Leveraging Training & Growth in The 2020s

[logicallefty]

A friend who works in I.T. posted about this topic on his Facebook and we had a great discussion. I had actually been thinking this, but not talking much about it to anyone. Wanted to discuss with you fellas here on SS.

Have you guys taken notice at just how much content is available now online for learning new things?

For me, I can't get enough of it. There is so much out there and available for those who want it. I find myself spending 3-4 hours a day now doing extra training and learning. Would be more if I didn't work three jobs. Even at work, like when in patrol driving around in my police car, I am listening to something productive on YouTube. Also, I just studied and got myself a new certification in law enforcement for cybercrimes. Also, I just got the next license level in my ham radio license, something I had to study and take a test for. Also, working on another cert in I.T. for information security now. Even on smaller scales, just last night, my mom had a plumbing issue in her bathroom. I'm not a plumber, but I was able to get on YouTube and find a video on how to fix it, fix it for her, and save her some cash. Felt pretty good about what I accomplished. Also, a while back I dislocated my freaking shoulder. Nobody was home. I didn't feel like going to the E.R. or calling someone to come take me. So, I got on YouTube and found a video on how to pop a dislocated shoulder back in the socket. Had to do it one handed at the computer since one who arm & hand was immobile. It hurt like a b|tch popping it back in, but I got it, and it's been in ever since with no problems. No ER visit! Then last but not least, SS. This is self improvement most of the time. I still learn a lot here from you guys.

What are you guys doing to better yourself lately with all of the opportunities at your disposal, besides SoSuave of course?

 

[Dr.Suave]

Im lazy AF. Reading SoSuave, doing a little bit of exercise and trying to eat healthier is all the self improvement Im doing atm. Sometimes I want to do more stuff, and some days I do, but not everyday. My mom is old so I have to take care of her while trying to have a full time job and live my life.

What is your third job? I know one is a cop and the other is IT

 

[jaygreenb]

A friend who works in I.T. posted about this topic on his Facebook and we had a great discussion. I had actually been thinking this, but not talking much about it to anyone. Wanted to discuss with you fellas here on SS.

Have you guys taken notice at just how much content is available now online for learning new things?

For me, I can't get enough of it. There is so much out there and available for those who want it. I find myself spending 3-4 hours a day now doing extra training and learning. Would be more if I didn't work three jobs. Even at work, like when in patrol driving around in my police car, I am listening to something productive on YouTube. Also, I just studied and got myself a new certification in law enforcement for cybercrimes. Also, I just got the next license level in my ham radio license, something I had to study and take a test for. Also, working on another cert in I.T. for information security now. Even on smaller scales, just last night, my mom had a plumbing issue in her bathroom. I'm not a plumber, but I was able to get on YouTube and find a video on how to fix it, fix it for her, and save her some cash. Felt pretty good about what I accomplished. Also, a while back I dislocated my freaking shoulder. Nobody was home. I didn't feel like going to the E.R. or calling someone to come take me. So, I got on YouTube and found a video on how to pop a dislocated shoulder back in the socket. Had to do it one handed at the computer since one who arm & hand was immobile. It hurt like a b|tch popping it back in, but I got it, and it's been in ever since with no problems. No ER visit! Then last but not least, SS. This is self improvement most of the time. I still learn a lot here from you guys.

What are you guys doing to better yourself lately with all of the opportunities at your disposal, besides SoSuave of course?

You can get an exponentially better education on anything on sites like youtube as opposed to college. Just make sure you properly vet, a lot of influencers are trash especially when it comes to finance. It is extremely useful though and enjoy picking up new skills

 

[logicallefty]

What is your third job? I know one is a cop and the other is IT

Third job is also cop, like 5 hours a week in a tiny town.

 

[logicallefty]

You can get an exponentially better education on anything on sites like youtube as opposed to college. Just make sure you properly vet, a lot of influencers are trash especially when it comes to finance. It is extremely useful though and enjoy picking up new skills

This is so true. Anymore, people can learn what they need to learn in almost every subject from other sources besides college, such as Youtube. But then go to college to make people believe they actually know what they say they know because they have that piece of paper. I think most any field of study could work this way, other than maybe being a doctor. Shoot even the field of law. I have never stepped foot into law school. I have a college degree in electrical engineering, nothing even close. However, I know enough about law that I have actually went to court representing myself and beaten opponents who did have a lawyer representing them. I learned what I know about law partially from being a cop, yes. But well over half of it was from Youtube and other sites like Avvo, Nolo, and law libraries at courthouses that the public can access. Anything you want to learn is available if you look for it, and you don't even have to look too hard.

