The 7 Skills of Knowledge Work

We are now working in the knowledge society, in which information and knowledge are the primary commodity. The majority of employees in this society are knowledge workers, which means their primary function is to gather and create new knowledge. The nature of work in the knowledge society is cross-disciplinary, complex, varied, and ambiguous, and knowledge workers must be able to access and use broad knowledge in flexible yet disciplined manner.

Related Post: How to Become a Successful Lifelong Learner

General Skills for Success in the Knowledge Society
Because I work in the field of education, specifically instructional design, I am constantly thinking about what knowledge and skills our students need to grasp to be successful in their knowledge work. What do they really need to know? I recently reviewed several reports and studies on what these skills are, and I describe them below. I then postulate what I believe organizations and leaders should do to enable successful knowledge work in their employees. Finally, I share a self-evaluation tool which can be used to evaluate your own capacities in each of these skill areas.

7 Skills of Knowledge Work
The following skills and abilities are those which are crucial to success in today's society. I use the work of Cochran and Ferrari (2009) as the framework, though the themes they share are repeated in the several articles and documents I reviewed. I have added in my own thoughts and insights, and also added the "Personal Management" skill as my own.

1. Thinking Skills - the ability to work with information effectively to solve problems, perform tasks, and design solutions. Thinking skills include:
1. critical thinking - drawing appropriate conclusions based on data
2. systems thinking - seeing the big picture, including how parts of a system affect and influence one another
3. analysis skills - breaking down information and technologies into pieces to understand and categorize individual parts. Identifying the root cause of a problem.
4. problem solving - identifying solutions to complex issues.
5. creativity - using imagination to combine existing knowledge into new knowledge to fulfill a need.
6. design - planning out the implementation of solutions to learning and performance problems.
2. Communication - the ability to understand and share ideas effectively. This includes the following:
1. Understand and interpret complex information from multiple sources through divers media.
2. Communicate effectively and appropriately in a variety of formats, including visual, verbal, written, both face-to-face and in digital formats. 
3. Teamwork and Leadership - the ability to work with others to achieve a common goal. This includes the following:
1. collaborating and working effectively with others to achieve goals.
2. motivating others through appropriate strategies.
3. working effectively with team and individual strengths to maximize the effectiveness of the whole.
4. leading people to positive outcomes through persuasion, empathy, and effective management.
4. Lifelong Learning and Self-Direction - (see my post on lifelong learning) continual self-improvement through the constant gathering of knowledge. Setting ones own direction in learning and growth.  This includes the following:
1. Development of general skills like those in this list. 
2. Development of field-specific skills.  
3. Gaining formal education, which to increase ability to sustain success in the knowledge society. 
5. Technology Use - use of technology to accomplish goals or tasks. 
1. Select the right tools and technologies for tasks and problem solving. 
2. Use tools and technologies to appropriately complete tasks and solve problems.
3. Learn quickly how to use a new technology and be willing to adapt new technologies continuously.
6. Ethics and Professionalism - An ethical person makes him or herself personally accountable for their own actions and work. 
1. Have good work habits and perform assigned work consistently.
2. Interact with others in a professional manner. 
3. Work effectively and professionally with people of diverse backgrounds. 
7. Personal Management - manage habits to maintain health (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual). This management should seek to maintain proper balance in all areas of life (family, work, personal, community). It includes the effective management and use of time to accomplish work and achieve goals.

Organizations and Leaders in the Knowledge Society

Organizations and leaders must facilitate the acquisition and application of each of these skills. This means policies, procedures, and organizational structures that enable their employees to do these things. It also means leaders and managers that encourage and facilitate their use. In the table below I outline some of my ideas on how this can be done.

