There’s a Need for Businesses and Educators to Collaborate

Education – there is a definite importance to this endeavor. Often, that importance is lost on those who need it the most – our youth. Whether you have children or not, eventually the quality of their education — or lack thereof — is going to affect your life personally. If not now, it will later. Some of today’s youth will be our leaders in our later years, some will be business owners, and some will be innovators.

Life – without any deviations – is like a straight line. Now, just how boring is that? So, we invite deviations — some are fun, entertaining. Others are like seeds — do not look like much, probably do not taste good, no aroma perhaps. So we toss them away. “There is no value to me”… or so we think.

Everything has to start someplace — and there are no promises that “someplace” will be entertaining, will be full of energy and excitement, will be interesting, or will be captivating… If you stop to think about it, the only time this is true, is to anything we choose to value for ourselves.

But not everything needs to be, or is, exciting from the beginning. Truth, it is not exciting to be the workers of the trades that creates a foundation for a building. But – as that building grows, many workers are more energized, they can see the fruits of their efforts. Even the people witnessing the growth of the building become excited.

The same can be said about education,. Those between 13 and 25 years already have many of their values established, with many more to be added. Arriving to their classes, is difficult to see beyond their noses never mind the next 10 years. Yet, to teachers and adults witnessing their changes as the result of education, it is exciting to see their growth and changes.

For many, especially youth, technology has been their biggest form of entertainment for centuries. Technology feeds their thirst for creativity and especially entertainment. Many will want to play with the latest technology, only to be consumed by it. Others will want to see if they can improve upon the technology, but will limit themselves by what they already know. While others will see the genius behind the technology — and will expand these ideas through innovation.

All of us fall into one of these patterns — not everyone is blessed with a vision beyond their nose, while others are blessed to be able see a future full of grand, new technologies but yet cannot see their own noses. Most will have a drive, a thirst for something better, whether for themselves or for others. This is where education is important — but is also where people are important as well, especially their thoughts, what they value, what they see for their own future. They all play a role in what we do. Who they surround themselves with is just as important as with what they surround themselves..

Before we get too confused — innovation is something entirely new, not a collaboration of previous technologies. Simple examples: the invention of the light bulb, the internal combustion engine, the airplane, the microchip were innovations. Nothing like it existed before, in part or in whole. The Apple iPad and iPhone? Sorry — is a collaboration of previous technologies (everything either machine can do existed in part or whole, including the apps). But merging technologies requires vision, thought and some form of education as well.

Pursuing our own dream is the motivation for hope, more dreams, and more desires for any person, whether youth, adult or old. Hope, dreams and desires does not discriminate to age, gender, heritage – it is only limited to what we convince ourselves.

As a nation, having a dream of a better education, an improved education is necessary to provide a much better future. Many will build their dreams, their castle, in the air — this is still good! Now, build the foundation – it will keep your dream alive! Education is the seed of every nation’s future. Dreams, hopes and desires are only the fertilizer. The soil is our children. Innovation by the few provides a better quality to the many..

Education and technology cannot thrive on their own — without applying the knowledge gained to real world situations, the innovation and technology collapses. Businesses use technology to improve their delivery and quality of their goods and services. Without applying the latest technologies, they most likely will stagger, if not fail.

It has come time for our leaders, our educators, and our business owners and executives to collaborate together. Without this collaboration, freely exchanging ideas and providing a forum for better results in our future, an excellent opportunity for our youth, for our children could be missed. By knowing the results of their instructions in the real world, educators can provide better skill sets to their students for our future. Business owners and executives sharing their experiences can guide educators to their future needs by providing a picture of their visions of their company’s future.. And the leaders can do what they should do best – listen… and then lead.