 

[Stanley]

I just had this conversation with my father. Essentially all of my free time is spent learning or practicing. Outside of work my schedule consists of practicing my instruments, taking several online courses for production and learning various adobe programs. While in my car I use pimsleur to brush up on my second languages, that alongside all the other free resources out there. I've learned far more in language using apps than I did getting a degree in it. I went ahead and got my English teaching license online during covid and I put maybe an hour a week of work for that accreditation, it cost me basically nothing. I spend my time on youtube finding creators who supply quality informative content and typically have a podcast always on in the background. I uses sites like this as a springboard for self improvement and to find new avenues to learn, I in particular value the opinions and wisdom of older guys here. Several of the books i'm reading I've picked up from here as well. While i'm currently formally employed as a contractor I have several gigs I am pursuing and am growing my side hustle into my own business. None of what I do currently has anything to do with my degree or education directly and the path i'm walking down is brought on by self directed learning, nearly all of which comes from free online sources. As I get older I find myself not wanting to spend time idle, why play a video game when I could go read? If I watch a movie why not grab a guitar and get some exercises done? If i'm going for a long drive why not pop on a podcast or language app? Downtime is important, but there are so many avenues to learn freely available that I also cannot get enough of it.

On the whole I think college is a gargantuan waste of time.
In our state I went from community college which was by far the most useful, to state university which was a ****ing joke, to a private liberal arts rich kid school which was also a joke. I finished my undergrad from my basement during covid and just had a tab open and did other things while in lectures. Complete waste of time. I think there are exceptions like the medical field or highly technical positions though. Upon my second transfer I applied my diverse skillset's I acquired on my own and managed to get near a full ride at a $66k a year private school. I was an extremely poor student my whole life, I put in no effort in school. I had to maintain scholarships at this new college, but I did the bare minimum, I did not care...especially since covid. My first transfer the state school did some extremely underhanded **** and blatantly lied about taking course work among other things. At the age of 21 I lawyered up, got my money back and went into the workforce again and came back to college with a chip on my shoulder, but knowing what needed to be done. Getting ****ed by the system time and time again only made me stronger and allowed me to exploit it to serve my self interest. Also to further invalidate American Colleges, you can now get just about any computer science degree done online, **** you can go look at Harvard's website and take their computer course FOR FREE. So many institutions list resources that are publicly available with no charge. While i've finished my formal education I still occasionally take courses at my community college for fun and to make use of the facilities. Community college is fantastic and often times completely free, I recommend all of my students to consider it. College really is just a piece a paper for most, you can make the most of it and learn a lot... but that is also self directed learning.

Third job is also cop, like 5 hours a week in a tiny town.

Bro, don't pull me over

 

[Dr.Suave]

Why play a video game when I could go read?

You could play a video game while listening to an audio book. But maybe splitting your attention like that wouldn´t be fair to the video game or the book.

I think video games are good for you as long as you dont get over do it. Its basically a workout for your brain disguised as fun.

 

[jaygreenb]

This is so true. Anymore, people can learn what they need to learn in almost every subject from other sources besides college, such as Youtube. But then go to college to make people believe they actually know what they say they know because they have that piece of paper. I think most any field of study could work this way, other than maybe being a doctor. Shoot even the field of law. I have never stepped foot into law school. I have a college degree in electrical engineering, nothing even close. However, I know enough about law that I have actually went to court representing myself and beaten opponents who did have a lawyer representing them. I learned what I know about law partially from being a cop, yes. But well over half of it was from Youtube and other sites like Avvo, Nolo, and law libraries at courthouses that the public can access. Anything you want to learn is available if you look for it, and you don't even have to look too hard.

Nice, I have my bachelors in Econ. Probably 95%+ of the things I learned weren't particularly relevant to anything after school even when I worked in the financial industry. Most degrees are only relevant because it gives you access to different jobs. The best way to learn for me at least is just to hop in there and figure it out. A lot of info in college is just memorization and not a true real world understanding of the nuances each topic carries.

 

[Stanley]

You could play a video game while listening to an audio book. But maybe splitting your attention like that wouldn´t be fair to the video game or the book.

I think video games are good for you as long as you dont get over do it. Its basically a workout for your brain disguised as fun.

Totally, I used to do exactly that. I think video games can be a good use of time when done in moderation.

 

[eli77]

I agree I plan on getting certified via Google project management. You should try lynda.com and the app hoopla