“Somehow, in all your getting, get understanding”
With all your heart, pursue education, but beyond high school, do not seek knowledge as an end or a source of sustained satisfaction. A good high school education should be a non-negotiable requirement for all. Beyond that, acquiring knowledge is best when targeted and purpose driven.
Simply acquiring knowledge may build ego for a while, but unless outcome based, it can lead to great frustration. John has two Masters and one PhD degree and after a life of great sacrifice acquiring knowledge, he feels that the system has let him down. Why? He struggles to pay his bills and having recently lost his job, he finds that employers are not impressed with his degrees as he is.
My own college degrees have served me well as door openers, perhaps because they focused on my areas of life interest. However, I often think that I learned more wisdom in high school than in both degrees combined.
Why then seek knowledge? Focus your increased knowledge on making an increased contribution to others and then, purpose manifests. In the absence of such purpose, even the educated can manifest actions and conditions easily attributed to the fool.
Questions: High school education is a basic right for all children; shouldn’t a college education be the same? And don’t college graduates make more money than those with lower education levels? Doesn’t education make you wise?
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Education is Knowledge, Wisdom is the How to use that knowledge gained. The education system is more these days about delivering courses to as many people as possible at the highest possible price.
The individual gaining the knowledge must have a real purpose (which is not just to get a job) if the knowledge not accomplish its most beneficial outcome.
Purpose to me is much better as with meaningful purpose, men (and women) will be driven to gain the required knowledge to make meaningful change. Knowledge without a compelling purpose is useless.