Nabeel AhmadIf you always wanted to be the kind of person that others look to for answers – about everything – follow these steps to become a more well-rounded person.
There are people – we all know them – who seem to know all the answers. They are always in the right place at the right time, know just what to say, and have their lives together. For the rest of us, that can be quite annoying. It can be easy to feel inadequate around such people or feel envious of their poise and knowledge. It may help to know, however, that they didn’t get that way overnight.
Well-rounded people may seem like they were born that way, but the truth is often to the contrary. Building skills and knowledge and a polished presence takes time, concentration, and most of all, plenty of hard work. The good news is that means that anyone can take steps to make themselves more well-rounded, as long as they’re willing to commit to the effort it will take. If you’re ready to do exactly that, here are the steps you should take.
Make a Newspaper Part of Your Morning
One of the reasons some people seem to know all the answers is that they go out of their way to absorb knowledge for its own sake, rather than as a planned response to a question. In other words, well-rounded people tend to be voracious readers, which is why they know so much about such a vast array of topics. If you want to join them, it’s a good idea to make reading a newspaper part of your daily ritual (or you can subscribe online, if you feel more comfortable with that format).
By doing so, a world of current information will be delivered to your doorstep every day, and you’ll stay up to date about everything going on in the world around you. It’ll also help you to improve your vocabulary (unless you’re an English literature major, in which case you’ll probably excitedly point out typos to your friends). Also, if you have time, work your way through this list of general knowledge resources to compliment your newfound current events knowledge.
Challenge Yourself
We all have subjects that interest us, and others we’d just as soon avoid, but well-rounded people work to get comfortable with all topics and areas of interest. Doing that means being willing to admit out loud what you don’t know by asking questions of those with more knowledge than you. It also means dedicating yourself to learning about topics that don’t interest you. That’s the biggest hurdle in the quest to become more well-rounded. To get over the boredom (or even physical pain) associated with learning subjects you don’t care for, push through it by using the Pomodoro Method to give the topic your undivided attention. After a short while, you’ll wonder why you made such a point of avoiding the subject in the first place.
Sign up For Classes
In the age of the internet, it’s easier than ever to find the answers to your questions on-demand, but it’s also easier to proactively acquire knowledge through online learning platforms. To become more well-rounded, you can take advantage of that by signing up for things like personal development courses or subject-driven MOOCs. They’re an excellent way of building new skills and learning new things, and they’re more effective than self-directed learning. The courses you’ll find online will offer professionally-curated materials, goal-oriented assessment tools, and offer guidance from experts in whatever subject you’re trying to master. They offer a way to make the knowledge available online a part of your own repertoire, rather than staying dependent on asking the almighty Google for the answers you seek.
Become the One Others Turn to
Although it takes a great deal of effort, becoming a well-rounded individual is worth it. There’s no substitute for the sense of accomplishment you’ll feel when you realize that you’re the one everyone turns to for answers and that you’ll almost never be at a loss for words. Just take care to avoid growing the sort of out of control ego that will lead others to label you a know-it-all. Never lose sight of the fact that there’s always more to learn, and that there’s always somebody that knows more than you. If you can do that, you’ll turn your quest to be well-rounded into a lifelong dedication to learning and growing as a person – and that’s the best possible outcome you could hope for.
