“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” —Socrates
EDUCATION is a continuous process. They say that the more educated you are, the more knowledge and wisdom will be added to your cap. But there is a self-realization on my part, that the more I advance in age, the more I understand there is so much more I don’t know, so much that I have to learn.
According to Wikipedia, Personal Development covers activities that improve awareness and identity, develop talents and potential, enhance the quality of life and contribute to the realization of dreams and aspirations.
As a struggling School Head of Sto. Domingo Integrated School, I believe I have to learn more. I cannot do my work conscientiously with the little knowledge I have. There are times that I don’t have an idea on how to do a certain task assigned to me. Whenever I come across one, I immediately use my “lifelines”, “Call a friend”. There are certainly so many experts in the field: seasoned teachers, principals and supervisors, who are always there to help out and share their knowledge, expertise and skills. Success and failures are learning experiences for me. Having a mentor or coach around, my task would be much easier to do and to accomplish. In all fairness, I am the type of a person who is very much willing to seek others’ assistance as I humbly accept that at this stage I am still in the learning process.
Further learning depends on one’s nature of work. In my case, I uphold the conviction that to be good in my field, I need to encounter actual situations that will hone my skills as the head of a school. It may be difficult at first, I may make blunders along the way, but one thing is for sure— these will serve as my training ground—as they say “Experience is the best teacher”. Ups and downs in any undertakings are inevitable. There will be no perfect working conditions. Having the right attitude, however, will help you see things on a brighter and a more positive perspective.
In as much as we try to improve and develop, we will always have blind spots, hence feedback is very much important to give us additional perception and outlook of things and accepting comments or criticisms constructively contributes in re-inventing oneself. It’s like putting together all of these people’s knowhows into your own.
In a way, if we want to take self-development seriously, we need to be constantly aware of how we can advance. Self-reflection is the key. We should take time to ask ourselves where and how we still need some effort and learning. As Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher and scientist eloquently put it: “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” We should also be aware that to further increase our efficiency, it should come from within. We should have the heart and humility to accept that we know nothing; we should always empty our cups so that there will still be room for improvement and self-development.
Maria Carolina Camaya-Viray
Principal I – Sto. Domingo Integrated School, Angeles City
(Unsolicited contributions here are unedited, unabridged, as is. Errors in grammar, syntax, etc, solely the writer’s. — Editor)
