I admit that I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life. Not much more than others, but a lot. Most of the mistakes I’ve made stem from the fact that I push myself really hard,  slip and fall, and have to pick myself back up. To be honest, I couldn’t pick a better way to make mistakes. The learning makes it all worth it, and causes me to constantly look ahead for the next opportunity to slip again.

Education is one of the ways that I’ve continued to push myself up the proverbial mountain of much more. I’ve always dreamed of one day becoming Dr. Shareef, and I am two years away from successfully completing that goal. People often ask me why I choose to push myself in this direction. There are tons of reasons I could insert here, but the reality is that I don’t know my limits. Until I push myself an inch or mile further, I really have no idea how much higher I can climb.

So today, I ask you: “How much higher can you climb in your pursuit of education?”

• Have you told yourself that you barely made it through your bachelor’s degree and have no intentions of going any further?

• Are you intimidated by the size and breadth of the CPLP that you’ve sold yourself short and decided not to pursue it?

• Do you fear that your company won’t think you’re valuable enough to pony up the money to pay for an ASTD certification course?

You see, furthering your education doesn’t just mean a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Doctoral degree. Higher education means furthering your knowledge and breadth of study to meet the resource obligations of the goals you wish to achieve. It could mean a specific course or pursuing a certification like the CPLP. 

And keep in mind that there are many resources, study groups, and even those who have already received their CPLP, here to support your pursuit of certification. Plus, there are tons of companies who partner with ASTD that are specifically looking for someone with your skill set PLUS the certification.

For every reason why you’ve talked yourself out of climbing up the educational mountain, there are a million other reasons why you should keep climbing until you reach your limit. You are so much more than you think you are. Why don’t you find out what much more looks like? Perhaps, carve out money in the budget for next year to reward yourself with a pre-conference course at the 2014 ICE.

Never stop pushing yourself. You are going to slip and fall. Trust me on that one! But learning from those experiences will make you more prepared for the next part of your career climb than anything else possibly could.  So, as you reflect on your aspirations and desires for what’s to come, remember that climbing higher in your education is one of the surest ways to make it there.

Onward and upward, my friends!