Learning Story

 Learning Story

When it comes to learning, various techniques aid us all in different ways. Some people learn best from watching, others learn from listening, and still others learn best with hands-on experience. For me, the best approach to learning has been a combination of these various techniques, with an emphasis on hands-on experience. By further developing these techniques over years of practice, and through constant self- reflection, I believe that I have finally reached a successful approach to learning.

In the process of the learning procedure, hard work, commitment, and sacrifice have been necessary for my success. Besides, my mistakes helped me learn more than anything else, and in that way, failure has been my most reliable guide. Moreover, trial and error leads to a deeper understanding of consequences and accepting accountability. As much as having instruction can accelerate the learning process, there are always going to be aspects of learning that can only be self-discovered. However, this kind of hands-on experience can only be learned and cannot be taught. In other words, no amount of research can explain muscle memory; it must be earned with hard work and repetition.

Growing up, I had very little guidance and no real role models. While these conditions made me feel helpless at times, I eventually adapted and learned to help myself rather than rely on others. Being self-taught entailed substantial research, long nights reading by myself, countless instructional videos, and, most importantly, trial and error. I was never afraid of asking a “dumb question” because I knew the importance of having my questions answered. On most occasions, people fail to ask questions due to their ego and pride. However, I’ve learned that pride and ego are enemies to knowledge, and the only dumb question is one that is never asked.

When I first began learning how to play the guitar, I often became frustrated at the slow pace of the learning procedure. I was young and didn’t understand that the skill I was chasing must be learned through repetition. Mistake after mistake stretched out before me, a never-ending path, so it seemed. By the time I was finally able to begin playing, I was 15 years old. I had made friends with a new neighbor named Michael Caliendo, whose dad was a professional musician. This event was the catalyst, propelling me forward on the seemingly never-ending path, the light at the end of a tunnel. Michael’s dad had taught his son to play guitar, and Michael was excited to do the same for me. With the help of his son, I constantly repeated the guidelines of playing the guitar and followed the instruction given. For the first time, I had some real guidance on the instrument I had so desperately wanted to learn for all these years.

Michael taught me numerous techniques for building strength in my fingers. He had taped my ring and pinky finger together because I had not yet built the finger strength to hold a chord. I stretched my fingers and did strengthening exercises. Through commitment and self-assurance, I practiced playing whenever I could, and when I couldn’t practice, I would read about the guitar. Eventually, I no longer needed to tape my fingers to play chords and had learned to play all the basic chord shapes; E, A, D, G, and F . Soon, my friend was no longer able to teach me anything new and so I signed up for my first real professional guitar lessons from a man named John Malone.

John motivated and taught me many things over the years, and at the same time, I was always reading and watching videos, trying to learn as much as I could. I felt like a sponge, constantly absorbing everything I could. Eventually, I was giving Michael lessons. This role reversal allowed me to see the fruit of my labor; my determination and drive had led me to a new level of accomplishment. Although Michael had been playing much longer than I had, my persistence and eagerness to learn had elevated me past the skill of my previous instructor. I learned many things in my pursuit of following my dream to play the guitar. Determination, commitment, motivation, and perhaps the most important of all, self-assurance is the essential aspects that have guided me in the process of getting better in learning to play guitar. I maintained all these aspects in the learning procedure, where every step of the process taught me these aspects. No matter how daunting the task, with hard work and persistence, we are all capable of achieving a dream.

In learning to play the guitar, I utilized many different learning techniques: reading, listening, watching, teaching. Yet the essential method of learning had been the one I was the most frustrated with, in the beginning, making mistakes. From this experience, I have gained a deeper appreciation for those moments of frustration. I have learned that there is a silver lining in every situation. My frustrations in the learning process, feeling like a failure, are what drove me to keep pushing, to keep learning. In understanding my mistakes, I soon realized what I must do to correct the mistakes. As time went on, the mistakes became less and less, and my skills progressed rapidly. The light at the end of the tunnel was ever-present until I began to miss the excitement of being in the dark. Bored with knowing, I eventually would seek new skills to learn, forever chasing that feeling of not knowing. Through this process of experiencing new challenges, every step of the way taught me that mistakes should not frustrate me, rather they should work as motivation to become better.

In the novel, The House on Mango Street, at the end of the first chapter, Esperanza states, “I knew then I had to have a house. A real house. One I could point to. But this isn’t it. The house on Mango Street, isn’t it. For the time being, Mama says. Temporary says Papa” (Cisneros, 1991, p. 5). In this chapter, Esperanza describes her family status and the neighborhood which she felt she does not belong to.

This chapter sets the stage for an underlying goal that is present throughout the novel: to leave the neighborhood on Mango Street and to have a house of her own in a place where Esperanza is not ashamed or embarrassed to live in. After witnessing her family hardship and the sadness she had endured, Esperanza knew she had to achieve her goals while finding her independence. Eventually, one identifies the theme of self-identification, which Esperanza struggled to attain her goals.

This event is where I can relate to Esperanza’s needs for a better life and where the learning term motivation comes to mind. To obtain financial freedom to obtain the things we want out of the experience, we must pursue a career that will support our goals. Like myself, Esperanza must choose a career path in life to follow to better provide for herself, which involves learning new things.

Motivation is a large driving force that assists in learning and keeps me focused, especially in the face of adversity. Without motivation supporting how I learn new ideas and take on challenges, it would be challenging to maintain the focus necessary to complete college. My goal is not only to buy a house and go on lots of vacations but also to become an ASE certified technician. To achieve my dreams, I have decided to continue learning by attending Skagit Valley College, where I apply the various learning techniques that work for me, daily. Motivation is what keeps me going.

In the end, the tasks that are the most difficult to learn are the most rewarding of all. To know everything would be a truly boring existence, and in this way, learning is what makes life meaningful. I sometimes miss the feeling of not knowing how to play the guitar, the challenge of diving into something headfirst without knowing the depths of which I am diving too. For this reason, I have embarked on the path of continual learning time and time again: guitar, bass, jiu-jitsu, automotive, military training, speaking Spanish. Instead of looking at a daunting task as a never-ending path, I now look at challenges and see an adventure waiting for me.

References

Cisneros, S. (1991). The house on mango street. New York: Vintage Books.