Skill	Organizations and Leaders Should…
Thinking Skills	Share and give access to relevant, useful knowledge. Create systems and processes for knowledge sharing. Teach and communicate regularly with employees. Encourage and establish systems for knowledge sharing.
Communication	Continually communicate new knowledge to employees. Provide professional development opportunities to improve communication skills. Provide continuous opportunities to practice the skills of communication.
Teamwork and Leadership	Provide leadership and guidance in effective teamwork. Provide opportunities to practice leadership teamwork. Provide professional development opportunities to improve leadership and teamwork skills.
Lifelong Learning and Self-Direction	Provide many opportunities for learning and professional development. Provide career coaching and development opportunities. Provide access to relevant industry knowledge.
Technology Use	Utilize and demonstrate effective use of appropriate technologies. Provide professional development opportunities to improve employee technology capacities.
Ethics and Professionalism	Establish standards of ethical, professional behaviors through word and example. Hold employees accountable for their professionalism.
Personal Management	Provide a healthy work environment, including reasonable workload. Provide opportunities for development of personal management skills.

Instructional Designers in the Knowledge Society
It becomes critical for an instructional design or performance improvement professional to have a sound balance between these general skills and those skills that are specific to the field of instructional design. Some of these skills clearly overlap - thinking skills are the foundation of effective needs analysis, for example - but gaining competency in all of the above skills will likely contribute to an instructional designer's success in improving learning and performance.

Rating Your Own Skill Level in These Areas
I created this simple form for rating your own skill level in each of these areas. This form is designed to help you determine areas in which you can improve so that you can make plans to do so.

Skill	Rating 1= Low 5 = High	Notes and Plans for Improvement
Thinking Skills - the ability to work with information effectively, to think critically, systematically, analyze, and creatively solve problems.
Communication - the ability to understand and share ideas effectively, to interpret complex information, to communicate in a variety of formats.
Teamwork and Leadership - the ability to work with others to achieve a common goal, to collaborate, motivate others, build on strengths, and lead with persuasion and empathy.
Lifelong Learning and Self-Direction - continual self-improvement through the constant gathering of knowledge, setting ones own direction in learning and growth, development of general and specific skills, gaining formal education.
Technology Use – selection and use of technology to accomplish goals or tasks, ability to learn and adapt to technologies quickly.
Ethics and Professionalism - personally accountable for their own actions and work, exercises good work habits, interacts with others professionally, works well with others of diverse backgrounds.
Personal Management – management of habits to maintain health (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual) and maintain proper balance in all areas of life (family, work, social, community). Also, management of time use to accomplish goals.

Reference
Cochran, G. R., & Ferrari, T. M. (2009) “preparing youth for the 21st century knowledge
economy”. Afterschool Matters.

Presentation at Utah Instructional Design Summit

Here I am presenting as keynote at the Utah Instructional Design Summit. 

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I am currently on sabbatical from my work at Franklin University. While working as a visiting scholar at USU, I was invited to be the keynote speaker at  the Utah Instructional Design Summit being held at Salt Lake Community College in July. The summit is a regular meeting of instructional designers working in higher education in Utah, and I was honored to be invited to speak. I am very aware of the great talent available within the group - I know several of the designers personally and have great respect for their work - so it was exciting to be asked to speak and interact with them.

The presentation was recorded - to view the presentation, click here.

What I Talked About

I usually speak about my scholarly expertise, particularly instructional theory and/or first principles of instruction. However, for this meeting I decided to focus on what I believe are fundamental habits of success in our society today, applied to the field of instructional design. Specifically, I decided to focus on:

• What the Knowledge Society is and how it influences the way we work.
• How Instructional Designers must adapt their design approach to meet the needs of the knowledge worker.
• The importance of taking responsibility for actions and living with purpose.
• Responding (instead of reacting) to the opportunities and obstacles that constantly come.

I enjoyed speaking on these topics and I believe they are critical to success in society today. I will likely continue my thinking on these topics and will continue to write and speak about them from time to time.

7 Ways to Totally Screw Up Your Career

Over the past several years, I have interacted with a lot of professionals in a variety of settings and circumstances. And one thing I have noticed is that there are several key ways that a person can totally screw up their career. I must admit that I have not avoided making some of these mistakes, and I thought it worth sharing the top 7 Ways to Totally Screw Up Your Career.

