Learning doesn’t stop once you’ve been handed a diploma! Even if you are well beyond your schooling years, you should not stop learning. Human beings are presented with opportunities to learn and grow everyday – taking advantage of these opportunities is an essential part of development.
When a person stops learning new things, they cease to grow and develop as a person. You are going to be afforded opportunities to try, learn, and experience new things each day.
Avoiding these things means you won’t get a chance to learn or grow any further. This is why being a lifelong learner is so important; continuing to learn new things throughout your entire lifetime is good for your mind, body, and spirit.
To become more of a lifelong learner, challenge yourself to learn something new everyday for the next thirty days with this month-long challenge.
Related: Check out all our 30 Day Challenges
30 Day Challenge
Day 1: Spend some time having a conversation with someone you normally don’t talk to much.
Talking to people is a great way to learn all sorts of new things. Today, take some time to talk to someone you normally wouldn’t. For example, instead of giving your neighbor three houses down a friendly wave, actually stop and introduce yourself. You will be surprised what you can learn by talking to folks who are already a part of your life.
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Day 2: Sign yourself up to try or learn something new.
Whether it’s learning how to cook like a pro, play a new league sport, or trying your hand at quilting, there are opportunities to learn new things all around you! See what your local learning centers, such as recreational halls and community colleges, are offering – you’ll likely find a great selection of courses and workshops where you can learn and try lots of new things.
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Day 3: Head to the local public library and check out a book on a subject that interests you but you don’t actually know much about.
No need to spend big books on brand new books – head to your local public library and check out a book or two about something you’d like to learn more about. Spending a little time each day reading is an excellent way to increase your knowledge about tons of different subjects, and the library is a great place to find these books.
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Day 4: Practice being more of a listener during a conversation you have today.
When you find yourself talking to someone today, practice being more of a listener during your conversation. Often, people listen in a conversation only to respond – not to actually absorb and understand what the person is trying to say to them.
Rather than trying to think of your next response, focus on really listening to what the person is saying when they speak to you. It’s a great way to learn something new about them or the world around you.
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Day 5: Challenge yourself to learn a few basic phrases in an unfamiliar language.
Being able to speak multiple languages is a valuable skill. While you can’t learn a whole new language in a mere day, you can get a good start. Choose a language you would like to learn and commit a couple new basic phrases to memory.
You’ll have learned something new, started on a bigger venture toward the goal of learning a new language, and stored a few phrases you can use in case you ever need them.
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Day 6: Engage your mind with some puzzles or brain teaser activities.
Keeping your mind sharp is a great way to increase your lifelong learner attitude. Try doing some fun puzzles or brain teasers each day as a way to challenge yourself and keep your mind working. Crosswords, sudoku, and other short puzzles are great ways to do this.
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Day 7: Visit a part of your city or town you haven’t spent much time in before.
Exploring new places – even if they are in your current town or city – is an excellent way to learn something new. Visiting an unfamiliar part of town doesn’t take much time, effort, or planning, but you’ll be introduced to a variety of new sights and experiences.
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Day 8: Call or visit an older relative to catch up with them and reminisce on the past.
Talking to an older relative is a fantastic way to learn more about them, your family, and the world. Your older relatives have a different perspective about life and will be able to share it with you. Listen to their stories about the past – they likely have experiences you’ve never heard about before, and learning about them is an excellent way to broaden your understanding of them, the past, and your family.
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Day 9: Spend some time engaging in self reflection.
Reflecting on the day’s events is a great way to learn something new. People lead busy lives, and it is very likely that you are so active during the day that you don’t always have time to analyze what’s happening to you at the moment. At the end of each day, take some time to reflect on your day. Take note of what you liked, what you didn’t like, what surprised you, what emotions you felt, and what you would do differently if you could. Use this information to inform your future choices.
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Day 10: Give yourself an opportunity to be a kid again.
Think back to activities you loved as a child. Give yourself a chance to engage in that kind of carefree playtime again. Spend an afternoon outdoors or engage in an activity your childhood self loved, such as coloring, building models, or watching old cartoons. Giving yourself a chance to “be a kid again” is an excellent way to awaken a more childlike sense of wonder and adventure within yourself.
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Day 11: Think about an old mistake or failure and pull out the key lesson you learned from it.
Many people tend to hold on to past mistakes and failures, often thinking back on them in shame or embarrassment. If you have an old mistake or failure haunting you, spend some time really analyzing it today.
Think about what went wrong and what you can do to avoid it in the future. Taking away that valuable lesson can help you accept what happened and then move forward without that old thought weighing you down and taking up your valuable headspace.
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Day 12: Change something about your normal routine today.
Think about the normal routines you follow on a daily basis and choose one thing to change about it today. Even a temporary change can teach you something new about yourself. For example, try eating a different breakfast than what you normally make yourself. Even something as simple as that can teach you something new.
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Day 13: Try preparing a new recipe.
Trying new recipes is an excellent way to not only learn a new culinary skill, but also educate yourself on the flavors of different cultures. Select something that sounds tasty, grab the ingredients, and give it a try. You’ll learn something new that’s also quite useful.
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Day 14: Get involved in a new activity or hobby you’ve always wanted to try.
Learning something new is always fun when it’s something you really want to get involved in doing. Always wanted to learn how to dance? Sign up for a class. Ready to take up sewing? Go buy a used sewing machine. Want to learn how to knit? Call up your relative who knows how and see if they can give you a lesson. Take the first step toward getting involved in an activity or hobby you’ve always wanted to try today.
