and ready to learn the new methods, skills, innovations and knowledge of how things are being done currently so as to stay useful. Learning new things expands the potential and sustainability of our success.

Also, learning is never always enough. We must be willing to relearn skills and knowledge so as resharpen the dull and blunt edges in our lives in order to remain relevant in our pursuit for success. Sometimes, we need to return to the basics and learn over again.

Finally, of what use is everything we have learnt and relearned if we do not unlearn? We must be determined to unlearn. According to Yasser Bashaa El-Din "unlearning is not merely about giving away or expulsion, it’s about rejecting a previously held belief or repudiating a long revered theory which must be cautiously handled as it can pose a threat to any learner". This may be the hardest road to success, but throwing away the baggage of unnecessary lifestyle and acquired knowledge will lighten our burden and strive for success.

In our age and time, it is obvious that we cannot continue things as usual. To achieve success is not just by being motivational, you must act. We must act by adopting the propensity to learn, unlearn and relearn relevant skills, knowledge and principles that will help us achieve success in our life's endeavour.

Peter Momoh and Ademola Adebayo

Comments

  1. This is really a nice piece. The aspect of unlearning will really go a long way to help lots of people in this 21st century. And i strongly believe that the future belongs to those who learn, unlearn and relearn. Thank you very much for sharing this with me.

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  2. This is a great piece.
    Truly Learning is Living.

    This is article everyone both small and great needs to read.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Brilliant piece. Sometimes what we know is only relevant for a particular phase in life. That's where unlearning and relearning comes in. Great work guys🙌🏽

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  4. Nice piece
    How do we achieve the process of unlearning to relearn in Africa, because Africans as you know it are people who find it hard to learn, but when they finally learn and believe in what they have learnt they tend to have a strong belief in it, and thus they would find it hard to unlearn it, so as for them to relearn something else...

    You know in Africa majority when they learn something they tend to think that they've learnt it all, and in the words of HAILE SELASSIE he said and I quote _"A man who says I have learned enough and will learn no further" should be considered as knowing nothing at all."

    How does the process of unlearning to relearn, intend to address this issue in africa..?

    How would it be applied?

    ReplyDelete

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