Wealth Wisdom: The Art of Learning, Unlearning & Relearning

"The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn."
— Alvin Toffler

Why Learning Never Stops

Imagine still using a flip phone or thinking MySpace is the future of social media. That’s what happens when you stop learning—you become a fossil in a world of Teslas.

Learning isn’t just about stuffing your brain with knowledge. It’s about evolving, staying curious, and knowing when to let go of outdated ideas (like the time you thought eating instant noodles every day was a solid financial plan).

So, let’s break it down into a simple, repeatable cycle:

1️⃣ Learn – Absorb new knowledge (like a sponge, but without smelling weird).
2️⃣ Unlearn – Let go of outdated beliefs (like the one that says renting is always bad).
3️⃣ Relearn – Upgrade your mindset and strategies (like updating your iPhone, but with actual improvements).
4️⃣ Apply – Put what you’ve learned into action (because knowledge without action is useless).
5️⃣ Share – Teaching others reinforces what you’ve learned and creates a multiplier effect (the more you share, the more you grow).

Let’s break it down…

Step 1: LEARN (AKA, Filling Your Brain With Good Stuff)

Learning starts with self-discovery—figuring out:
✅ Your strengths & weaknesses
✅ Your core values
✅ Your personal mission & vision
✅ Your beliefs & perceptions

Why? Because what you learn should align with who you want to become.

Warren Buffett, the investing legend, once said that the best investment is in yourself because:

🔹 Skills are inflation-proof (unlike your grocery bill).
🔹 No one can tax your knowledge (at least, not yet).
🔹 Doing ordinary things exceptionally well leads to extraordinary results.

Bottom line? Learning is the foundation of every kind of success—especially in building wealth.

Step 2: UNLEARN (AKA, Letting Go of Dumb Stuff)

Some things we learned in the past are now useless baggage:
❌ "The stock market is too risky." (Long-term investors would disagree.)
❌ "Renting is throwing money away." (Not if buying a house keeps you broke.)
❌ "Work hard and you’ll get rich." (Nah, work smart and you’ll get rich.)

Unlearning is tough because our brains hate admitting we were wrong. But if you never unlearn, you end up like someone still sending faxes in 2025.

The Cycle of Unlearning (Barry O’Reilly’s concept) is:
🔄 Step 1: Recognize outdated beliefs.
🔄 Step 2: Consciously let go of them.
🔄 Step 3: Replace them with better, updated knowledge.

Example: If you grew up thinking “money is the root of all evil,” unlearn that ASAP. Money is just a tool—like fire. You can use it to cook a meal or burn your house down. Your choice.

Step 3: RELEARN (AKA, The Upgrade Process)

Now that you’ve cleared out the mental junk, it’s time to install the latest version of you.

✔ Develop new perspectives.
✔ Acquire new skill sets.
✔ Align your learning with your goals & purpose.

Robert Brault puts it best:
"Each day, learn something new and just as important, relearn something old."

Translation: Sometimes, what we “knew” was wrong—or just incomplete.

Step 4: APPLY (AKA, Put Your Knowledge to Work!)

Here’s the truth:
🚨 Knowledge without action is as useless as a screen door on a submarine.

You can read 100 books about investing, but until you open a brokerage account, buy your first stock, or test a strategy, you haven’t really learned anything.

Application means:
✔ Taking action—even if it’s small.
✔ Making mistakes and learning from them.
✔ Tweaking and improving along the way.

It’s like learning to ride a bike—you can watch all the YouTube tutorials, but until you actually get on the damn thing, you won’t get anywhere.

Step 5: SHARE (AKA, The Learning Multiplier Effect)

Francis Kong once said:

"We all have only one crack at life. And we need to learn how to number our days. So no moments should be wasted but that we grow and improve with the sole purpose of helping others grow and improve as well."

Translation? Learning isn’t just about YOU—it’s about helping others grow too.

📌 Teaching forces clarity – If you can explain it simply, you truly understand it.
📌 You learn from others’ perspectives – The student often teaches the teacher.
📌 It builds community – Surround yourself with growth-minded people, and you level up together.

So next time you learn something valuable, don’t hoard it—share it.
Not only will you reinforce your own knowledge, but you’ll also inspire others to learn, grow, and apply it in their own way.

Real-World Example: Investing & The Learning Cycle

🚨 New traders often make these mistakes:
❌ They learn one strategy and think it’s the holy grail.
❌ They follow hype instead of understanding the fundamentals.
❌ They assume making money is easy (spoiler: it’s not).

Here’s how a smart investor applies the learning cycle:

1️⃣ Learn the Basics – Study dividend investing, ETFs, REITs, options, index funds—get a feel for the landscape.
2️⃣ Unlearn Bad Strategies – Dump the “get rich quick” mentality, ignore meme stocks, and stop chasing hype.
3️⃣ Relearn & Refine – Master useful tools like RSI (Relative Strength Index), MACD (Moving Average Convergence Divergence), and Trend Following to make informed decisions.
4️⃣ Apply – Open an account, invest, and test real strategies.
5️⃣ Share – Teach a friend, mentor someone, or even write about it (cough like I’m doing here).

Final Takeaways: How to Become a Lifelong Learner

✔ Learn from the best (or worst—bad examples teach too).
✔ Use both formal and informal learning.
✔ Leverage technology—YouTube, podcasts, audiobooks.
✔ Read widely—it’s like compound interest for your brain.
✔ Follow the gurus, but think for yourself.

And most importantly…

"It does not mean I am right, it's just me having tried and will continue trying, to apply what I have learned and share to reinforce my own learning." – (Me, being wise for once.)

So, what will you learn, unlearn, and relearn today? 🚀

Sources & References:
📖 Let Go of Past Success to Achieve Extraordinary Results – Barry O'Reilly
📖 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholder Meeting (2022) – Warren Buffett
📖 Francis Kong, Speaker/Consultant (March 2017)