Forever Growing

“The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as we continue to live.”  ~Mortimer Adler

What Mortimer Adler is so astutely pointing out here is that we are always capable of obtaining new knowledge. That a person should be forever a student of life and the only thing stopping them from progressing in this way is themselves. Adler was the author of the book “A guidebook to Learning: For the Lifelong Pursuit of Wisdom.” In this he outlines many ways in which a person can obtain knowledge and the importance of this later in life. Adler, himself, achieved a PhD. without obtaining a high school diploma. He is therefore no stranger to the advantages of applying oneself to learning outside of the usual education system.

This is a concept known as “Life-long learning”. Lifelong learning is described as: “The continuous building of skills and knowledge throughout the life of an individual.”
The idea behind it is that just because we have graduated and finished studying doesn’t mean that it is time to stop learning. It’s never possible to know everything. No matter how great you are at something, how successful you are, how smart you are, there is always somebody out there who is better, more successful, smarter. You can learn from these people as well as teach them something you may know that they don’t.

Today it is advantageous for teachers to teach the skill of how to learn instead of just feeding students’ the knowledge. Much like a quote by Bill Beattie, “The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think--rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men.” When students have developed a way to think for themselves in learning they will always have the ability to seek knowledge and be a life-long learner. I believe that people are always coming across new experiences and making new mistakes, but if they haven’t learnt from them they are just a waste of time and space. If someone isn’t able to continue to learn later in life their life would become stagnant and never develop further, which is dangerous in a world that is forever evolving.

Just because a person has acquired enough knowledge to perform their desired job adequately doesn’t mean that there isn’t still more for them to learn. Weather it is at work, home, or with your favourite past time, you should always be open to ways of improving yourself by seeking out knowledge. I personally think you come across a hundred things a day that you could be learning, if you looked for them.

Why would I get hired?

Coming out of university with a degree is recognised around the world. Thousands of students study at university and all come out at the end of their degree with a wealth of knowledge and a piece of paper to prove it. So when looking for a job it would stand to reason that employers can look at this degree and see that they are able to do the job competently. Unfortunately for the most part, employers these days are looking for more.

Merely studying a subject at university doesn't necessarily mean that you are able to perform well in the industry. Employers want peace of mind that their new employees are able to do the job at a level that they require. The only way that they can be sure of this is by looking into their previous experience. This is where students studying at TAFE can find themselves with a slight advantage. TAFE gives students opportunities to work on the job in the industry that you are studying, instantly giving you that work experience that makes students stand out from the crowd. Many positions that are advertised for a public relations practitioner require experience of some sort and only consider the tertiary education as a desired trait but not necessarily required. The work experience shows an employer that you have in fact done the job before and are able to do it again. On top of that you will have a great reference before you even finish your studies.

Public Relations is an industry that's built on who you know. Lectures at TAFE come from the very industry that you are studying. So when you study Public relations at TAFE you instantly start your networking with your lecturers. Even just by having a small few connections at TAFE you can network yourself further ahead in the PR industry. It's always easier to get a job somewhere when you already have someone to vouch for you within the company. Having instant contact with people in the industry is also useful because they can draw off their personal experiences when teaching. This means you can learn from their mistakes and successes to build on your own.

Not only will you get real on the job experience and contacts in the industry, you also get to be a part of something real. In studying Public Relations at TAFE you will be involved in real campaigns and will have something tangible to present to prospective employers. When they ask questions on how you would handle certain situations they will be easy to answer because you would have already experienced them and be able to overcome all sorts of obstacles. You will be able to talk about your personal experiences instead of just talking hypothetically.

So when going for a job in Public Relations a student who studies at TAFE can have just as much if not more chance of success.

Once again the studious pupil!

But I’m moving up in the world.


Why hello again blog. Oh how I have missed you. It has bee a fine holiday away from you but I am eager to get stuck in where things left off.

It’s my first day in Diploma of Public Relations after finishing my Cert IV in Public Relations and it feels like I’ve never left. Difference is this time the pressure is on. I will need to push myself to be more self motivated ;) With only one day of class a week I run the risk of deciding to prioritise work over my studies. That’s ok I will just have to suffer a few more late nights clasping onto the Jelly babies and V in front of my lap top crying because “I just don’t get it.”

I am still working as a waitress but am currently undergoing a slight change in location. Victoria Station (aka my home) has closed down and will become an Italian restaurant. Change is always a good thing right? Well now I have been transferred to (A)lure. So no huge change there I guess. I’ll just have to grit my teeth and hope it doesn’t interfere with my school work too much.

As far as school goes; this semester of TAFE will, hopefully, inspire me to commit to a career path that I can get excited about. Ultimately, I plan to go to university and complete my studies of Public Relations with a Bachelor in Communication or something along similar lines. I would expect that the Diploma in PR course will prepare me for working in the world of Public Relations enough to feel comfortable to go out there without the University degree and chances are I will change my goals halfway thought the course and find some work experience that intrigues me enough to stay there for a few years. I am looking forward to working with such a close group of creative minds. I think that we will be able to develop some good campaigns and produce some successful projects. We should be able to collaborate with a study group at least once a week, so I won’t be left too much to my own devices. It’s some inspiring stuff.

Given that I can keep my school and work life in order, at some point in my life I’d like to be one of those corporate women that sticks their noses up at other people because she knows that she has made it. I like to think I am a little nicer than that and that I’d still give most people my time, but I would love to have that deep down knowledge that I’ve made it. Plus I love wearing all the sleek and professional corporate outfits. Do I see this happening over the next year? Probably not. But I would like to at least have my foot in the door to one of the places that will get me there. By next year I’ll probably still be working at Alure and starting Uni. If not I think that I would be an excellent Public Relations assistant in a big office building somewhere, on the track to success. Because you can only see that you are on your way to success-ville is by looking down at all of those people in fancy suits, sitting and their desks while marching your way to the top of the corporate ladder wearing a stylish and elegant power suit (a good salary doesn’t hurt either).