It is common that in a world like today, characterized by speed, competition, change and uncertainty, many focus on working and producing money to satisfy their needs. They forget, disdain or postpone intellectual preparation, without noticing something: We are in the world of information, data, knowledge. Keep reading.
One of the most important aspects of a person's life is their education. I refer to education in two senses: one, relative to ethical and moral formation, preparation for adapted social life, which allows us to understand the foundations of life in each community, at each time.
On the other hand, education has to do with intellectual preparation, conscious study or obtaining an adequate and useful knowledge for individual and social needs. It is to this second meaning, relative to study, that I wish to refer to in more detail.
Certainly, I consider that intellectual preparation is a piece of high value in the evolutionary process of people. In fact, there is a theory known as the "human capital theory", attributed by some to Theodore Schultz and by others to Gary Becker. According to this theory, there is a huge mass of money that is not quantified, and that is related to the investment that people make in themselves. And one of the most notable aspects of that investment is the one made in studies and general preparation.
According to Becker, who won the 1992 Nobel Prize in Economics for his contributions to this topic, people who study achieve a higher level of well-being and achieve higher incomes than those who study. In short, the researcher affirms that "there are more people than others, simply because they invest more in themselves."
However, we must clarify that not everyone has the same intellectual capacity or the same disposition or the same opportunity. It should also be added that many people without intellectual preparation or with few formal studies are wonderful, talented people with undeniable social contribution, who should be recognized for their worth in all circumstances. In this context, I take Menelao's phrase as valid: "Not everything is for everyone at all times."
Back on the subject of intellectual preparation, if we take a closer look at the benefits of intellectual preparation, we will see that it is convenient, because it allows us to:
- Finding our vocation: Studying opens the possibility of knowing ourselves, of verifying if the path we have chosen is in accordance with our values, objectives and personal tendencies; to know what we are good or better for, which favors self-esteem in terms of a sense of self-awareness and personal efficacy. Make our creative contribution: Every human being has capacities and talents that they want and can share, communicate or give. Intellectual preparation allows us to "polish" ourselves, that is, to develop or optimize the gifts and talents potentially available. Having a place in society: Like it or not, we live as in the animal world, in a context characterized by roles and hierarchies. This being the case, intellectual preparation allows obtaining a social space, a certain respectability that, although agreed upon,fleeting and artificial, to a great extent, it is still important and valuable in the fabric of everyday relationships. Produce money: Intellectual preparation allows us to have a product or a service to exchange for money. And although not in every context, more preparation equals more money, the trend is that under the same conditions, the most prepared obtain better opportunities and greater profits, which allows us to satisfy our needs and obtain a higher quality of life, far from the penalties derived from economic deprivation. Use time positively: In the human context, life is time, and studying allows us to make positive use of time. This takes us away from the idleness derived from "having nothing to do." So,Preparation paves the way for constructive and win-win actions. Keep our mind active: Today we know that the passage of time affects cognitive processes and when there is a reduction in brain activity there is also a loss of brain plasticity. Seen positively, we will say that studying keeps our mind vibrant, active and ready to successfully face the challenges of daily living.
In short, studying, preparing intellectually, operates as a specialized training to grow, serve, produce, share and live better. Thanks for reading me.