1. Go Where the Wind Takes You - To screw up your career, be sure to have no goals. Allow people and circumstances to direct you and your life.  
2. Get Distracted - To really mess things up, pay attention to and spend time on what doesn't really matter to you. 
3. Give Up Quickly - Make sure that you do not try hard. If you meet any initial resistance, just fold under the pressure. It's not worth trying!  
4. Be Negative - If you really want to fail, be extra negative. This negative energy will disrupt your happiness, your relationships, and your ability to succeed. 
5. Gossip - If you want to work in a horrible environment, speak poorly about everyone around you. This will undermine trust and eliminate opportunities for growth.   
6. Stop Learning - To stunt your growth, be sure that you don't learn anything new. Hold tightly to your current limited perspective and close your mind to new ideas. 
7. Jump to Conclusions - Don't gather information, think, or reflect about your actions. Just react and jump to conclusions quickly so that you don't have to feel uncomfortable.

7 Ways to Increase Your Career Success
Of course, the opposite of these are the 7 ways to increase your career success. I've placed these below. In my experience, there is a constant battle between these two sides. We all know that living with purpose and being positive are good attributes, but there seems to be a constant pull toward the negative opposite. If we truly wish to enjoy success, we must be willing to work toward and build upon our own positive attributes.

To Screw Up Your Career	To Improve your Career Success
1. Go Where the Wind Takes You.	1. Live with Purpose! Find and live your own mission and purpose in life.
2. Get Distracted.	2. Focus on Fulfilling Your Purpose! Focus your thoughts, actions, and intentions on fulfilling your purpose.
3. Give Up Quickly.	3. Keep Moving Forward! No matter the obstacle, just keep moving toward your goal and you will reach it.
4. Be Negative.	4. Be Positive! Fill your mind with the positive and expect good results in your life. Have hope that good will come!
5. Gossip.	5. Respect Others! In every career, relationships are key. Be sure to show respect and kindness to everyone.
6. Stop Learning.	6. Always Learn!  In the knowledge society, you must continually grow and learn to compete and remain effective.
7. Jump to Conclusions.	7. Think with Data! Gather data on how to act, think critically and move forward on the best possible path.

Other Ways to Screw a Career Up
I would be interested in reading other ideas of how to screw up a career. These are based on my own limited experience working with others, and I am certain there are plenty of other ways to screw up...

Previous Post: How to Achieve Success and Happiness in Life

How to Achieve Success and Happiness In Life

Many people go through life living far below their potential. It is amazing to me to see so many people fall short of who they might be. In contrast, we all know people that have achieved great success and joy in life. But what do successful people know and do that others do not? In this blog post, I will share the four fundamental skills for success and happiness. These are very general in nature, and they must be individually applied be an individual to be of full effect.

My Experience With These Principles
Over the last 15 years, I have devoted thousands of hours of study to the topics of learning, goal-setting, and personal success. I have attended dozens of workshops, seminars, and trainings, speeches and presentations. I have read scores of books, listened to hundreds of hours of audio books and programs, have earned four college degrees in various disciplines, and have spent many hours researching how people learn and change.

During these studies, I have also worked and volunteered in multiple organizations, states, and countries. I have worked to apply the principles of success and happiness in my life, and I have concluded that there are a few very fundamental skills for achieving success, happiness, and fulfillment in life. In this post, I will describe what I believe these skills are and will give some strategies for developing these skills.

You Can Change
Before I share these skills and abilities, I want to discuss the most fundamental truth of success and happiness: you can change. You are endowed by your creator with the capacity to change, adapt, improve and grow. Every human being has the capacity to change habits, to gain knowledge, to live with purpose, and to grow toward the good and the pure.

Some subscribe to false ideas of predestination or determinism, believing that their choices have already been made for them. Others adhere to behaviorism, believing that our environment directs our behavior, and we only live in passive response to external stimuli. I fully reject these notions and state emphatically that every human being has the power to change their life and circumstances through exertion of thought and action. YOU CAN CHANGE. You can find direction in your life. You can grow. You can develop habits and take actions of your own free will and choice. You are not fully controlled by unseen powers or the environment you live in - you have GREAT power to live outside these influences and move toward excellence.

The Four Fundamental Skills for Success and Happiness 
Here are what I currently believe to be the most fundamental skills for success and happiness. I'll outline them here and then describe them in detail below.

