Why knowledge is not power?

Knowledge is like having a windows 10 dvd on the shelf, but still running windows vista on your laptop. If knowledge is not applied it goes to waste. When we learn something new, we might think that the new knowledge is stored and always ready to use. It doesn't work exactly like that. Let's go a little bit deeper.

When we learn a new skill, we also have to practice that skill. By doing this we create circuits in our brain that get stronger every day when we apply what we've learned. When they get strong enough the new skill becomes an unconscious program. Imagine the first days of driving. You had to pay conscious attention to every action that you performed, because the circuits were not that strong. Now you don't even have to pay attention anymore, because you've practiced so much that it became a program. You can drive home and not even remember what happened on the way, because you were engaged in a conversation. And this is valid for every new piece of knowledge that we learn. We have to apply it right away and make it part of our day to day life. This is one of the easiest way to change your life into what you've always wanted.

Now think about how frustrating it is to read so much good information every day and your life barely changes. This happens when we don't act on it. When we don't know how the brain works, we think that knowing is enough. If we knew for a fact we would start practicing the next minute. Well the fact is the new neural connections are strong enough after about 21 days of practice. After that the knowledge becomes YOU.