New To Wealthy Affiliate? Becoming A Student

This week I have travelled back in time

I am taking advantage of my community's 35 year tradition and attending classes through the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival. Held every year in July, the classes range from just meeting one time to meeting several times over the course of the two week session. Associated with the classes are nightly cultural performances in the different artistic disciplines or concerts, some showcasing the individuals who have taken a particular class. I was drawn to the writing and cooking classes, but there are also selections offered in music, art, healing, and dance.

For the first time in thirty years I found myself in a classroom on a university campus. The experience was exhilarating! I have enjoyed periodic classes in my career over the last 23+ years, but this seems different somehow. I think my excitement lies in the knowledge that I'm taking the classes by my own choice, not because they are required. There will be no grade or credit given, but I will retain the knowledge I have gained and it is mine to do with what I will. That is true with any class, it all being where your motivation lies once the training is over.

"That's nice, but how does this apply to me?"

While there are no walls on the 'classrooms', no grand university buildings, and no books to buy, we are all being afforded this very same experience here at Wealthy Affiliate, without the trappings of a university surrounding, which, admittedly has been a source of rejuvenation for me. We are receiving high quality training at a fraction of the price, (provided we have gone premium). If you are still in the "Free Trial" phase, let me remind you of what you will receive for the same price you are likely to spend taking your family out to eat just once this month. (Look forward to step by step tutorials, someone to answer your questions- any time of day or night, no matter your time zone, plus the hosting of your websites. Not to mention, an extremely supportive community to provide motivation while you pursue this constantly updated training.)

Premium membership is what I'd call a win-win situation!

Each person who joins this community adds to the diversity and our collective experiences. It is not a competition between us, but the pooling of our resources that lends to our strength and encourages new members to join. We all hold unique opinions and ideas that may benefit the next person who reads the answers provided to a question we might have asked, or learned something from a training video a member has taken their time to share with the community.

Every day there is something new to learn... even if it is just about someone's individual efforts in "paying it forward," or something of human nature in general. We are all students, whether the course in question concerns affiliate marketing to grow a successful online business or is simply "Life 101".

What courses have me so excited this week?

Yesterday, I took a three hour course to learn my favorite recipes from what I consider to be the best Chinese restaurant on this planet, "The Pagoda," in North Pole, Alaska. The course was taught by the restaurant's owner, Chef Benny Lin. His talent is to taste a dish and improve upon it to make it his own.

This is not so different from each of us building our websites. Even if we all used the same Wordpress theme, our content will be vastly different. On the same token, we may each have written an article highlighting our take on the Wealthy Affiliate experience for our own individual websites, but we have done so in a manner that is unique to our own situations.

In that spirit, I came home last night and prepared a delicious dinner of Asparagus Chicken and rice for my husband. I have friends who now want me to share the recipes or invite them to dinner. I could have chosen to have the knowledge and not put it to use in a timely manner. Would that information be so fresh in my mind a month or a year, even a week from now? Will I retain the cooking tricks I learned if I don't use them?

I didn't leave any of that to chance. Instead, I was so excited that I raced to the grocery store and stocked my cupboard with all the basic ingredients I'll need for Chinese cooking the next few months. Now, instead of cancelling that one dinner date a month with my husband, for the price of one of those meals, I've learned to cook him a gourmet meal at home.

I am grateful for this knowledge and will still, "pay it forward," by telling others my experience and I will still eat out at the restaurant from time to time. (Perhaps, someday I'll even pay for our meal with revenue from my websites.) Amazing how our lives come full circle, isn't it? I'll even share with you all that this particular chef has been featured on the Food Network by Guy Fieri on his show, "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives." Chef Benny's touted Walnut Shrimp recipe is listed on the Food Network website. (It is my favorite, consider it highly recommended!)

Now, you may be wondering, "What is the significance of one recipe?"

I will tell you that I have tried to make this recipe at home once before, with little to no success. I liken that to previous website endeavors, which is a shared theme here at Wealthy Affiliate. I had no one at the Food Network website to contact and ask where I went wrong.

Ah... the room just got much brighter as everyone's light bulb turned on at once. I didn't have the step by step instruction from just reading the recipe, and there were nuances that I missed on my first try at fixing Walnut Shrimp. Guess what I made tonight? You got it, Walnut Shrimp! My husband said it tasted just like it came from the restaurant.

Have you clicked that Premium button yet?

If you are enjoying your free trial, keep in mind that your first month of Premium is less than one dollar per day. Consider what you still have to learn and all the features that are offered here at Wealthy Affiliate today.

No, today's class wasn't about Philosophy, but it sure made me think of how much I'll be able to share with all of you.

Thanks for sharing this experience!

Kim