1. Live with Purpose and Passion
2. Believe in Yourself
3. Develop Habits for Success
4. Keep Learning and Think Smart

Read Only if You Are Serious About Creating Change
I must be candid - it will take effort to achieve success and happiness in life. You must apply yourself and work toward your goals. And it can take a long time to make the changes you want to see in yourself.  However, if you begin down the path to your desired achievements, then you will eventually reach it. I can promise through my own personal experience that if you seriously study and apply these principles, you will find rich rewards, and the reward is always worth the required effort.

One of the most important ways you can start to build these fundamental skills is through learning. I strongly urge you to undertake a serious study of the principles of success and happiness. If you are willing to spend time reading the books and listening to the audio programs below, I can promise that you will begin to see success in these areas. I will discuss each of these fundamental skills for success and happiness in detail below, including resources for learning more.

1. Live With Purpose and Passion.
The most foundational skill for success and happiness is the ability to to find a sense of purpose in life. What are you passionate about? What do you love to think about and do? How are you uniquely positioned to make a positive impact on the world and on the people around you? Answering these questions can help you identify and move toward your purpose. For some people this can be difficult, but you must "begin with the end in mind" (Stephen Covey).

You must set goals that will help you achieve your purpose, specific objectives that will move you toward success. If you can discover your purpose and develop goals that will help you achieve that purpose, you will be among the empowered few who have a mission in life, a vision of how they can change the world. I believe that having purpose and goals will move you forward in life faster than any other thing.

Your task is to discover your purpose and set goals that will help you achieve it. I recommend that you study seriously these principles. It will take time to develop a deep knowledge and skill in these principles, but the following books, audio programs, and links can help you do this.

Books on Goal Setting and Purpose:
7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen Covey
How to Get What You Want (audio) - Zig Ziglar
Goals - How to Get Everything You Want - Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible - Brian Tracy
Happy for No Reason (book) Marci Shimoff

My Own Blog Posts on Goal Setting and Purpose:
A Challenge to the Slacker: Live Your Potential
How to Become an Expert at Anything
To Reach Career Goals, Be Deliberate
To Reach Your Goals, Avoid Distractions
How to Set and Reach Career Goals
Setting Professional Goals

2. Believe in Yourself.
The famous quote states, "Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." What you believe about yourself and about life directs how you behave in life. If you believe that you are unlucky, then you will behave like an unlucky person, constantly expecting bad things to happen to you. If you believe that you are not worthy of finding a companion, then your internal and external actions will likely fulfill that belief. What you believe about life and yourself becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, directly influencing and predicting the results you get in life.

Your task is to develop a deep reservoir of empowering, positive, true thoughts about yourself and life. You must flood your mind with positive, empowering beliefs, ideas and thoughts. These beliefs will act as the fuel of success, propelling you toward the fulfillment of your dreams. The resources below will get you started on doing this.

Books for Improving Your Beliefs:
Awaken the Giant Within (audio) - Anthony Robbins
Unleash the Power Within (audio) - Anthony Robbins
Happy for No Reason (book) - Marci Shimoff
A Healthy Dose of Motivation (audio) - Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
The Psychology of Achievement - Brian Tracy

My Own Blog Posts on Improving Your Beliefs:
Using the Power of Positive Affirmations

Using Your Thoughts to Create Personal Power
The Analogy of the Fleas: Self Beliefs, Learning and Success
Creating Results in Life

3. Develop Habits for Success.
Successful people develop habits that help them fulfill their goals and purpose. It is true that most of what we do each day is a result of our habitual behavior, so you must develop habits that will aid you in achieving your goals. You must also eliminate those habits which are unhealthy and which do not help you achieve your worthy goals and desires. 

To put it clearly, successful people have discovered (a) what positive habits are, (b) how they can change or eliminate old habits and (c) how they can adopt the new positive habits. If you would like to begin to identify and cultivate positive, empowering habits, begin with the resources below. These resources will give you an excellent foundation for changing your behavior for the better.

