Learn on the Go

Show of hands, who has ever taken a long road trip, say, 10 hours or longer by vehicle to some far-off destination? (On a related note: The IT Insights blog squad was driving home after work last night and saw a service station signboard advertising regular unleaded gas for — wait for it — $1.99/gallon. Shiver me timbers, lads, $1.99! The price of gas hasn't been that low in at least 20 years.)

Back to the road trip: If you're the driver, then at least operating the vehicle will keep you awake and occupy your thoughts. If you're not the driver and the driver is, for example, listening to music or a podcast, then your options to pass the time are fairly limited. Maybe you have a book, or a personal media device with games on it. Other than that, the most likely thing in your future is a very long nap.

Alas, as most of us have learned by sad experience, sleeping comfortably in a moving automobile is, not to put too fine a point on it, impossible. You can close your eyes, sure. Maybe you'll even manage to doze off for a couple of hours. You won't be comfortable, however, and you aren't likely to get anything like actual rest out of your sleep. You might as well try to sleep on a washing machine.

There's a better, more productive solution to your problem, especially if you have excellent wireless phone service and rock-solid data plan. Instead of just staring out the window or playing 1,345 consecutive games of "Farm Heroes," use the time to work on career growth and skill enhancement. Use all those uninterrupted hours to dial up one of our online courses and study for certification.

With TestOut CE training, you can study and learn any time and any place that you have a robust personal electronic device and a connection to the internet. In addition to helping you grow professionally, certification keeps your mind active and helps you stay in the habit of learning. So don't leave on you next long road trip without taking the time to make a few preparations — and get the most out of your journey.