Happiness through Lifelong Learning

I first met Jay when he was in High School.  Out of curiosity I asked him what he is most interested in learning and why. He took some time to reply. “I want to become an astronaut,” he said, “and I want to be an expert drummer”.

 I was happy to see that he had some clear thoughts. “Have you thought of a path which will make you an astronaut?” I asked him.

He did not have an answer.  It was obvious that it was just a wish that he had expressed.  But as far as practicing with drums is concerned, he was attending a class regularly and also following it up with daily practice at home for at least an hour.

“Why not make a list of various topics that you should study to know how to become an astronaut?” I told him. “Read the biographies of astronauts that you know about, and find out what you can do to increase your chances of becoming one. See videos about them on YouTube. You can follow a path similar to one of them, or even a different one.  But it will be good to know what worked for others in the past.” 

When I met Jay after a week, he was quite excited. He had found two books on Astronauts in the local library and was reading them.  He also located some videos on YouTube and watched them. He spoke with some level of authority on what is needed to become an astronaut.

 When I met Jay a year later, his enthusiasm to become an astronaut had diminished. He had been interacting with some friends and planning for his college education.  Seeing the trend he had decided to zero in on programming and computer science.  He was enthusiastically talking about joining a good University to get a degree.

I continued to meet Jay of and on in the next few years. He got admission in a good School. A few of his friends also joined there. I could make out that he was enjoying his studies and his time at the University.

He did well in his degree course and passed out with a good grade. He started working in a software company that recruited him from his campus. He had become more confident and was enjoying the work he was doing.

I did not see him for some time.

I saw him back at his parents house after couple years. He did not look very happy. I asked him if all was well.  He said that in spite of doing good work, he had been suddenly laid off by the company.

He was looking for a job. I suggested some websites to him which could help him get a job quickly. He was already looking at some of them.  Being well qualified and having worked in a good company, he found another job within a couple of weeks.

As he was having some free time, I exchanged notes with him about his first few years at work. I asked  him whether he felt satisfied with what he had achieved.  He had a mixed feeling. While he was happy to work with peers of his own age and background, contributed to the projects that he worked and learnt a lot of new things.

But his initial excitement of working didn’t seem to continue. I asked him about any conscious effort that he about learning new things over and above what he was learning on the job. “There was no time for anything,” he said.

I suggested that he spend some time reflecting on what new could interest him.  He mentioned artificial intelligence in the passing, saying that that seems to be the flavour of the day. I suggested that he spend some time learning more about artificial intelligence and how it could be used in areas that work of his work.

When I met Jay another year later, I found him to be more mature and a bit thoughtful. He looked quite content.  I asked him about his new job and what he was engaged in.  He mentioned that sadly his grandmother, with whom he was quite close, died about a year back after contracting cancer.  That shook him up a bit.

For some time he thought of doing something that could help cancer patients. He had been spending his free time learning the basics of artificial intelligence and had taken up a couple of courses.  By looking around for various options to work in the area of Cancer Research, he came across a startup company that was experimenting on using AI for better treatment of cancer patients. With his background and experience, and knowledge of AI, his strong urge to work in the area of treatment of cancer patients enabled him to get an assignment with that company. 

“We are working on a model which will enable specific lines of treatment based on similar cases for cancer patients. The large database which is used in arriving at the line of treatment generates the possibility of success in treating the case.” he said.  He seemed extremely happy working on this project.

I tried to analyze Jay’s life in the light of the research I was doing in Lifelong Happiness and Lifelong Learning.

1. Jay’s interests were influenced by his friends in the high school. He was happy joining them in their plans for a college degree.

2. He enjoyed his time at the University and what he learnt in his degree course.

3. A job immediately after completion of his studies kept his interest alive. He got completely immersed in it.

4. The sudden loss of job was a shock to him. He successfully got another one quickly. His good education and experience stood him in good stead.

5. The small period of unemployment gave him time to reflect. To some extent he took charge of his life – it was going on an auto-pilot from the time he passed out of high school.

6. This reflection, and subsequent loss of his grandmother made him think about his life.   He had taken the initiative for new learning in artificial intelligence.  Unconsciously, he had found a way to be purposeful and add meaning to his life by using this newly gained knowledge to work in the area of improving diagnosis and treatment for cancer patients.

7. Adding a self-transcending purpose to his life through his work made him quite happy.  I felt he was lucky to find work that enabled him to pursue a self-transcending purpose early in his life. 

Pictureby Jon Tyson on Unsplash