三人行，必有我師焉；擇其善者而從之，其不善者而改之。 — 孔子 (Confuscius, in the Analects)



As recorded in the Analects, Confucius put it succinctly — "When walking in a group of three, there is bound to be someone I can learn from: There will be good qualities that I can imitate, and reflect on bad qualities that I can correct in myself."

Even a long time ago, philosophers like Confucius recognized the value in treating every encounter as a learning opportunity.

And now we live in a time with more learning opportunities than ever before. Orders of magnitude more. The internet connects billions of people together. So if everyone has the potential of teaching you something valuable, can you even imagine the possibilities and potential of what you can learn?

On top of that, we now have access to heaps of digital content and imaginary/simulated worlds. Each character in these worlds is someone you can learn from.

We're living in a golden age of learning. The rule to thrive in this world is simple: Identify a remarkable trait in anyone. Then either copy that trait, or avoid it.