Books on Habit Development:
7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen Covey
The Power of Habit - Charles Duhigg
The Now Habit at Work - Neil Fiore

My Own Blog Posts on Habits of Success:
7 Fundamental Skills for Success
The Power of Habit (a book review and reflection)
Book Review - Instant Influence
The Importance of Humility

4. Keep Learning and Think Smart.
The world is increasingly complex, and the rate of knowledge creation is constantly expanding and changing. I attended a workshop the other day in which the speaker (a medical doctor) stated that 50% of the medical knowledge learned in medical school is obsolete before the individual graduates. The same is true in other fields, and to be successful in life, you must continuously learn and improve your knowledge so that you can maintain and improve your relevance and your ability to contribute meaningfully.

Not only must you continue learning, but you must develop and expand your capacity to use that information effectively. We live in a constant flood of information, so we must develop the ability to draw conclusions and make decisions that are effective and will bring the outcomes we desire. The resources below will give you a great start on effective thinking and decision-making.

Books on Thinking and Learning:

Outliers: The Story of Success - Malcolm Gladwell
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking - Malcolm Gladwell

My Blog Posts on Thinking and Learning
How to Become a Successful Lifelong Learner
The Tendency to Jump to Conclusions
Become an Active Learning: Here's How!
Skills for Success in the Knowledge Society
6 Principles for Using Data to Make Decisions
Effective Strategies for Making Decisions
Leadership and Effective Decision Making

A Note on Spirituality and Success
I would like to emphasize that I believe in God and believe that He wishes the very best for each of us.  I believe that He has given us the power to choose good in our lives, and my personal belief is that exercising the habits described above can also be used to bring us closer to God. I have found that a more spiritually-focused life will build a deep foundation of happiness. There are books that can bring a deeper layer of happiness in life, and I have personally gained a great deal of spiritual strength from reading the Holy Bible and the Book of Mormon. I also gain a great deal of insight and strength in speaking with my friends of other faiths.

What Will You Do?
So, what will you do? Are you willing to take the challenge and begin to develop these skills and habits in your life? Are you willing to take the journey to higher levels of happiness and success? I know through my own experience that gaining and applying these skills has helped me to grow in my life, and I hope to continue to increase my knowledge and skill in these areas. Are you willing to change?

A 30 Day Challenge
Here is my challenge to those who are willing to work toward success and happiness. I challenge you to do the following for the next 30 days:

• Read two of the books from the resources described above.
• Listen to two of the audio programs described above. (I check them out from the library).
• Apply at least two of the strategies I discuss in the linked blog posts.

If you are willing to do these things, you will almost certainly find yourself in a state of increased happiness. You will also find yourself beginning to see the path forward to the accomplishment of your own goals and desires. So, will you do it?

A Challenge to the Slacker: Live Your Potential

I am often amazed and saddened by the number of people that go through life living far beneath their God-given potential. I have learned through many years working with students and coworkers that everyone has the ability to achieve incredible success in their own lives and profoundly impact the people around them. And yet so rarely do people achieve what is within their potential.

In fact, I sometimes get tired of seeing people floating through life, consuming without contributing, failing to see and do the many incredible things that are available. What wasted potential! What a sad thing to watch people of such potential wallowing in their own apathy, falling short of their incredible potential to live a full life and share their rich blessings with the people around them.

What do You Want?
I write this blog post as a sort of challenge to everyone that reads it. What do you want out of life? Is there something that you wish you could do, something that you've wanted to achieve in life but haven't yet done it? Is there something you would like to see, some place you would like to go? What do you want out of life? How do you want to bless and help the people around you? How can you more fully fulfill your own destiny and divinity? When you die, how do you want to be remembered by the people you love?

I am sure that you do have answers to these questions, I believe everyone does. Everyone has the desire for something better. If you do want something different in your life, keep reading. However, if you don't want to accept these challenges, don't waste your time by reading the questions below.