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Day 15: Tackle a task around the house that you’ve been purposely avoiding.
Take a look around your home. Has your sink been draining slowly for weeks? Is that door hinge still squeaking? Are you tired of that drafty window? If you have tasks like these that have been plaguing your “to-do” list for a while, commit to tackling one of them today. Research what you need to do to fix the problem and then take action. You’ll learn some valuable information you need to tackle these problems again in the future with confidence.
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Day 16: Watch a video recording of a famous person giving a speech.
The internet is a great resource for reading and watching famous speeches, lectures, and other talks by famous people. Whether they’re famous figures of the big screen or well-respected scientists, you can find all sorts of speeches, interviews, and other bits of media to learn from online. Watch a clip of someone you admire speaking – you’ll likely learn some bits of knowledge from their words.
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Day 17: Try your hand at learning how to play a new instrument.
Taking up a musical instrument is one of the greatest ways to learn and stretch your mind. Research shows that learning to play a musical instrument is beneficial in all sorts of learning ventures; people who play instruments tend to do well in all other subjects across the board. Increase your brain power by learning to play a new musical instrument.
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Day 18: Challenge yourself to learn how to do something on your own that you would normally pay or hire someone else to do for you.
There’s a reason why people believe we’re living in a gig economy – there are tons of folks who are willing to do a variety of tasks for folks willing to pay them for their work.
Rather than paying someone to complete a task for you, research how to do it yourself. For example, instead of paying a painter big bucks to repaint your kitchen, see if you could do it yourself – tackling tasks that you’d normally pay someone else to do for you is an excellent way to pick up some new skills (and save some cash, too).
Day 19: Meet some folks who share interests with you.
Consider finding and joining a group of folks who share your interests, such as a hobbyist group, sports league, or club. Spending time with people who share your specific interests is an excellent way to dive deeper into these interests – you’ll be surprised how much there is to learn from them, even about subjects you already know quite a bit about.
Day 20: Choose a new healthy habit to introduce into your usual routine.
Research some new healthy habits and choose one to insert into your usual routine. Learning about a new healthy habit, such as a new way to floss your teeth, a new breakfast food to try, or a new workout routine is a great way to increase your personal knowledge in a way that will physically benefit you, too.
Day 21: Ask someone to explain one of their greatest passions to you.
Listening to someone explain their passion to you is an excellent learning experience. Ask a friend to tell you more about what interests them most – especially if you know little or nothing about their specific interest. Not only will you boost your bond with them, but you’ll also gain a wealth of knowledge about their specialty interest.
Day 22: Find a way to volunteer your time with a local group who needs it.
Volunteering your time is a great way to learn new things. You’ll get to interact with lots of folks with different skills and experiences; working together in an environment where you all have the same goal is a great way to talk and share with each other. Not only will you get to learn more about what you’re doing and the people you’re working with, but you’ll also do some extra good in your community.
Day 23: Choose a DIY project and get started on it.
You could pay for expensive home goods at the store…or you could learn how to make it yourself! Today, partake in a home goods project by DIY-ing your own version. Instead of paying tons of extra cash for something you’ve always wanted to buy for your home, research what it would take to simply make your own version.
Day 24: Spend some time decluttering and organizing one of your most frequently used spaces.
It is much easier to learn and think in a space that is clean and decluttered. Think of the spaces you frequent most often as extensions of your mind. When your mind is clear, it is easier to think and learn. Your physical spaces can have a similar effect on your ability to think. It’s easier to learn when you spend your time in clean, decluttered, and organized spaces.
Day 25: Teach yourself a basic life skill that you never had a chance to learn before.
Do you know how to sew a button back onto a shirt? If you experienced a flat tire, would you know how to change it? If not, take some time today to learn some kind of basic life skill. Not only is the information incredibly useful, but it will also broaden your own knowledge.
Day 26: Learn a basic survival skill you’d need to have in the event of an emergency.
Teach yourself a basic survival skill today. You can find lots of free, good information and tutorials online. For example, you can learn how to start a fire, signal for help, or keep yourself safe during a tornado – while a need for these kinds of skills may seem unlikely, if you ever did find yourself in a life-or-death situation, you’d know exactly what to do to stay safe.
Day 27: Choose a goal to work toward and do one small thing to get started on it today.
Working toward a goal – even if you are making small steps toward it – is an excellent way to learn something new. Think about what you would most like to achieve in the future and determine a good way to get started. Go ahead and make that small first step today as a way to learn something new and get yourself set in the right direction toward something you really want.
Day 28: Accept a task, project, or request from someone else today.
Does your boss need someone to take the lead on a project? Does your friend need help with moving? Does your mother need help with repairing something at her home? Whatever the need is, accept it. Take on that task, project, or request you were offered and treat it as a learning opportunity. You may learn some seriously valuable information from the experience.
Day 29: Order something different from your favorite restaurant.
If you always order the exact same thing from your favorite restaurant, challenge yourself to try something different today. Even small changes, such as ordering a different dish from a familiar restaurant, is a good way to broaden your horizons and learn new things about yourself. Perhaps you will even find your new favorite dish!
Day 30: Take a different route to get to work or school today.
This last challenge may seem a little silly, but changing a very basic part of your normal routine, such as driving the same route to work or school and back, can expose you to new information. For example, by taking a totally different route, you may learn new things about your city that you never knew simply because they were off your normal path.
