Nowadays you can learn any skill by Google-ing it.
I learnt how to play a guitar by Googling the chords & watching YouTube tutorials on how to hold them & how to strum the guitar. I learnt how to tune my guitar by ear from YouTube.
I learnt how to play Nirvana’s — Come as you are, learnt how to play Coldplay’s — In my place & Scorpions’ — Wind of change by watching Youtube tutorials.
I learnt this skill by Googling: “how to play Come as you are fingerstyle” — and after 20 or maybe 30 trials I knew how to play it.
My mum always used to say:
How the *CHICKEN* did you learn something from YouTube?
I used to say: “I just Googled it and followed what they did. “
Wasn’t my learning journey as if I would have been going to classes regularly?
The big difference is your commitment to the learning process. I can see students these days going to classes because “they have to” not because someone gives them the option to do so.
Once an option is being given, desire grows. This happens because of the lack of expectations as regards someone’s performance.
We now have the option to learn whatever we want, whenever we want.
Isn’t it great?
What about our parents?
Isn’t it fascinating how our parents could barely find books to solve their homework and we can just simply Google or ask:
“Alexa, how much is 6x6?” and she would say the right answer straightaway.
Many people would say that we are a “spoilt generation”, “phones break us”, “social media makes us superficial” and “technology makes us stupid”.
Well, it does to an extent, but if you use it properly it can actually help us achieve such levels that no one could ever imagine.
We can learn how to play a guitar.
We can learn a new skill.
We can learn a new skill which can allow us to travel full time.
We can change our life by simply asking the right questions from the right person, Google.
How funny, isn’t it?
Let me tell you my story.
I have started my own business Hazza Visual Studio which is a UI/ UX Design and Creative agency run solely by myself.
How did I do it?
I Googled:
“What is UX?
How to go freelance?
How to become a digital nomad?” and by reading different articles endlessly I have created my own business (just at 21 years old) and just graduated from university.
I had no clue about anything so I googled & learnt it.
Just like I did when I wanted to learn how to play the guitar.
What about Career advice?
I went to university at the University of Bath in the UK. It is considered one of the biggest universities in the UK with the highest career prospects & employability rates in the UK. Sounds really promising isn’t it? The only problem is that universities fail to recognize the fluidity of a human being.
Universities assume that we make a career choice such as “I want to become a business-woman” and we stick to it for the next 40 years. The issue with this assumption is that at the age of 18–30 we tend to make more career changes than our parents did.
This crucial fact is overlooked.
Then, how can we educate someone who changes their mind every single day? How can we create a pattern of study content which teaches us the right thing we would want to learn?
Seems quite impossible.
One day, I wanted to become an account manager, the other day an architect, the other day a clothing designer, then a painter on the streets & so on.
Universities & longer education programmes really do fail to capture the wildness of the mind & fail to allow us to feel free & let our creativity wonder.
What would happen that whenever we have a “career idea” we would be given the choice of reading about our passion?
What would happen if we were given the right places to search for the right information?
What would happen if we would lead our own skill-development without any rules imposed on us, only by us Googling?
We would have the skills to solve a problem regardless of its intensity.
We could take ownership over our own variety of desires & avoid anxiety over it.
Once we know how to learn for ourselves, how to make our own decisions & how to be resourceful — we wouldn’t have career “shocks” and anxiety due to the pressure provided by universities of trying to fit 100 wild hearts into 1 box.
Google is a safe place where you can set your heart free and learn about any topic your heart wants whenever your curiosity comes naturally.
It is a powerful tool that allows us to learn:
- how to meditate
- learn a new language
- learn a new skill
- how to manage our emotions
- and many more!
We have all the answers to our questions in one place: Google.
We can change our career & learn a new skill on: Google.
We can meet like-minded people in one place: Google.
But this doesn’t imply that by googling: “How to become a great hip hop dancer?” you will actually become one.
Google provides you endless tutorials, videos & resources on how to learn the moves.
But Google doesn’t learn them for you!
Going to university doesn’t imply you will become an engineer if you study engineering.
You were only provided the information (maybe made some exercises) — but you become an expert solely by working, hustling & making an effort.
But think about it — what does it take to write a question and press the button search compared to paying 9000 pounds/ year for university?
Isn’t it comical that we have our education content for free right in front of our eyes?