What it Takes to Set and Reach Goals

• Figure out what you want! Discover what you really want to change in your life. Read and answer the questions at the beginning of this post. Think deeply and seriously about where you want your life to head so that you find true clarity on what you really want in life.
• Do it. If you want something meaningful in life, then go for it. Do what it takes to make it happen. Don't spend your entire life thinking about it, worrying about it, and discussing how things aren't quite ideal for you to be able to do it. Get out there and start doing!
• Focus. Minimize and eliminate distractions from your life. Cleanse yourself of mindless television and internet surfing. Consistently increase activities that contribute to personal growth, health, learning, and success. Be sure that you do not get distracted by what you can't do in your own circumstances. Focus on what you can do and do it!
• Plan. Figure out exactly what you need to do to reach your goal. Research what it takes. Talk to people who have done it. Figure out what you need to do. If you can't figure out all of the steps right now, that is totally fine. Just do what you know you can do right now. If you step toward the thing which you desire, you will find yourself closer with the pathway clearer.
• Learn. To succeed, you must fill your mind with positive, true knowledge. If you want to change who you are, you have to drastically change what you allow others to teach you about life. You must acquire and trust knowledge that gives you personal power. Read scripture to heighten your understanding of your divine nature. Listen constantly to motivational speeches and talks to build confidence in yourself and in your abilities. You must flood your mind with good, pure, motivating, useful knowledge so that you have the power to sustain success. And you must eliminate that which lowers your view of yourself and your destiny.
• Get used to discomfort. Working toward new goals and dreams is difficult because it takes you out of your routine. Humans naturally like things to be comfortable and even predictable. Human beings like safety. But if you want to change and improve your life, you have to become friends with the pain of learning, action, and setbacks. After a time, however, you will learn to enjoy these difficulties as personal challenges and will welcome them as a way to improve yourself.
• Get help. If you do not have the knowledge, skills, or resources you need to reach your goals, get help from the people around you. Your spouse, friends, children, clergy members, teachers, managers, and even strangers are very often willing to give you support and guidance in your goals. Seek out the people who will teach you everything you need to do be successful.
• Persist. Keep working toward your goal. If you do not give up, then you cannot fail at reaching your goal. Think about it - as long as you continue to move forward toward your goals, you will succeed! I have seen many of my students overcome incredible obstacles to complete their studies because they kept moving forward and reached their goals. Be persistent - get back up when you fall down. Learn from your mistakes and adjust your approach. Just keep moving toward your ideal life and you will quickly find yourself living it.
• Find joy in the struggle. Working toward a goal is often as satisfying as reaching the goal. Training to run a race can be as exhilarating and beautiful as running the race. Learning so that you can pass as class or earn a degree can be as enriching as earning the degree. Consciously and consistently placing yourself on the path to success is success itself, so learn to love the process and path of success.
• Celebrate success. Set short-term goals for yourself and when you reach them, rejoice! If you run 3 miles for the first time, celebrate! If you complete a difficult course, or lose X number of pounds, celebrate! You are moving along the path to a more fulfilling, successful life.

So, what are you going to do? If you are not satisfied with your life, will you get up and begin to shape and create the life you desire? Or will you continue to meander through life living below your potential for happiness and success? Are you willing to accept the responsibility to make the changes you wish to see in your life? Are you willing to sacrifice the comfort of the apathetic slacker? It is never too early or late to learn, grow, change and achieve.

Are you willing to pay the price?

Become an Active Learner (Here's How!)

These days, learning is absolutely critical to success. We live in the knowledge society, and there are constant changes in our world. Business, education, and social structures are all changing rapidly, and we must be constantly building and improving our knowledge so that we can adapt and thrive in our volatile environment. 

We Can Learn!
Our minds are designed to learn, but most people go through life passively learning whatever they are fed by their environment. This is a huge problem, because our environment regularly spews toxic information that is often useless and even harmful. In this post, I will describe how we to become an active learner in your life. I will provide several tips and strategies for immediately become more proactive in your learning so that you can achieve greater success and fulfillment.

We Must Become Active Learners
To be competitive and remain relevant as individuals in society, you must become an active learner, continually gaining and applying relevant knowledge to your life. But what does it mean to be an active learner, and what are the best strategies for using active learning? Active learners are (1) engaged in their learning, (2) purposeful in their studies, (3) reflective about what they learn, and (4) apply what they learn in meaningful ways. Active learning yields powerful positive results in peoples' lives, but how can you become more active in your learning? 

