Every now and then, a Diploma student writes a review that we believe deserves to be featured and discussed. Instead of them ending up hidden among the others, we will share them with you, and let you know our thoughts about them.

This is what Raj said:

When I started this program almost a year ago, my aim was to quickly go through a program to maintain industry currency and compliance in an industry sector that is becoming more and more complicated with stricter governance standards.

However, as I started working through the materials, I was pleasantly surprised at the level of support, and professionalism from you and your team.  That level of professionalism forced me to stop and reconsider my motives, and apply what I already knew, more professionally, and as would be expected from a professional in the L&D sector.

I want to thank you and your team for all your support and efficiency in making this possible.  As you know, in this year I have also embarked on a new business venture and having someone from your office monitoring my progress and keeping me on track has been a huge plus.

I would recommend your RTO – and I do – to anyone looking to further their studies.

All the best to you and your team.

Best Regards

Raj Nathoo, Fortress Learning Triple Diploma of Business, Business Administration and Leadership and Management Graduate.

Why did this particular testimonial get our attention?

In study and in life, your ‘why’ is your motivating force. When Raj first started his Triple Business Diploma, his ‘why’ was because he felt he had to complete this qualification in order to adhere to the guidelines and standards his industry requires.

This testimonial got our attention because we know that Raj is not alone.

We get so caught up in ticking boxes and complying that it’s easy to forget that the point of gaining qualifications is to upgrade our skills and knowledge so that we can perform.

In the Australian VET sector, there is a lot of talk about how regulated it is, but it’s largely self-regulating.

Quite often the commercial imperative, or even the personal imperative, can be to take short-cuts and to do the bare minimum of what is required. However, if we do that then we limit ourselves to purely a base level of compliance rather than necessarily actually moving towards performance.

So we end up complying rather than performing.”

Dr Bryan West, Founder of Fortress Learning

When it comes to completing a qualification, is your ‘why’ to simply comply? How would your learning experience change if your ‘why’ was to perform?

Here at Fortress Learning, we love to hear that our students are able to take the knowledge and skills they learnt through their qualification and put it to use in their workplace.

In fact, learning is one of the Top 5 things our students are grateful for. We asked our students what they are grateful for. Here are the top 5:

• Their work and the opportunities and challenges that it presents.
• The love of family and friends.
• Their health.
• The confidence and trust others place in them.
• Their learning and the support of Fortress Learning staff (nice one guys!)

No wonder they are such a happy bunch!

Different ‘whys’ will lead to very different outcomes.

If your ‘why’ is to simply tick the boxes and comply, you may be selling yourself short. By re-evaluating your ‘why’, that qualification will look and feel and be very different as it will be a qualification driven by an authentic want to improve you – your knowledge, your skills, your performance.

Why you choose to study will not simply shape your experience and feelings throughout the process, it will shape the extent to which you actually learn; the value you get, and the value you can then give to others.

What’s your why?

‍