Information systems tools, techniques, and technologies are changing at an ever-increasing pace. Technical skills with operating systems, applications, and hardware are important to learn in an information systems curriculum so that students can be immediately productive upon graduating, but these skills may have a shelf life. Technical skills (like systems themselves) must be continually maintained, otherwise information systems professionals risk obsolescence. It is imperative that information systems educators provide students with the ability to learn effectively during school and after graduation. Many students struggle to learn independently, preferring instead to have clear learning paths provided for them. To encourage effective lifelong learning, a tech exploration assignment was implemented in an advanced networking security tools course at a midwestern university in the United States. In the assignment, students chose a network security topic according to their interests, developed a learning plan, carried out the learning plan independently, presented their findings, and submitted learning reflections. Results from student surveys showed that despite the challenges of stewarding their own learning process, they found the assignment to be a valuable learning experience that encourages lifelong learning. A detailed description of the assignment, student survey results, instructor observations, and implementation recommendations are provided.