7 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners

23 Things was originally set-up as part of PLCMC's Learning 2.0 project to encourage staff to experiment and learn about new and emerging technologies that are quickly reshaping the context of information on the Internet today. The program's objectives are to encourage exploration of Web 2.0 technologies and provide librarians with new tools (available on the Internet) to better support PLCM's mission Expanding minds, Empowering individuals and Enriching our community.

PLMC provides a video describing the 7 1/2 habits of highly successful lifelong learners. These include:

Begin with the end in mind
This habit describes the importance of setting goals. Without an end in mind, the learner cannot direct his/her actions towards a desired result. However, it is important to understand that learning can be a rather serpentine process that often veers from the set path due to unforeseen circumstances. In short, it is beneficial to set goals, but it is also important to maintain a flexibility that allows you to explore unknown lifelong learning possibilities along the way.

Accept responsibility for your own learning
This habit states the importance of inner discipline as opposed to external pressures in regards to the learning process. To value and take pride in learning is the first step towards a thorough and upright education.

View problems as challenges
The importance of viewing every obstacle as a learning opportunity can never be understated. Welcome challenges! They are the only way to grow.

Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner
This habit describes the importance of maintaining a positive or at least compassionate self image. We all have the power to make or break ourselves.

Create your own learning toolbox
This habit discusses the myriad routes towards growth and learning including: books, technology, friends, websites, etc. Collect what you need and keep track of them.

Use technology to your advantage
This habit describes technology as a tool that should be used to make your life easier. I think this is important to keep in mind-- if technology is NOT making your life easier, get rid of it quick.

Teach/mentor others
In any endeavor, it is important to share/guide/teach the knowledge or wisdom one has attained through various life experiences.

The Forseeable Future

The title of this blog comes from Argentine writer, poet and librarian Jorge Luis Borges's short story The Aleph published in his short story collection The Aleph and other Stories in 1949 and later revised by the author in 1974. In Borges's story, the Aleph is a point in space that contains all other points and whoever looks into it can see everything in the universe from every angle simultaneously and without confusion.

Along with The Aleph, a number of contemporary thinkers believe that many of Borges's imaginative works of fiction somehow bizarrely prefigured the future of the World Wide Web. A recent book by Perla Sasson Henry Borges 2.0: From Text to Virtual Worlds compares the decentralized internet of Youtube, Wikis, and blogs with several of Borge's stories, including the Library of Babel, The Garden of Forking Paths, and The Intruder.

This blog will be my opportunity to experiment with various Library 2.0 Strategies through the 23 Things compiled by PLCMC, as well as provide a space for communication and sharing links. Cyberlandomania!!!