How Online Learning Can Help You at Work

Many musical performers have earnestly insisted that love is the answer, even going so far as to suggest it is all we need. That may be true! However, have you thought of education as all we need? That is slightly less ambitious and certainly, with the rise of online learning, much more easily achievable.
Online learning holds a wide scope in terms of how you might define it and what it might deliver, but let’s not get too fancy about it. Let’s settle for saying online learning will involve time spent learning on a computer and, quite likely, not meeting offline with a professor. Most notably, an online education delivers a scope of topics over a spectrum as wide as you can imagine, and probably beyond!
Invest in Yourself
For the last decade or more, the phrase ‘lifelong learners’ has commonly paired itself with education. It remains clear even to a casual observer that many from the younger generations are more open to improving their skills, knowledge and ability to apply what they’re learning. And they are happy to do so in less traditional ways.
One example of lifelong learning is exemplified in the recent trend of celebrating the virtues of reading. One of the contenders for ‘The World’s Richest Man’ is Warren Buffet, and he is often quoted as spending 80% of his time reading. He is in his 80s, yet has most certainly proved the potential benefits of being a lifelong learner.
Recognize Your Choices
It is feasible to use a wide variety of resources to plan an educational program for yourself. The spectrum runs from sites offering small, five-minute lessons a day, to targeted resources such as online photography courses or lessons in online marketing. You can also find more traditional subjects taught online depending on what new skills you’re looking to learn.
Or, if you prefer, you can make a choice to stay put at the starting line while everyone runs past you on their second lap.
What You Are Going to Do and Why
Taking the time to invest in yourself and pursue learning throughout your life and career might prove more beneficial for you than initially thought possible.
Stay on Top of Trends
Knowing the latest trends helps you maintain relevancy in discussions. New graduates often seem more in touch with recent trends than you. Taking classes online could help you catch up and stay relevant. You might want to take it even further and, for example, take a 101 Website Building course. Whatever your interests, you may see great improvement in your daily conversations or interactions with those in the field. See what new thoughts and ideas you can add to the chatter. Consider your brain like any other part of your body — if you do not use it, you will lose it.
Gain Motivation
Did you know learning has the power to make you feel more motivated? Our natural craving for learning new things often drives our self-esteem, helping us feel good about ourselves and possibly enhances the way we appear to others. With age comes maturity, which means you might see your learning as more effective now than it was when you were younger. With the power to choose what you study, even the tricky math topics you overlooked in college can make more sense the second time around.
Build a Network
Meeting new professionals in your industry will never go out of style. Have you thought about how the professor for your online photography class could be your key connection to landing your next job? Plus, virtually networking with others in your class could help push you to keep learning in other areas as well.
Maintain Employment
Ongoing learning will help make you a valuable asset to your existing employer. Online courses or certifications keep you more qualified and show commitment to lifelong learning. These alone will help open doors with your existing employer or a new one. By keeping your credentials up to date, you might find keeping your job a little easier as well.
The next time you want to treat yourself, think about taking an online course. Develop your study habits again by starting with a short and easy course, requiring modest commitment, then build on that.

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