Learn is a critical part of a H.E.A.L.T.H.Y careerTM because every single business and individual on this planet is unique – so we can all learn something at any time from anyone. How we choose to use that new knowledge is what separates the truly successful from the mildly interesting!
By always being open to new ideas we increase our chances of stumbling on a little nugget of gold or a germ of an idea which blossoms into something more significant than we could ever imagine.
It goes hand in hand with A for ADAPT because by assuming that you can always learn more, you’re open to change, and change means growth.
80% of CEOs now believe the need for new skills is their biggest business challenge.
From a business perspective, Harvard Business Review and the Economist agree that lifelong learning has become accepted as an economic imperative. Eighty percent of CEOs now believe the need for new skills is their biggest business challenge. For employees, research now shows that opportunities for development have become the second most important factor in workplace happiness (after the nature of the work itself).
Unfortunately though, learning often is relegated to 2nd or 102nd place (!) behind the rest of the to-do list, with the average employee spending just 5 minutes a day on formal learning. I bet most people spend longer than that waiting for the kettle to boil for their cuppa every day.
Learning ‘in the flow’ of work
The internet has transformed the way we view information and the process of education and learning. It now makes much more sense to learn ‘in the flow of work’ so that it’s integrated into daily working life and also is instantly applicable to the situation. It’s so natural for us to go to Google or YouTube now to help us with a problem, why not encourage this type of ‘as you need it’ training?
Remember as well that many of the millennial and Gen Z working population expect to be able to access information as they need it. Withholding information in a ‘knowledge is power’ mindset will be given short shrift, as we covered in the post Millennials – You’re the secret weapon for any business!
Thinking ‘inside the box’ may actually be the most effective solution when it comes to ‘in the flow of work’ training. You need to be able to deliver to training information to your teams in places that they go all the time, perhaps that’s as easy as their inbox!
Interestingly a business quoted by Harvard Business Review found that it was 6x cheaper to build skills internally than to hire them from the job market. With that in mind, businesses need to work out ways to help their employees find information relevant to their jobs: that may be:
- An internal learning platform
- Access to external sites
- Mentor programme (like ours!) and coaching networks
- Informal ‘interest’ groups
- Q&A boards between employees.
Thinking ‘inside the box’ may actually be the most effective solution when it comes to ‘in the flow of work’ training. You need to be able to deliver to training information to your teams in places that they go all the time, perhaps that as easy as their inbox!
The main point to take away is that Learning is a critical part of offering a H.E.A.L.T.H.Y careerTM, because your employees (and therefore your business) can’t blossom without it.
It is 6x cheaper to build skills internally than to hire them from the job market.
We work with businesses in a holistic and practical way to ensure that learning and development are integrated in a meaningful way into the daily workings of the company. By looking at productivity gains, retention improvement, increased employee well-ness and a surge in creativity we can measure the positive impact that this brings. Talk to us about it!
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