what-is-kmowledge

THE PROBLEM OF LACK OF KNOWLEDGE

March 28, 2022 | Beatrice Aiyedusho & Emmanuel Ajah

“Knowledge is power”. – Francis Bacon.

Imagine a brand new Toyota car, possibly the latest model. This car has not been used for more than 2 weeks. The engine together with other parts of the car is working effectively. This car is set to embark on a seven-hour journey. Just when the driver was about to ignite the car, he noticed that the tank was empty.

The above illustration shows the problem that results from lacking knowledge. The car represents our mind, the fuel represents knowledge, and the seven-hour journey represents the journey to success. If our mind lacks fuel(knowledge), it wouldn’t move an inch in this journey even if other requirements are met. This shows just how instrumental knowledge is in succeeding. If it is really important for success, what then are the demerits or problems that come from a lack of it?

A person who lacks knowledge would not grow. According to Wikipedia, knowledge is the familiarity with something such as skills that contribute to understanding. As the world becomes more sophisticated each passing day, it becomes very important to learn some skills which would help us understand it. The learning of these skills is a form of knowledge acquisition. A person who lacks knowledge would undoubtedly not keep pace with our ever-growing world.

In addition, a lack of knowledge impedes problem-solving. The late Governor of Oyo State once said; “Life is about solving problems. As you solve a problem, another one comes up.”

How true those words are! Knowledge is important in solving problems. The knowledge gained from scientific studies has been used over the years to solve problems involving agriculture, health, housing, communication, transportation and so on. So, another problem that emanates from not acquiring knowledge is the inability to solve real-life problems.

It is also quite important to point out that knowledge makes us more intelligent. The more knowledge we gain and apply in solving problems, the wiser we become. There is an asymmetry between leaders of the world and the intelligent folks – they all strive for knowledge. The heights reached by great men is majorly a result of knowledge acquisition. Unarguably, knowledge is important to be intelligent.

In conclusion, the acquisition of knowledge is very imperative. Lack of knowledge results in not keeping pace with our ever-growing world, inability to solve life’s problems and also being unintelligent. Looking forward to your comment in the comments section.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Beatrice and Emmanuel are post-secondary school students. They are dedicated to success in their academics and future careers. They are members of the B2SL Success Hub.

knowledge-and-academic-success

KNOWLEDGE AND ACADEMIC SUCCESS

“To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge.” – Nicolaus Copernicus

Perhaps you must have read that knowledge is the currency of destiny that determines your purchasing power in the marketplace of life. Knowledge saves you from unnecessary frustrations in life. Knowledge also informs the way you respond to certain situations and circumstances in life. Today, we live in a knowledge-driven world. Therefore, wherever you find yourself, you can only be as relevant as the knowledge you have. The interesting thing about knowledge is that anybody can achieve academic success with it. This is because knowledge is what drives our experiences in life. This includes all that you have ever been taught, all that you witnessed or saw, heard, read, or even perceived. 

Academic success has to do with your learning progress and achievements in school/classroom-related activities. But it is important to also note that your academic success is largely dependent on your capacity to acquire, retain and recollect information that is regarded as knowledge. The acquisition of knowledge is also one of the major reasons we go to school. Academic success makes us fulfilled learners or students. 

As students, one of the major reasons we go to school is to acquire functional knowledge that will benefit us and society at large. Former United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan once said: “Knowledge is power, information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.” The question is: Do you make use of every situation or circumstance you find yourself in to learn something new or add to your knowledge base? Always bear in mind that everything that happens in and around us adds to the information we have. The pursuit of knowledge is a life-long experience in which academic success is a foundational part.

With academic success being important in our quest for life-long success, we, therefore, have to give our all in acquiring the knowledge needed to achieve it. You must not get confused with the narratives around the country that kind of look down on academic success. Never believe this lie as we are here as B2SL to show you how possible academic success is so you can keep taking your studies seriously.

Please use the comment section to let us know what truly think about academic success in times like these where it seems as though academic success is not worth it. You are also free to ask questions if you have any via the comment section.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Henry Ibrahim is the Content Creator at B2SL. He loves working with young people to help them discover their purpose in life. You can contact him at Ibrahim@b2sl.org.

striving-for-knowledge

STRIVING FOR KNOWLEDGE

“An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.” ― Benjamin Franklin

According to the Oxford Dictionary, striving means to make a great effort or fight vigorously to achieve or obtain something. After going through the definition of strive, you should by now have an idea of what it means to strive for knowledge. Since knowledge is something you can not do without to achieve success in your academics, career, and life in general, it, therefore, means you have to put in all the effort needed to get knowledge. Knowledge doesn’t just drop on people’s laps, it must be consciously fought for vigorously.

In a computer age like this with knowledge accessible via the internet, it is now possible to get all the knowledge you need with a push of the button on a phone. With so much access to tools for knowledge, there is, therefore, no excuse for not succeeding. Knowledge has never been available around the world at this level. It is therefore on you to take full advantage of this.

The story of Sean Parker, the first president of Facebook, comes to mind at a time like this. In his childhood, Parker was an avid reader, which was the beginning of his lifelong success on Facebook and other businesses like Spotify (an online music streaming company). He was very much given to his school books and many other personal developments and career development books via the internet. He took full advantage of the knowledge that was available to achieve his dreams.

Nothing of real value can be achieved by anyone who does not strive for knowledge. Striving for knowledge will not always be fun, but it will always be worth it years later when you achieve your dreams. Therefore decide today to strive for knowledge like Sean Parker so you too can be among the high fliers in a few years from now.

I would love to hear about how you are striving for knowledge. It will also be great if you have any pointers on the topic. Looking forward to seeing all of that in the comment section.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Charles Adimah is an entrepreneur and the Project Manager of B2SL INITIATIVE, where he manages the vision. He is a great believer that a prosperous Nigeria is a product of successful Nigerians. You can reach him via email at charles@b2sl.org.

the-unending-knowledge-cycle

THE UNENDING CYCLE OF KNOWLEDGE

“Knowledge has to be improved, challenged, and increased constantly, or it vanishes”. – Peter Drucker.

According to Wikipedia knowledge is familiarity or awareness, of someone or something, such as facts, skills, or objects contributing to one’s understanding. From the definition, you can see that the ultimate purpose of knowledge is understanding which helps to shape our decision-making. So where does all of this begin from and where is the endpoint? Acquiring knowledge began for you a long time ago if you are reading this blog post. What have you done with the knowledge acquired so far and are you looking at acquiring more or are you tired of knowledge?

With the cycle of knowledge being unending, you will need to improve on your level of knowledge across academics and life in general. Improvement here means you can not relax on what you have known so far and done in the past. This is because there is always something more to know and understand so you can do things better and better at all times. The person who appreciates the unending cycle of knowledge will always be hungry for improvement as seen in successful students and career persons all over the world.

The knowledge that is not challenged over and over again can be mediocre. You can’t say you are focused on acquiring knowledge constantly and be scared or feel uncomfortable when what you know is challenged one way or the other. You cannot say you are very knowledgeable in a particular subject like Mathematics, English, or Economics and be scared to write exams or get uncomfortable when difficult questions are thrown at you. Such challenges will only make you get better and work harder to acquire knowledge.

The volume of knowledge you have will ever be on the rise as you go for more. Whenever you stop going for knowledge, it’s as good as someone who is dying already. Therefore, going for more knowledge should always be your number one drive as this will constantly help fuel your path to success.