Knowledge is cheap, mastery takes time

Apr 2 / Russ Watsky

In previous companies, the noise around training was that it took too long, and employees and customers didn't have time to learn. Of course, these were the same leaders who then complained that the customers didn't know how to use the software and the employees were doing it all wrong. Irony is funny.

Let’s be honest: You can’t 'life-hack' your way into being a great leader or performance coach. People today want everything faster, including their learning.
A huge reason for that is they're spread thin, firefighting and managing tasks.

How about we stop firefighting and actually get to the root cause of things, like... why are there so many fires and tasks to address? As leaders, we cannot be everything to everyone. We must develop employees who can problem-solve and take over the mantle when we move on.

When I founded LearningIQ, I understood that our brains don't just rewire themselves after watching a short video as much as we'd like that to be the case.

Don't get me wrong, there is absolutely a time and a place for microlearning. However, when it comes to building a strong foundation, true 'neuroplasticity' (e.g., the brain's rewiring) takes time. 
Knowledge is cheap, but real mastery, that actually moves the needle, takes time. 

Deprogramming Takes Time

For a team leader to move from 'Managing Tasks' to 'Developing People,' they have to deprogram years of traditional management habits. That shift requires:
 Cognitive Load:
Your learners can’t swallow a new method for developing their employees in one bite. They need to nibble around the edges first so their brain has a chance to absorb and digest the new information.
 Reflective Practice
People need to apply new techniques, see the results, and then iterate. This is where practice makes perfect, as leaders try new ways of doing things and see the value, they come to realize the truth of the new approach.
 Creating Habits
It takes time to go from 'knowing something, to 'doing it', to 'being it'. That is neuroplasticity in action as our brains identify, incorporate, and then habitualize the new performance.
Bottomline  
Taking learning shortcuts is just that... 'short' of real, meaningful learning that produces performance improvements. Please stop looking for a short silver bullet and start building the foundation of knowledge and technique that reduces fires and builds bench strength.

If that takes a few hours, then so be it. Invest, and it will help you extinguish the fires and make your customers and employees much happier.

This is why I created a 14-lesson workshop instead of a 15-minute webinar. If you want to learn more about the Unlock Potential: The Art of Coaching and Self Development Workshop (14-lessons) of pure technique and practice, please check out the button below.