书城英文图书思考致富(英文朗读版)
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第27章 SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE(2)

The preceding paragraph should give hope and encouragement to the man with ambition to accumulatea fortune, who has not possessed himself of thenecessary “education” to supply such specializedknowledge as he may require. Men sometimes gothrough life suffering from “inferiority complexes,” because they are not men of “education.” The manwho can organize and direct a “Master Mind” group of men who possess knowledge useful in the accumulation of money, is just as much a manof education as any man in the group. REMEMBERTHIS, if you suffer from a feeling of inferiority,because your schooling has been limited.

Thomas A. Edison had only three months of

“schooling” during his entire life. He did not lackeducation, neither did he die poor.

Henry Ford had less than a sixth grade “schooling”

but he has managed to do pretty well by himself,financially.

SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE is among the most

plentiful, and the cheapest forms of service whichmay be had! If you doubt this, consult the payroll ofany university.

IT PAYS TO KNOW HOW TO

PURCHASE KNOWLEDGE

First of all, decide the sort of specialized knowledgeyou require, and the purpose for which it is needed.

To a large extent your major purpose in life, the goaltoward which you are working, will help determinewhat knowledge you need. With this questionsettled, your next move requires that you haveaccurate information concerning dependable sourcesof knowledge. The more important of these are:

(a) One’s own experience and education

(b) Experience and education available throughcooperation of others (Master Mind Alliance)(c) Colleges and Universities

(d) Public Libraries (Through books and periodicalsin which may be found all the knowledge organizedby civilization)(e) Special Training Courses (Through night schoolsand home study schools in particular.)As knowledge is acquired it must be organized andput into use, for a definite purpose, through practicalplans. Knowledge has no value except that whichcan be gained from its application to-ward someworthy end. This is one reason why college degreesare not valued more highly. They represent nothingbut miscellaneous knowledge.

If you contemplate taking additional schooling,first determine the purpose for which you want theknowledge you are seeking, then learn where thisparticular sort of knowledge can be obtained, fromreliable sources.

Successful men, in all callings, never stop acquiringspecialized knowledge related to their major purpose,business, or profession. Those who are not successfulusually make the mistake of believing that theknowledge acquiring period ends when one finishesschool. The truth is that schooling does but littlemore than to put one in the way of learning how toacquire practical knowledge.

With this Changed World which began at the endof the economic collapse, came also astoundingchanges in educational requirements. The orderof the day is SPECIALIZATION! This truth wasemphasized by Robert P. Moore, secretary of

appointments of Columbia University.

SPECIALISTS MOST SOUGHT

“Particularly sought after by employing companiesare candidates who have specialized in somefield—business-school graduates with training inaccounting and statistics, engineers of all varieties,journalists, architects, chemists, and also outstandingleaders and activity men of the senior class.

“The man who has been active on the campus,whose personality is such that he gets along with allkinds of people and who has done an adequate jobwith his studies has a most decided edge over thestrictly academic student. Some of these, because oftheir all-around qualifications, have received severaloffers of positions, a few of them as many as six.

“In departing from the conception that the ‘straightA’ student was invariably the one to get the choice ofthe better jobs, Mr. Moore said that most companieslook not only to academic records but to activityrecords and personalities of the students.

“One of the largest industrial companies, the leaderin its field, in writing to Mr. Moore concerningprospective seniors at the college, said:

“‘We are interested primarily in finding men whocan make exceptional progress in management work.

For this reason we emphasize qualities of character,intelligence and personality far more than specificeducational background.’

APPRENTICESHIP’ PROPOSED

“Proposing a system of ‘apprenticing’ studentsin offices, stores and industrial occupations duringthe summer vacation, Mr. Moore asserts that afterthe first two or three years of college, every studentshould be asked ‘to choose a definite future courseand to call a halt if he has been merely pleasantlydrifting without purpose through an unspecializedacademic curriculum.’

“Colleges and universities must face the practicalconsideration that all professions and occupationsnow demand specialists,” he said, urging thateducational institutions accept more directresponsibility for vocational guidance. One of themost reliable and practical sources of knowledgeavailable to those who need specialized schooling, isthe night schools operated in most large cities. Thecorrespondence schools give specialized traininganywhere the U. S. mails go, on all subjects that canbe taught by the extension method. One advantageof home study training is the flexibility of the studyprogramme which permits one to study during sparetime. Another stupendous advantage of home studytraining (if the school is carefully chosen), is the factthat most courses offered by home study schoolscarry with them generous privileges of consultationwhich can be of priceless value to those needingspecialized knowledge. No matter where you live,you can share the benefits.