Questions for Becoming an Active Learner
To begin becoming an active learner, answer the following questions. Be sure to really answer the questions and even write them down - doing so will help you to really begin to create a more active approach to your learning and will give you greater fulfillment in your life. Ask yourself these questions:

• Self-awareness - What do I like to learn about? What knowledge will help me succeed in my business or in my profession?
• Orientation toward learning - How can I easily become more oriented toward learning? (See the tips below)
• Goal-oriented learning - What specific knowledge and skills would I like to learn? What attitudes would I like to adopt in my life? What career goals do I have, and what would I need to learn to reach those goals?
• Control of information coming into your mind -
• must be positive - Ask yourself: What information is positive and motivates and inspires me? In contrast, what information provides little benefit? What information actually harms me or others? Control what you allow into your mind and ensure that it empowers you and would give me the ability to bless other people?
• must be truthful - Ask yourself: What information is based on evidence? What information will provide me with the results I desire? Make sure that you fill your mind with knowledge that is credible and produces results.

Tips for becoming an Active Learner
Over the last several years, I have learned how to actively learn in my life. Based on my experiences, I have distilled several tips and strategies:

• Join learning groups and organizations - get involved with people who are learning about what you are interested in.
• Attend workshops - many of these are free or inexpensive, and you can get a great deal of useful knowledge by attending.
• Attend motivational seminars - motivating knowledge can be extremely powerful, and many of these seminars are very low-cost.
• Listen to motivational books and speeches- this is an excellent way to fill your mind with positive, encouraging information.
• Earn a college degree - a formal education continues to be one of the most powerful ways to obtain excellent knowledge that will benefit you throughout your life.
• Always read - ensure that good knowledge is continually flowing into your mind.
• Listen to audio books - if you listen for an hour a day as you commute to and from work, you will end up with over 250 hours of acquired knowledge in one year, the equivalent of 40-50 books!
• Become a writer - writing helps you to assimilate and organize your knowledge and helps you understand what you have learned more clearly. I personally blog about the things I am learning about, ant it seems to
• In a formal learning setting, such as a classroom, do the following:
• have a goal you want to accomplish or a problem you want to solve and use the knowledge you gain to solve that problem.
• ask questions that are pertinent to your needs.
• take notes on what you are learning about.
• ask for examples of what you are being taught.
• ask for explanations, especially if you do not understand.
• ask for additional resources so that you can learn more.
• ask for additional people to talk to.
• search for more knowledge in the internet.
• set goals and learn more on your own.

You Must Keep Learning
Learning is one of the most important things you can do to succeed in today's society. Our world is constantly changing, and you must continually learn and adapt so that you are equipped to succeed and excel at everything you apply ourselves to. I have found that the more I learn, the better I get at it, and the more I learn, the more I want to learn. Knowledge is power, and these active learning strategies will give you power to move forward in your own goals.

The Power of Habit (a book review with reflections)

I recently finished listening to a book entitled "The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and In Business," written by Charles Duhigg. This book attempts to link a large number of research studies, practical experiences, and corporate research into a readable summary of how habits are formed and how we can change them.

The book is very readable and uses clear language and powerful examples. Below I will highlight some of the key concepts presented in the book. My intent is to highlight some of the key principles with a focus on knowledge that is useful to people who want to create change in their lives.

The Habit Loop
Duhigg describes what he calls "The Habit Loop." I've adapted his image below. The habit loop is a process that shows how habits take place. Habits are basically a sequence of events that include a few components: Craving, a Cue, a Routine, and a Reward. The loop starts with a cue, which can be seen as some kind of a stimulus that the individual responds to by executing or doing some kind of a routine. The routine usually results in a reward. If this loop happens enough times, then craving occurs and the individual expects the reward based for completing the routine. Without the craving, the habit does not necessarily fully form. But if the loop is reinforced enough, and the craving becomes engrained, it becomes a habit. 

A simple example: whenever I arrive home after a hard day of work, my lovely wife creates a delicious meal for me. I am in the habit of coming home (the cue) having the lovely dinner (routine) and feeling satisfied by the meal and my enjoyable conversation with my family (reward). After doing this hundreds of times, it has really become a habit. Even if I have already eaten dinner, when I come home and park the truck in the garage, I find myself craving something delicious to eat.

One might notice that this is a nice way of rewording the basic principles of behaviorism - stimulus, response, reward. The addition of craving is somewhat new to me, but it is still fits with the assumptions behind behaviorism.

