LEARNING BY THE WATER-COOLER: Episode 5

LEARNING IS EVERYTHING and everything is learning.

New Year’s resolutions… Did you make any? How are they going so far?

By now in our previous lives, we’d be standing by the water-cooler in the office ruefully discussing if those pledges, we held so strong, were being stuck to…or not. They could have been: getting more exercise, losing some weight, cutting down on your alcohol intake, quitting smoking, cutting out sweets, writing a daily journal, being nicer to everyone. Whatever they were… we all made ‘em’ and (let’s be honest) we’ve all broken ‘em’.

In our new realm of home schooling, online meetings and lockdowns – depending on where you are in the world right now – it can be even more difficult to find the willpower to stick to one of those personal resolutions. But in our business lives, we must find ways… we must find the resolve to embrace change.

But how?

By “eating the elephant one bite at a time”. Choosing small goals over unrealistically big targets. Like trying to lose one pound per month, versus aiming to compete in the Mr. Universe contest before ever lifting a dumbbell. Consider our world of training technology; maybe it’s acquiring a new skill through an eLearning module, instead of a webinar; or using a video, instead of a manual.

Embracing small learning moments over wholesale transformation.

We love technology and we know there is always a buzz around new advancements, like: virtual reality, machine learning, gamification or artificial intelligence. We appreciate their value and certainly their appeal. We also understand that right now, when we are being bombarded with information and an expectation that we embrace new ways of working, perhaps we should be looking for realistic gains in the ways we are asking people to learn. Small victories, leading to the ‘whole elephant’.

In a world where we increasingly take on information in tweets, or emojis, finding ways for learners to utilize applications that are easy, fun and powerful will lead to resolve.

A workplace resolution that anyone CAN stick to.