What I learned about learning… and myself… in 2008

This month’s big question is about what we as learning professionals learned about learning this past year (2008). I think I’ve learned a lot, like:

• It doesn’t have to be Second Life to be immersive and engaging.
• The Wow factor for Second Life wore off. I like it, but I’m not engaged by it anymore.
• The staying power or social & peer-to-peer learning is more and more obvious
• eLearning is still ok and useful – formal learning has a place in workplace learning
• I’m ok with not using the fancy words when talking about workplace learning… I’m much better about being straightforward and using words and explanations that my clients understand (without an additional explanation to explain the explanation)
• We’re boring (I didn’t say this… but I agree with it)… Instructional designers often take it to the boring level by focusing on the structures and formality of what they learned in grad school and not focusing on what the person sitting in this course needs to do at the end of it

I think we (as learning professionals) spend a lot of time making it complicated to justify our positions/existence/PhD or masters degree. And the complexity & rigor is necessary to create a learning environment that’s effective. But I also think we lose some of the wonder of learning by focusing on the prescribed methods that were rammed down our throats in the past. In 2009 I’m planning on spending a little more time looking for that wonder that I’ve lost in the past.

Inspiration

We all find inspiration in different places – people, pictures, quotations, events, and life. I’ve started training for my first triathlon – which of course requires running. I’m not a natural athlete so I have to work at it (I know everyone works at it) just to be average. Well I found my inspiration last night. Spirit of the Marathon was showing in Calgary. It was a packed house! We were 20 minutes early and barely found seats.

What I saw in this movie was a group of individuals that found the “thing” they needed to be successful – a daughter, a group of running friends, a desire to be #1. They clung to that thing with all their might and gave 100%.

I left the theatre inspired. Maybe it was the teary-eyed finishers at the Chicago marathon, maybe it was the work ethic demonstrated by the runners, maybe it was the crowd. Maybe. It was realizing that I need to stop planning for the race and start running it. Not a marathon just yet. But one day.