The Keystone Habit
One very powerful concept within the book is what the author calls the Keystone Habit. Duhigg asserts that when an individual can make a change to one key habit, change seems to cascade into many other habits and other areas of life. He shares an example of one woman who decides to eliminate her habit of smoking, and how making that one change also facilitated her own improved weight management, her relationships, her health, and her finances. One outstanding habit can disrupt a pattern of living and have a lasting positive influence on an individual.


My Own Recent Keystone Habit
I recently had an experience in which I adopted one habit that cascaded into change in other areas of my life. For me, the keystone habit was teaching a seminary bible study class for youth in my church at 6:30 in the morning. This new habit invited several changes:

• It encouraged (forced) me to go to bed on time. (I used to stay up ultra-late wasting my time watching TV or surfing the internet).
• This allowed me to sleep enough to be healthy.
• I had more time in the mornnig, so I began to exercise each morning directly after the seminary class. 
• Along with that, I decided to begin watching my caloric consumption and begin to eat healthier foods. 

Since starting to teach seminary in the morning, I have lost 45 pounds and have exercised nearly every day for the last 4 months. Just like the woman who stopped smoking and subsequently changed many other habits, my keystone habit of going to bed early and teaching seminary has provided me with the ability to incorporate many other healthy, empowering habits in my life.

The keystone habit change is what I would call a macro-level change strategy. It is something that alters and disrupts the overall patterns of a person's life so that new patterns can be formed. There are micro-level change strategies described below that can be used to alter specific habits.

Short-circuit the Habit Loop
In addition to incorporating a keystone habit, we can also short-circuit and change our current habits. In describing the habit loop, Duhigg writes that eliminating the cues that stimulate craving and that prompt a routine might not be possible, so we need to figure out how to use these cues in meaningful ways. Undesirable habits can be reformed into desirable habits. He notes that the routine that a person goes through can be changed, as long as some kind of a reward is received. Let's look at some examples.

Example of short-circuiting the habit loop: I have noticed that when I see a delicious piece of food - a lovely cookie, for example - it acts as a cue. This cue prompts my craving for the yummy feeling that comes from eating the cookie, and my mind immediately (and without my permission!) imagines me eating the cookie (the routine) and enjoying the delicious rush of sugar (the reward).

I have found that I have little control over this cue - it is always there. However, I have recently experimented with short-circuiting this habit loop. Whenever I see a tempting cookie or treat, I replace the routine by imagining myself pushing the plate away and then smiling to myself and engendering a sense of pride that I am taking care of my body. I have found over time that the cue becomes weaker and the new routine is becoming stronger.

I must admit that I have not fully replaced the habit, yet. I am still working on revising this habit loop, and I have faltered a few times over the past several months. But I can see that my patterns are slowly and surely changing. I have to constantly apply self-control, but the new habit is slowly emerging.

A few additional notes on habit change:

•  Belief and Habit Change- Research seems to indicate that to have lasting change, you must  believe that you can change your habits. You have to believe in yourself and believe that you have the capacity to accomplish. Duhigg shares the example of Alcoholics Anonymous and shows how this self-belief often stems directly from a belief in a higher power. I have found that a great deal of my own personal power to create positive changes in my life stems directly from my faith in God.
• Willpower and Habit Change - I have found that we can increase our ability (willpower) to overcome the impulses that we have developed in our minds and bodies. An increase in self-mastery and willpower in one area enables an increase in another area.Change does not come without effort, but an understanding of the fundamentals of habit change can help us leverage our natural tendencies so that we can most effectively make change in our lives.
• Social Aspects of Habit Change - The people you spend time with influence the kind of person you become. Religious organizations, classes in school, volunteer organizations, workout partners, mentors, and coaches are all examples of this. I find that surrounding myself people that can help me succeed is one of the most crucial factors for success.

Summary
I would highly recommend Duhigg's "The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and In Business." It is a clear, well-written guide to understanding habits and provides a good foundational knowledge of the fundamental principles of habit change. I would not necessarily call it a how-to book for changing habits. But it provides knowledge that is meaningful and insightful and provides some powerful examples of change and success that can be built upon. Great work, Duhigg.