never stop learning

Four years and $150,000—or $250 in some used books. I chose option two.

I have no intention of becoming a lawyer, but I will become fluent in construction law. I’ll study the ins and outs the same way I studied engineering: through good old-fashioned reading.

Since finishing grad school, I’ve thrown myself into knowledge. Religion, finance, GAAP rules, engineering, law, lots of books.

This next season I’ll call my “specialization phase.” One day I’ll probably have in-house counsel. Until then, I want to hold my own.

Sure, AI can digest and summarize mountains of information in seconds. It’s useful. But for me, it’s not enough. I want to know.

I want to sit with the words, chase the context, make the knowledge mine. My appetite for learning borders on gluttony.

Cameron Hanes has a shirt that says, “Nobody cares, work harder.” Maybe that’s the whole point. A degree, a title, some letters after your name, most people don’t know what CFA or JD stands for, nor do they care.

What matters is what you know, how you use it, and the work you put in to get it.

So maybe this post is really about being okay with quiet learning. No degree required. No applause when I finish the stack of books. Just the quiet confidence of becoming a little better than yesterday.

TL;DR: You don’t need a title or a degree to keep growing. Keep learning for yourself, not for the applause.