Every Day is a School Day

“Every day is a school day.” One of my work colleagues said this recently, and it has stuck with me. What he was saying is that he remains committed to keep learning, well after his own school days.

It’s so important to be a lifelong learner. Doing so will benefit you both professionally and personally. Learning new skills, staying up on industry developments, understanding the competition – they’re all essential to remaining valuable in your line of work. On a more personal level, learning gives you mental stimulation, and there’s plenty of research available to suggest that learning is a form of “exercise” for your brain.

This doesn’t mean you need to go back to school, or even to take a course or certification program. Learning opportunities abound, and they are all around you. Every situation you’re in, and everything you do well or not well, creates a learning opportunity. You can learn actively or passively, the easy way or the hard way.

Take some time each day to reflect on what you’ve learned. Write it in a journal if that’s your thing. Ask (and suggest) what went well and what could have gone better after a key presentation or project at work. You don’t have to go crazy, but get in the habit of maximizing the opportunities to learn in the moment rather than waiting for your annual or semi-annual performance review. It will make you a better colleague and – in all likelihood – a more fulfilled one as well.

Here are a few tips for committing to being a lifelong learner. For a longer version, check out this article on our website.

1. Take accountability for your own learning. This is a corollary to the “own your career” mantra. You should absolutely take advantage of whatever learning opportunities or programs your company offers, particularly since they’re often good and under-utilized, but in the end, you need to be responsible for your own learning. If your company doesn't offer it, seek it out.

2. Have a learning agenda. What’s a learning agenda? A formal definition provided by the USAid Learning Lab suggests that, “A learning agenda includes:

• A set of questions addressing critical knowledge gaps,
• A set of associated activities to answer them, and
• Products aimed at disseminating findings and designed with usage and application in mind.”

While this definition may have the take you bak to your high school science lab, its key points are that a learning agenda should be structured, relevant, and output oriented.

3. Recognize that we all learn differently. Intuitively, most of us know this, but we often don’t think about how we – and others – learn best. For example,

• Do you just need to be taught how to do something or are you a visual learner, i.e., someone who needs to see it done?
• Do you learn from books, videos, some other source?
• Do you prefer to learn in bite-sized pieces over time or by binging new material all at once?
• Do you learn formally or informally?
• And if you’re a manager, how do your team members each learn most effectively

4. Bear in mind the 4Es – experience, exposure, education, and environment. For many years, Learning & Development professionals grabbed on to the 70-20-10 rule, i.e., that

• 70% of people’s learning is through their own experience,
• 20% comes through exposure to others (and we'll add the environment you’re in as well), and
• 10% comes through some form of education or training

5. Consider your learning agenda over multiple horizons. In other words, think about what you need to know:

• Now for success in your current role or at the moment
• Soon for growth in your role or readiness for the next role
• Long-term to meet your career objectives

In summary, get out there, be curious, and ask questions. Consider “why?” Having an intellectual curiosity, and demonstrating a willingness to learn and take coaching, can play a key role in helping you progress in your career and stay engaged. Commit to being a lifelong learner, and remember that every day is indeed a school day.

JR and the PathWise team

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