I love getting new certifications and accredations. I’m not really sure why. Maybe it makes me feel smarter, better suited to do the job at hand, legit.

My latest decalaration of competence  – to join my YogaFox, AADP and IIN certificates, all earned in the past 3 months – comes from Yoga Alliance, the mack daddy governing body of yoga teachers worldwide. I had to wait for graduation from YogaFox before I could apply to Yoga Alliance and I was itching for it. For some reason, carrying around a card that says “Casey O’Hanlon – RYT200” meant the world to me. I can’t figure out why. The Lululemon discount is one benefit but that couldn’t be it.

Whatever the motivation and necessity, it feels great.

I’m going through the same thing with my nutrition program right now, too. I will graduate from The Institue for Integrative Nutrition next month and I’m already looking for the next step. IIN is a well-known and reputable program for holistic nutrition but for whatever reason, I feel like I need more to be able to really help peeople. I know this really isn’t true and that I am writing my own story; I have learned so much during my year-long studies at IIN and from all of the other reading I have been doing on my own – every time I hear a speaker like Deepak Chopra, Neal Bernard or Geneen Roth I go out and buy ALL of their books – and from working with my first few clients. But I still find myself researching nutrition degree programs or looking into enrolling to get a Masters in Public Health. My undergrad alma mater, UMASS, offers one of the best programs, and it’s all done online. It couldn’t be a better fit for someone like me who is never in the same state for more than 30 consecutive days. And a rolling stone gathers no moss and all, right?

I’m also looking into getting CPR certified again (the last time I did it was at the Y in White Plains with Kate C. and all I remember from that class was the amazing chicken soup and Potato Skins chips we used to eat afterwards) and am enrolled in a seminar on How To Sell Your First Book with my amazing writing professor Susan Shapiro in NYC next weekend. It’s never ending but I like it that way.

As for the next step with my nutrition and wellness studies, no decision has been made yet and I don’t know if going back to school yet again will even be the right play. Whether I enroll in a likely pricey program or just do reading and research on my own, I will always be a full-time student. There is so much to learn and I will never give up my thrist for knowledge. As my Jewish studies teacher, Sidney, says “When we stop learning is when it’s time to shut the lid.” Never stop.