Learning Anew

I have just spent an awful lot of time reconfiguring our blog to bring it into the new "point & click" era. Please note the amazon links now available in our "on our bookshelf" section to the right. (for those of you on email hit http://inspiredjewishleadership.blogspot.com/. )



Adding this widget took an awful lot of learning, processing, trial and error and time! Sometimes we forget how much work goes into learning new things. I was just discussing this with my youngest son as he tried to make his way through "Take me out to the ballgame" on his guitar. He did not want to hear that it was an unreasonable expectation that he would just pick up the guitar and play the song correctly the first time he tried. We cannot learn that way. If it is too easy, that means we already knew it. Nothing new. And it's not limited to intellectual or musical learning. I am having the same struggle with my exercise routine. If I work out for an hour and my muscles do not feel tight the next day, have I really introduced them to something harder? If I can make it through an entire workout the first time I try doesn't that mean that I did not push myself enough?



Learning should be and needs to be a process. We are now at Erev Shavuot - the dawning of the holiday where we celebrate the acceptance of the Torah and the Jewish way of life. Judaism is all about constant learning. The system is set up so that there is always more to learn, more to do, ways to improve. Some people have the custom to stay up all night the first night of Shavuot (Tikun Lail Shavuot) learning. Why? Because we were given such an enormous gift that we typically squander our opportunities to learn from it. There is never enough time in the day to devote to learning about our Jewish values and heritage and how that then impacts our lives.



Learning takes a lot of time, energy and resources (mental and physical). We make mistakes along the way. We re-learn. (I think I have forgotten an entire curriculum already) Don't get frustrated. It is all part of the process. What does Miley Cyrus say? "Ain't about what's waiting on the other side...It's the climb."



Leadership Lesson: Leaders need to learn. Challenge yourself constantly. Go to classes. Try new things on the web. Constantly ask yourself: How can I use this? Reflect. What will I do with this new learning? What impact will it make upon me? How will I use it to impact the world? Stretch yourself and you will stretch the world.