Charlotte-Mecklenburg 23 Things: Thing #2

One of the blogposts I have been asked to write as part of the PLCMC's 23 Things is on the 7 1/2 Habits of Life-Long Learners.

The seven habits are
1. having a goal in mind at the onset;
2. being responsible for one's own learning;
3. viewing problems as challenges;
4. having confidence in one's ability and competance as a learner;
5. creating a toolbox for life-long learning;
6. using technology to one's advantage;
7. teaching/mentoring others; and
7 1/2. playing.

Looking at the list, I see number six as perhaps the habit I have already adopted or would have no trouble forming. It is rare that I am presented with a question and I do not immediately use every resource available to me in an effort to find its answer. While I was in college, the Online Oxford English Dictionary was a hotlink on my browser, and I was sad when I graduated and lost access to it through my university's library.

It's harder to pinpoint the habit that would be the hardest for me, and perhaps that's appropriate. I think most people could look at a list of habits and see room for growth in every item, or at least I hope that's what most people would see. Of all of these, I think I would struggle the most with number four. Yes, I know that I am an intelligent, talented individual, but in the face of other talented, intelligent individuals, I occasionally either falter and kowtow or attempt to assert my own intellectual prowess. Both are less than ideal reactions, but in a way, doesn't competitive academia hinge on these arguably primal forces? I think I should be able to move beyond this to a more cooperative perspective with time, practice, and mental elbow grease (though brains with elbows are a scary image).