Learning is the one way to stay young. Every time we learn something new, we grow, mature, and keep our minds healthy. If we stop, we stop growing. We’ve all heard of the conventional ways to continue to grow and learn. But we need to get creative.
You might have heard that you need to attend conferences in your industry, read blogs, listen to podcasts, or continue your education through higher education. Those means are all well and dandy. They work; they truly do. But you’re unique. You’re different. You’re looking for something interesting ways to continue learning.
That’s why I wrote this article. I want to help you continue to learn in unique and different ways. These ways will help you become the leader you were born to be.
Get Creative: Unique Ways Leaders Continue To Grow
1. Seek out diverse perspectives:
We typically close ourselves off from new ideas unintentionally. We’ll look to the same business leaders we have always looked to. We surround ourselves with like-minded people. We even eliminate the people in our lives who no longer serve us.
But what if we’re wrong? What if we’re hindering our ability to grow and learn by limiting the people we’re around?
Diverse perspectives create diverse ideas. They stimulate our minds and make us think of new ideas. Look for people with differing and diverse perspectives. Seek to understand these people. Ask why they think the way they do. Their answers may open you up to new ideas and ways of thinking you’ve never thought of before.
2. Volunteer in a different industry:
When we stick to one industry, we focus on how things have always been done. I have seen this in churches, Toastmasters groups, and the business world.
We see what’s always been done and believe it’s how it always will be done. This is stuck thinking.
Look for opportunities to volunteer in an industry completely different from yours. For a manufacturing executive, you might look at volunteering for an organization in the food industry. For a person in the church, look at volunteering at a school or a retail business.
These experiences will shake you. You’ll discover your way of thinking has been holding you back. You’ll also get to meet and interact with people you’re not used to.
