How Unlearning helps you Stay Current in a Changing World

Posted in Personal Branding On Sep 20, 2018

The need to unlearn in these times of information overload becomes a necessity. When results are not favorable, a reflection on our habits got to be made. And what reinforced the execution of these habits is our belief system. Our belief system was formed and conditioned very early on in life by our parents, teachers and peers. Our conforming and non-conforming have shaped the persons that we are right now.

Related: Why Ignoring The Hidden Force Of Belief Is Crucial For Your Success


As learning is a learnable skill so is unlearning. By unlearning I mean letting go of the things that no longer serve you. When you learn, you acquire something new while unlearning is consciously stripping and getting rid of the things that prevent you from staying current with this evolving world. The stereotyped ideas about jobs and careers, for example, got to be unlearned in order for us to install relevant and timely data. The process then is emptying what is outdated and filling up what is beneficial.



The father of modern art, Pablo Picasso, embraced the concept of unlearning from his childhood. He advised us that in order for anyone to create his reality he must work on reinventing himself. First, learn all you can from your Master. Start with copying him if you will. Next, kill him. To move to the next level, you need to get rid of the Master’s influence on you. Being a killer is synonymous with being creative and being your own person.

Picasso stressed on first learning the fundamentals in your profession. Next, you must break them to come up with the new. The more experienced you will become, the more you need to unlearn the rules of the game. He liked to recount how he unlearned everything that his school and peers taught him. Unlearning, according to him, is throwing away the unnecessary in order for the new to take its place. It’s that simple and that complicated.

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How to turn your Failure into an Astounding Success


 

The pilings up of information by time make the need to unlearn a priority. But to make unlearning a conscious practice, our deeply ingrained habits need to be examined. A belief system is at the root of habits. By starting questioning our belief system and changing what is irrelevant, habits can be changed. What follows next is letting go of the unnecessary or what we call unlearning.

About The Author

Tareq Alaghoury

Tareq M. Alaghoury is the founder and Managing Director of Holistic Communications where he offers business coaching services and guidance to aspiring entrepreneurs who want to build their brands and move their business to the next level.