The Value of Lifelong Learning: From Student-Athlete to Doctoral Graduate
By Dr. Brian D. Wickstrom
I’ve always believed that learning doesn’t end when you walk across a graduation stage — in many ways, that’s when it truly begins. Looking back on my journey from a student-athlete at Kansas State to earning multiple advanced degrees, including my doctorate, I see a consistent thread:
Education has shaped every chapter of my life — academically, athletically, professionally, and personally.
Lifelong learning is more than collecting degrees. It’s about strengthening your mindset, broadening your perspective, and preparing yourself for opportunities you may not even see yet.
The Foundation: Lessons Learned as a Student-Athlete
Being a student-athlete taught me lessons no textbook could have provided.
I learned:
Discipline from the early-morning training sessions
Focus from balancing academics and athletics
Resilience from losses that felt impossible to overcome
Teamwork from working alongside people pursuing the same goals
Time management from the constant balancing act
Competitive drive that still fuels my leadership today
On the track, I discovered what it meant to push past limits. In the classroom, I learned to think critically and communicate effectively. Combined, those experiences built the foundation for my leadership style.
Being a student-athlete taught me that growth doesn’t come from winning — it comes from working.
Why I Pursued Advanced Degrees
After college, many people expected me to stay in athletics. What they didn’t realize was that I also had a deep love for learning and a drive to understand leadership, business, and organizational dynamics at a higher level.
Each advanced degree I pursued was rooted in a question I wanted to explore more deeply:
How do organizations grow?
What makes leaders effective?
How do you align teams around a vision?
How does finance drive long-term stability?
Over time, those degrees became more than academic achievements — they became powerful tools that helped me navigate leadership roles across universities, athletics programs, nonprofits, and corporate environments.
Learning Creates Confidence
One thing that education taught me is that confidence does not come from titles — it comes from preparation.
Walking into a meeting room with complex issues is very different when you know:
How to read financials
How to evaluate operations
How to analyze risk
How to build strategy
How to communicate clearly
How to lead teams with empathy
The more I learned, the more equipped I became to handle challenges with clarity rather than hesitation.
That confidence has been invaluable in every leadership role I've held.
Lifelong Learning Means Staying Curious
Some of the most important learning doesn’t happen in formal classrooms. It happens from:
Conversations with colleagues
Observing strong leaders
Mentoring younger professionals
Asking questions
Reading widely
Listening more than speaking
Admitting when you don’t know something
Curiosity keeps leaders humble.
Humility keeps leaders growing.
Growth keeps organizations thriving.
In every job I’ve held — whether in athletics, education, or business — I’ve tried to stay a student first, leader second.
Learning Through Experience: The Hardest Lessons Aren’t in Books
Some lessons only come from lived experience.
There are things I learned during:
Budget challenges
High-stakes decisions
Organizational transitions
Public-facing leadership roles
Times of uncertainty
Moments where things didn’t go as planned
These experiences have been just as educational as any classroom — sometimes more. In real-world leadership, lessons rarely come with study guides. But they come with clarity, strength, and a deeper understanding of yourself.
Lifelong learning means embracing lessons from:
Success
Failure
Transition
Opportunity
Adversity
Every chapter becomes part of your education.
Lifelong Learning Helps You Lead Diverse Teams
The world is constantly changing. Organizations evolve. People evolve. Expectations evolve. Leaders who grow stay relevant — leaders who stop learning fall behind.
Continuing to learn allowed me to:
Connect with people from different backgrounds
Understand new generations entering the workforce
Lead multi-department teams
Build trust across diverse organizations
Adapt leadership styles to specific environments
Education expands your perspective, and perspective strengthens your leadership.
Your Career Will Change — Your Capacity to Learn Shouldn’t
I’ve held roles in:
Athletics administration
Higher education
Nonprofit leadership
Corporate operations
Consulting and strategy
Each environment required different knowledge and different leadership approaches. Learning kept me ready for each transition.
The degrees on the wall matter less than the lessons behind them.
Conclusion: Be a Student of Life
If there’s one message I hope people take from my journey, it’s this:
Never stop learning — the next opportunity often depends on what you’re willing to learn today.
Whether you’re leading a team, building a program, managing a business, or raising a family, lifelong learning shapes how you think, how you respond, and how you grow.
Being a student-athlete taught me how to work.
Becoming a graduate student taught me how to think.
Becoming a doctoral graduate taught me how to lead.
Life has taught me how to stay humble, grateful, and motivated to keep improving.
The world continues to change — and leaders must continue learning.
Further Reading
• Leadership Through Personal Accountability
https://www.dr-brian-wickstrom.com/leadership-through-personal-accountability
• Ethical Leadership & Organizational Trust
https://www.dr-brian-wickstrom.com/ethical-leadership-accountability
• Executive Leadership Philosophy
https://www.dr-brian-wickstrom.com/executive-leadership-philosophy
Further Reading
• Building High-Performance Teams in Leadership
https://www.dr-brian-wickstrom.com/building-high-performance-teams
