Do you know how you learn best?
You’ve likely heard about the different learning styles—maybe you were even subjected to testing to see what worked best for you. Or you could have talked about them as a reminder when delivering training, in terms of providing variety so everyone in the room is engaged.
There is Visual Learning. Infographics are fantastic for that. There’s Auditory Learning—a favorite for sure among people who swear by podcasts. There’s Kinesthetic Learning—you learn by doing. And there’s Reading and Writing—aka the copious note-taker.
It’s not how you learn. It’s that you learn.
As business owners, we need a proactive plan for learning. The rate at which new information/approaches/technology/discoveries/platforms are introduced into the market is overwhelming. What kind of learner you are doesn’t matter. That’s personal to you.
What’s valuable is that you recognize your preferred approach, and then apply it for the best results. What do you need to learn to stay current in your industry? Or, more broadly, what’s hot in your industry right now? And, if you’re not sure, how will you go about finding out?
Build Learning into Your Daily Process
Where we can get stumped with learning can be when we think “I need to read a book about that.” Or, “I’ll set aside time to learn about that…sometime later.” The magic is when you integrate learning into your day-to-day activities.
For example. I learn by writing. I write for clients. I’m fascinated lately by how our nervous system works and want to learn more about how our nervous system impacts us in the moment.
- As I learned from client Dr. Margo Jacquot of The Juniper Center, I’m a “Freezer” in the face of perceived imminent danger. What fun to see that Will Smith is too. Or, actually was, as he blamed himself in his book for freezing as a child witnessing domestic violence. He may blow up the bad guys in the movies, but in real life, it was his nervous system that exploded and took control at the Oscars. Read a psychologist’s take on our nervous systems and the impact of childhood trauma, here.
- Freezing is my response to presumed conflict. For trainers in the classroom, you have to be nimble to manage conversations and potential challenges to the content. This article I wrote for the National Diversity Council and Executive Diversity Services, takes that topic head-on, asking Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Trainers, what are “Five Curve Balls Thrown During DEI Trainings (and How to Respond)”. This was a great way to learn from the experts.
- Finally, while it may not diminish my own inklings of anxiety, understanding how it is impacting others builds compassion. In particular how it’s impacting young people. Rather than my go-to “freezing” in how awful it is (44% of teens across all races now report feelings of depression and anxiety), I co-created this piece, 5 Ways to Support Your Teenage Grandchild’s Mental Health Now, with a 94-year-old grandpa and a 21-year-old granddaughter. The process of co-creating meant getting first-hand insight into the topic in the process of learning from each other.
Weave Learning into Your Day-to-Day Life
The world changes every second. We need to constantly be learning to stay “in the game.” How do you build learning into your life as a daily practice?