Knowledge

Knowledge isn’t power until it’s applied. Knowing something doesn’t accomplish anything unless you use it to improve your life or the life of someone else. Knowledge has no value unless and until it is utilized appropriately.
The application of relevant knowledge is the key to personal growth, self-improvement, and accomplishment. For knowledge to have any potential it must be accurate and pertinent. Implementation of erroneous information will lead one down the wrong path and can have negative consequences.
Obtaining quality knowledge is paramount. The source of the knowledge needs to be reputable, reliable, and dependable. There is an abundance of information which is available from virtually any source. You need to be discriminating when seeking out knowledge.
Virtually everyone has an opinion or advice on practically every topic. You have to sift through and discard the multitude of extraneous information. The best experts are those who have already accomplished what you are striving for.
Someone who is always having trouble making ends meet isn’t a good source for financial advice. A friend who is constantly changing jobs doesn’t have any insight into building a career. A relative who retired from a corporate career isn’t a good pick for a mentor on starting your own business. A neighbor who is overweight is not an authority on exercise and diet.
As obvious as the above examples are, it’s astounding how often knowledge is solicited or accepted from the worst sources. The application of bad information will invariably lead to disastrous results and is worse than doing nothing.
Finding a reliable reference for knowledge is just the first step. The next step is applying it to your situation. If you have knowledge but don’t use it, you may as well not have it at all. Utilizing knowledge entails taking action based on what you have learned.
Suppose you are looking for a new job and want to fine tune your resume as well as refine your interviewing skills. An ideal resource would be a human resources executive who reviews resumes and interviews job seekers. This person could give you invaluable insight into creating an effective resume as well as interview tips.
What you do with this new knowledge is up to you. If you subsequently rewrite your resume and improve your interview presentation then you have turned your new knowledge into power. However, should you decide not to make any changes, your new knowledge will have served no purpose.
Perhaps you want some guidance for investing some of your savings. You read a book by a person who became financially independent through investing. His strategies make sense and you discuss them with your neighbor who is working two jobs to make ends meet.
Rather than showing an interest in what you have discovered, your neighbor gives you a hot stock tip he got from his barber that’s “guaranteed” to be a sure thing. What should you do?
Although the hot tip may pay off, the advice from the author is proven by his own success and is much more reliable. In this example, doing nothing is preferable to acting on unreliable information.
Wanting to improve your health, you consult with a nutritionist. She designs a customized diet plan specifically for your needs. You go home, put the plan in a drawer and forget about it. Your trip to the nutritionist was a waste and you will obtain no benefits from your visit.
As the above examples illustrate, knowledge is only power when it is applied. Only your action will unlock knowledge’s power. One step at a time, incorporate knowledge into your life.