Do you already know the cure?
August 21, 2011
Everyone seems to be searching for the magic information that will make a big difference in their lives. The truth is…you already know. For all of us, what’s missing is not any new information, but the determination and discipline to do the most important things we already know. We keep chasing new information like magpies [...]
Read the rest of this entry »Taking the learning out of learning
August 18, 2011
I was mulling over these ideas the other day and was accused, jokingly, of heresy. I wonder… I have always been a bit puzzled by this notion that we can offer or deliver learning to someone. It reminds me of the cartoons where a hillbilly farmer puts dynamite from ACME Co down a rabbit hole [...]
Read the rest of this entry »Social media in the workplace?
August 16, 2011
A recent survey by Reed shows more than two-thirds of UK workers believe access to social networking sites should be banned from the workplace. In my opinion, like any tool, social media can be used or misused. And of course it depends on your perspective which one it is. An employer would regard lots of [...]
Read the rest of this entry »Just do a better job – would that work?
August 16, 2011
A new CMI survey shows that employees consider a means of getting ahead to include working overtime on a regular basis (44%), taking on additional responsibility for no extra money (37%) and studying during spare time for a professional qualification (45%). I am struck that simply doing a better job of what they currently do [...]
Read the rest of this entry »Dealing with decision paralysis
August 14, 2011
Sometimes we prevaricate over the smallest decisions without knowing why. We feel paralysed and the struggle with ourselves saps energy and distracts us from more important things. In the end, decision paralysis comes down to the fear of consequences; this produces anxiety, which in turn fuels the fear. It is a downward spiral for many [...]
Read the rest of this entry »Training is not always the answer
August 14, 2011
Someone asked me about helping line managers help their teams learn when they can’t do much training. My answer was along the lines… Since so much workplace learning is informal, I would impress upon your line managers that this is the case. Too many people automatically turn to training as a default response to what [...]
Read the rest of this entry »70% – what are we learning?
August 14, 2011
I think one thing to bear in mind when thinking about the 70:20:10 ‘approximate’ ratios is that the 70% stuff goes on anyway, whether L&D people do anything or nothing. People will continue to learn. We are a learning species. It is a default setting. If the L&D people do lots and lots of formal [...]
Read the rest of this entry »Context and memory
August 14, 2011
Context is important and one reason why is that context brings emotions into the recipe that makes up the memory. Emotions attached to a memory tend to make it more memorable. The stronger the emotions, the better the memory sticks. Just think of your own experience and what you remember well. So if a bit [...]
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