In this age of technology and information, people have an enormous opportunity to learn new things and acquire the skills they need for their desired jobs without necessarily attending a university.
It is possible for individuals to become self-taught artists, illustrators, designers, developers, and more, even if they do not possess a bachelor’s degree in the relevant field.
The internet provides an abundance of resources for people to access, with many of them being free of charge.
That is why my favorite aspect of the self-learning process is the accessibility of information and the potential for improving required skills on your own.
At some point in life, you may want to change your career path, and of course, learning the necessary skills for the new field is crucial.
However, at the beginning of this learning process, you may feel lost and confused about where to start, what to do, and essentially how to become an expert in the field.
As someone who is a self-taught artist and scientific illustrator, I am continually seeking out new ways to improve my skills and learn the required techniques and tools.
Over the past seven years, I have delved deeply into the world of self-education, and I have gained many insights and experiences that I would like to share with others who may be considering a career change or who simply want to explore new subject areas.
First and foremost, I have learned that the key to successful self-education is to be disciplined and committed. It takes time and effort to learn new things, and it’s essential to set realistic goals and stick to them.
Whether you want to learn how to draw, design a website, or develop a mobile app, it’s crucial to dedicate a certain amount of time each day or week to your learning process.
Even if you have a 9–5 job, yet you are keen to start changing your life, you need to fit the learning schedule to your daily program.
One thing I have discovered on my self-education journey is that it’s important to embrace failure and keep pushing forward.
Learning new skills can be challenging and frustrating at times, but it’s essential to keep a growth mindset and view failures as opportunities to learn and grow.
Also, I would advise anyone embarking on a journey of self-education to seek out a community of like-minded learners. This can be a valuable source of support and motivation, as well as an opportunity to connect with others who are passionate about the same subject areas.
Whether it’s an online forum, a local meet-up group, or simply a group of friends who share your interests, having a supportive community can make all the difference.
Self-education can be a rewarding and empowering way to learn new skills and advance your career. By staying disciplined, seeking out the right resources, embracing failure, and connecting with a community of learners, you can achieve your goals and become an expert in your chosen field.
So, let’s get started with the important points of becoming a self-taught person from the beginning.
1. Find out your ‘thing’ and have a strong desire to be one.
At the very beginning, you may have interests for a number of things. Some of them might be small enthusiasms you must proceed as just a hobby or some of them can turn into your future job.
In this step, you just need to experiment in order to decide whether it is your thing or not.
After you find it, you have to take it seriously and start to do something for it without any delay. It should not just stay in your mind as a future project you will do when you are completely available to start.
You should not delay taking a step. If you are willing to delay it that much in the first place, then you don’t actually want to have it.
So, you must have a strong desire. Otherwise, I think it is not already your thing at all. Then, you shouldn’t go for it. It may not make you happy in the future.
2. Search about it — Google it or better, ask ChatGPT
When you choose it, you should start searching for it in order to learn;
- What it is,
- What people do exactly if they have this job,
- Is it learnable?
Searching is important. You need to know what you are diving in. It might be not the one you would like to proceed. That’s why you have to learn what it is exactly before you start learning the required skills if it makes sense.
Also, there is another point. As it is a self-learning process, there won’t be anyone who tells you what to learn at which order or what you should NOT learn.
If you don’t do your research properly, you might start diving in irrelevant subjects.
Do not forget, time is important. Even though learning new things are amazing, you cannot learn everything.
Irrelevant subjects may distract you or make you even stop learning. For example, if you want to be a front-end developer, you may need to learn JavaScript, not C++. So, make your research properly at the first place.
3. Read people’s experiences.
LOTS of people are sharing their experiences on the Internet. They are so valuable in terms of giving you an idea of how to start.
You can find them basically by searching. For example, there are so many creative people sharing their stories on social platforms like Medium, Youtube and etc. You can learn how they started or the best ways to start and of course that gives you an idea.
However, you should be careful to not get lost during that process. Trying to make it short as possible is kind of important.
I think you will see what I mean when you come to this step. Even though the Internet is awesome to learn stuff, it is also tricky because you can easily get lost while searching.
4. Get started to learn as self-taught person.
Firstly, find out some platforms that teach you for free according to your area of interest.
For example, EdX, Coursera, Codecademy, Dataquest, and Youtube are great platforms. You can find so many of others too. If you are willing to learn, then you could make everything possible for you.
If you can afford, there are also so many platforms that teach you with some price like Skillshare, Udemy, and etc. I am sure you can easily find any of them by searching.
5. Make a plan, set goals, and take it series.
This might be the most important part of the self-learning process. You should have a plan. Going blindly does not make you reach you where you want to go. Your plan must include;
- Everyday practice.
- Everyday learning habit
- Daily, weekly, monthly goals.
- Daily, weekly, monthly self-controls.
- Daily, weekly, monthly written schedules.
- Long-term control points (e.g. performance evaluation after 3 months, 6 months, 1 year)
6. Test yourself whether you really learn something.
You must check yourself in terms of it is going well and efficient. Ask yourself these questions;
- Does it actually work?
- Do you really like it?
- Can you create something solid?
- Can you be one who does this as a job?
- Can you create something like a final product?
- Can you start making money soon with that?
So, those were my advices for anyone who wants to start a self-learning journey. Yes, it is a journey that you can enjoy and create something valuable for your self.
I hope this post helped you many ways. If you want to see more posts at this topics, you can check my profile. Happy learning!
