Never Stop Learning

“I’m a student of life” was a phrase uttered by one of my mentors in my life.  — I took that to heart, and it taught me that the moment you stop learning is the moment you aren’t fulfilling your purpose in life.  Never pass a moment to open a book, learn a lesson, or listen… to someone who is wiser than you.

My Story:

So simple to remember this one… it was the Spring of my Junior year of College and at the time I was working for a company called ViA Inc in Northfield, Minnesota.  I was really lucky to get a job here my Sophomore year and by this point, I had established myself as a great individual contributor engineer and a leader on a team.  — The company was led by a brilliant group of brothers… Jim Carroll as President, Dave Carroll who led our products (and taught me about innovating) and Wendell Carroll who led our product and manufacturing efforts (who taught me that you can’t imagine something that couldn’t be built).  [Author’s note:  Both Dave and Wendell will be featured soon in their own entries].

During one of the meetings when I was attending class at nearby Carleton College, there was an executive meeting which reviewed one of the products that I was responsible for.  I walked into the office that afternoon and I heard the feedback from that session that wasn’t positive. — It included some changes in design and there was even a comment made by Jim Carroll that, “Rob’s still learning a lot in life” when it came to one of my designs.  — I remember I was pissed off.

I walked over to our other building at ViA and asked Jim about the comment.  I remember saying, “I know what I know, and I’m sure I’m right.”  — He retorted with, “Rob, I’m much older than you… and I’m still learning.  Don’t be offended that I’m saying you are still learning… use it as an opportunity to be a student of life.”  — It was a disarming comment.

From that day on, I constantly looked for those opportunities to learn from my colleagues, peers, and team.  I embraced the fact that I’m still learning and no matter who or what I’m doing, there is someone around me that can always teach me a valuable lesson.

On a side note, soon after this event, Jim Carroll would be diagnosed with a liver disease that took his life.  It was a huge loss for me.  Thank you Jim for one of the most valuable lessons that I’ve learned in my life, and I often hope from time to time you find the opportunity in heaven to look down on me.  Can’t wait to see you again.  — You were a man Jim… you were a man.

How I practice it today:

I work with a lot of people in my professional and personal lives.  It’s really easy for you to trust your knowledge and go with your gut, but there are opportunities all around you to learn.  When you graduate from school, it doesn’t mean that your lessons are over and it definitely means you shouldn’t stop learning.  — The best people around you, take Jim’s lesson to heart and they never stop learning.  My gift today, never stop learning and never for a moment think you know more than the people around you.  Everyone around you offers a gift of their knowledge — Accept it, and thank them for it.