It’s no secret that every individual has their own method to learn and retain information. Learning is an ongoing fact of life. Learning never stops. We are constantly seeking knowledge. We are endlessly asking questions. We are eagerly trying to feel safe in our environment and that can only come from the confidence of knowing.

Knowing what exactly?! Well, anything and everything really. We want to know who we are, where we came from and where we are headed. We want to know our limits, how far we can go and how much we can endure. We want to know who truly cares about us, who we can trust and who to give our selves to. We want to know how to fix problems, overcome struggles and get through painful situations. We are constantly learning about ourselves yet very few recognize and admit this fact. And that’s very sad.

It all starts when we are born. Learning starts from then and perhaps even while in the womb, we started to learn as we are formed into a perfect physical form.

One might wonder what are the first things we learned? As babies, we all learned how to communicate by crying. Since we feel strange things, we let those around us know we are not comfortable in our state by different types of cries and screams. Whether we were hungry, sleepy, wanting to be changed or any other discomfort. Eventually we get into a stage of being conditioned by our caregivers. We learn dependency for our basic needs, survival and comfort. This is a very crucial stage as the infant is developing that sense of safety and trust.

Learning continues on as we get older and move on from our toddler stage to a school age. We start from being so innocent and inquisitive to another stage of conditioning. We are taught there are consequences to our actions. We get to be introduced to the rewards system and the removal of it. We start to understand the right from wrong based on what others teach. All of our information comes from those surrounding us and books given for us to learn. Until we get to a stage where we question everything we have learned and those who are teaching us.

It is true there are many ways people can learn. In the beginning, as we attend school, we are introduced to most of the ways. We get to sit in class and listen to a teacher. We get to read books given to us for the particular year or semester. Sometimes there are hands on projects we must complete whether alone or in a group. We are given deadlines to submit them. We are asked to finish our homework; or home studies, whatever it was called in your days of schooling. We get to submit this homework for correction and we get our marks showing how good or how bad we are at the subject. So we are told. And then there are the little tests you have to do and the big deal of every year – the final exams.

The most stressful and the most complicated thing at that time in our lives: Exams. We have to pass. We have to study all day and all night, memorizing the definitions and learning how to solve the equations. How to write a good essay on the spot with no aid of spellcheck or grammar check. No calculators for your mathematical equations. We are taught so many subjects at the same time. And it is expected of us to be good at all, remember everything and go into an exam room and dish out everything in our brain. Then we are rewarded by a certificate of completion at the end. And those who didn’t, may repeat. Until they get it right.

If you can’t see that this style isn’t conditioning on an older level, then you are blinded. And you will continue to be if you don’t realize that conditioning doesn’t end there. It follows you all the way to higher education and until you are in the workforce. It’s all the same. Just takes different shapes and forms. Conditioning in disguise. Can you see it?!

Well, I do. I see things for what they are. And as a grown up, having gone through my days of schooling and in the work place, I can now conclude that each individual must choose their way of learning at some point. It is fine to be taught the basics, but we must be allowed to explore on our own so we can actually learn and be the best we can be. Not by force and not by constant conditioning. If given the opportunity to be ourselves, truly, we will achieve much more than anyone can imagine. Every person has a gift. Every individual needs to explore their inner self. How can you be great when you are coached constantly what to be great at and directed towards one path.

In this world we live in, check out the different methods that different countries adopt in teaching their children from a young age till they are adults. Check out how they treat people. Do your research and look at the statistics. Do your graphs and comparisons. Allow yourself to educate yourself on what’s out there. You are not obligated to learn only in one way. Choose your way. And don’t succumb to your surrounding and accept it. You can fight it if you desire to. You can go against it and be different. And if you do so, know why you are doing so. Do it with an utmost knowing, that you are following your own path, for your own growth, for your own life.

Yes, we all learn different things and in many, many ways. Get to know yours and do it proudly.