Memoirs Q6: How did your Education shape your Worldview?

In Gradeschool,I went to La Salle Greenhills. How did this shape me? For starters, I grew up in a more often English speaking environment, so I became a fluent speaker - as the years went by, my vocabulary increased. We even had speech classes, and a laboratory where we would record ourselves and listen and our teacher would comment or correct our pronunciation. Hence I need not worry about Grammar police when writing or speaking to others. My Education in this continues to be honed and sharpened by my joining and being active in Toastmasters.

In High School, I took my status as a La Salle student for granted. I did not see why others saw it as an asset in society. Guess that was because I was exposed to the environment all the time - I've seen what was good, and bad, and how I did not put this matter on a pedestal as others seem to take it as. It really did not get me to win dates with the girls... though that was also because I was not in any position to use it.

In College, I experienced a different world. Suddenly we wer co-ed, and I had friends taking differnt courses. I was taking Commerce - with an initial focus on Marketing, but I was seemingly immersed in something alien to me. Marketing needed someone who could talk, sell, convince others to buy - that wasn't me. I was more an introvert. Later I switched to Finance. Better... though I really did not like worksheets, and journals, and just appreciated spreadsheets better because they allowed for quick computations. But really, I wasn't too keen on learning the ropes about business, and I just graduated out of sheer determination. But boy, did I feel like a fish out of water. So how did this shape me? I dunno... it was a confusing time in my life - lucky for me I had friends.

Beyond College, I took a comprehensive Computer course in the Institute of Advanced Computer Technology - this was where I learned computers, programming in BASIC, a but of COBOL (too clunky for me, and I did not finish it within the given timeframe) and Systems Analysis - which I loved. I absorbed the concepts, the PERT chart, the Critical Path, I liked planning, and problem solving. This, I could do. So yeah, I got technical.

In my rather first job, I was a programmer - but I was also introduced to the Junior Chambers, wehre I learned about leadership, and thinking of projects with zero budget - needing to source these. The club taught me politics - which I did not like, and gave me a chance to be a trainer, when I took the training for trainers program. This gave me the needed skillset that I would be using for decades.

So how did all these shape me? For starters, it helped me realize more about people skills - and in so doing, become less an introvert, and more an ambivert. It helped me communicate, understand and even teach. Because I had great comprehension of English, I enjoyed reading books from a varied of genre - SciFi, Fantasy, Adventure... not much on Horror or Love Stories. Epics... depends. I got to Finish Gone With The Wind, Frank Herbert's Dune saga (all six original books), Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, even soemthing seeming as technical as the Tom Clancy books. I have a small library and I continue to add to it - though slowly nowadays... prefering audio books these days, or digital copies. Space became a concern, so I even have some disassembled book shelves. Just waiting to find the proper location for them, and my books.

So... I'm a searcher for knowledge, a wanderer for advanture, but I am also tethered to reality, can understand fianncials, can understand computers and the IT industry, and have built my comunication skills. I can lead when the need arises, I have a conscience and heart. I value integity, because I know how fallible we can be. I know I can be flawed - but despite this, I strive to be better.