“Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” —Albert Einstein

I remember one morning back in 2004 standing barefoot on the cold tiles of my apartment and half asleep from yet another late night finish from handing in an assessment for a work related course. I felt so mentally tired of studying courses to keep my job, especially as they only benefited the companies I worked for.

I still remember the day vividly, while getting ready, looking at myself in the mirror saying "imagine if you put in the same effort, money and energy to study things that would improve your own life?" and there was also another voice that said as a feeling "but who's gonna pay for it?". 

Well, I eventually learned how to pay for things I wanted because of the education I got from being around the right people. And it happened in a few years when I met my first mentor at work, who ignited my curiosity. 

Tim was a Canadian, who was funny, entrepreneurial, loved Harleys, had a free spirit to him and enjoying his consultancy business living in Sydney. He saw my potential, and showed me back then how I could prioritize living a meaningful life while developing professionally.  

He too had had a rough upbringing, raised by a single mother and the journey of 3 divorces that finally lead him to the love of his life, in his late 50's. He had a twinkle in his eyes when he spoke of her and everything he taught me whispered to never give up on finding your own happiness.

We still text each other from time to time and I'm really proud of him.  

And so from there, I got into personal development and my whole world changed after that.

If you're in that place right now where you're wondering what you could study to improve yourself and are finding it hard to choose something then check out this week's episode before spending your money. 

I created this week's episode for the younger me, who made many poor choices and could have done with advice like this to invest my money, time, energy and focus into the right courses. And considering the world of online education has grown by 97% since the pandemic started, I think people need help to see beyond shiny promises and narrow down with these 4 questions before enrolling.

Here is the complete video that goes into each filter to help you think critically before investing in your next course