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learning

To Avoid Dangerous Plateaus, Create a Culture of Fast Learning

by Guest Writter October 31, 2017

written by Guest Writter

Amanda Setili, President, Setili & Associates

When a company has just been through a period on intense change or innovation, it’s tempting to take a breather. Our instinct is to let things settle into a steady state. We reach a plateau of learning, and wish to enjoy the fruits of our labor.

This is dangerous.

Companies that settle in for a period of stability, a comfortable plateau, will stagnate. Knowledge calcifies. People begin to believe that the status quo is the only logical way to do business. When confronted with ideas for change, they mostly see obstacles.

When you are stationary, you are a sitting duck, easy to copy and vulnerable to commoditization. You quickly lose your edge.

To achieve quantum leaps in capability, your company must be able to leap to the next period of rapid learning and innovation—the next S-curve—the moment you’ve achieved each level of success, rather than allowing yourself to plateau. For this to happen you must create a culture of fast and continuous learning. Here are the benefits:

You will bring new value to your customers more frequently.
You will “get better at getting better,” strengthening the learning muscle throughout your entire organization.
You will be more prepared for whatever the future might bring, because you will have the skills to adapt.
You will create more differentiated product and service offerings. Competitors will be less able to copy you. You’ll be protected from commoditization, and you will enjoy higher margins.
Because you can adapt fluidly to changes in your business environment, such as changes in customer behavior, technology, and regulations, your offerings will be less likely to become obsolete, outdated, or irrelevant. (BlackBerry, Blockbuster, Kodak, and Nokia all led their industries for years, and have each become irrelevant or shrunk to a small fraction of their former size.)
You will find and realize new avenues for growth. When entering a new market or offering a new product, skills and knowledge are often a bottleneck to growth. In a fast-learning organization, however, employees across every function break through these barriers fast. As a result, you will increase your odds of success and will ramp up revenues faster.
You will be better able to attract top talent because people who are smart, creative, and courageous want to work for companies that try new things and have a robust outlook for growth.
Your work will be more fun and rewarding. You’ll certainly avoid boredom!
You will shape your own destiny as a company, and as individuals within that company.

Most great strategies are not arrived at through analysis, market research, and PowerPoint presentations. They are arrived at through trial and error. They are forged through constant experimentation, getting out there and seeing what customers are really willing to pay for, what the real value is to them, and how strong their loyalty really is (read more on how to gain extraordinary customer insight here). No amount of analysis can substitute for constant testing and learning in the real world.

About the Author

Amanda Setili is president of strategy consulting firm Setili & Associates. An internationally acclaimed expert on strategic agility®, she gives her clients—including Coca-Cola, Delta Air Lines, Equifax, The Home Depot, and UPS—unbiased and laser-clear advice on how to respond quickly and intelligently to their changing marketplace. She is the author of Fearless Growth: The New Rules to Stay Competitive, Foster Innovation, and Dominate Your Markets. To learn more, please visit www.setiliconsulting.com.

October 31, 2017 0 comment

Management

Too Busy to Learn?

by Cynthia Kay May 14, 2016

written by Cynthia Kay

If you are like most business owners you are inundated with pitches for training, workshops and seminars to attend. They tout things like:

Learn the 7 Proven Ways to Grow Your Sales

Create a Culture of Success and Overcome

Obstacles One Day to Greatness

Attend this one-day leadership institute to interact with other women business owners and learn from industry and business development experts

It’s not that I don’t want to learn new things, grow my business or network with interesting people but my days are packed. As a result, I am really picky about “learning opportunities.” Here are a few of the things I consider.

Relevant Content: Many of these sessions are so generic that I could learn more doing some research on my own. They have really catchy titles which are linked to business challenges or pain points but depth of information is often limited and not specific enough to be worth my time. I am looking for content that is current, as well as relevant to my position and industry. I also need information that is actionable. Can I put at least two or three of the things I learn into practice immediately? Often, the content of sessions is a thinly veiled sales presentation. The session is more about trying to sell me consulting, products or programs rather than content that was promised.

Time Invested: I am willing to spend the time but often the content is stretched out to fill a morning or afternoon when a two hour power packed session would be better. I want to know specifics about how the time will be allocated; lecture, activities, question and answer?

Credible Source or Organization: Too often individuals who present are “self-made” experts. By that I mean that they have developed a talk or seminar but their knowledge is not based upon substantive experience. I like to see someone who has actually rolled up their sleeves and done the work. Perhaps they owned a business or were in the C-Suite of a business. Do your homework to see if the presenter has the credentials and don’t rely on testimonials that are not directly attributed to a named individual and company. If the event is sponsored by a credible organization it is likely they have done the due diligence. Events sponsored by the Small Business Administration www.sba.gov are one place to start. Local colleges and universities also have a wide variety of programs focused on the business community. You might consider online resources. My company subscribes to www.lynda.com which has a huge library of programs and there are other services like this one which make learning convenient and affordable.

Henry Ford said, “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 80 or 20. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.”

We should never be too busy to learn but you do want to choose the best opportunities because they will help keep you and your business fresh.

May 14, 2016 0 comment

Self Governance

Why Don’t We Forget How to Ride Bikes?

by Dr. Linda Henman March 27, 2014

written by Dr. Linda Henman

Probably everyone reading this article can ride a bike. In my neighborhood riding a bike was a rite of passage, a means of transportation, and a symbol of freedom. People from all walks of life and economic backgrounds know how to ride bikes. You might call it a universal success story of learning. And once you know how to ride a bike, you never forget.

What explains the success of this nearly universal skill acquisition? And what can these answers teach us about other kinds of learning?

1. We start out expecting to fall and don’t allow fear to crush our hopes.

How often in business do we hesitate to take a risk, even when the rewards make themselves apparent? Because we fear failure? The loss of face? Rejection?

2. When we fell, we got up and got right back on that same bike.

No one had to teach us goal-setting, role clarity, or accountability. We knew what we had to do and realized no one else could do this for us. Our knees, and no one else’s, would be the ones to smart if we fell. We persisted in the face of adversity and learned something with every new attempt. We sought success, not perfection. We never blamed the bike nor insisted that the bike change. No one had to teach us a “can do” attitude. We believed in ourselves and didn’t seek approval; we sought success—the objective arbiter.

3. We got feedback from a trusted advisor who knew how to ride.

4. We didn’t question that person’s motive; we just listened and adjusted.

Imagine the changes we could make if we sought mentors and trusted advisors in our professional lives and found someone who could teach us the organizational equivalent to bike-riding.

5. Kids felt an obligation to teach other kids the skill.

I learned to ride on my girlfriend’s bike. Janet lent it to me and even recruited her own father to help me since mine was out of town on the critical launch day. We met our self-imposed deadline, even though I had neither my own equipment nor parent involved.

6. Once we mastered the art, we developed muscle memory and unconscious competence—the ability to do something without thinking about it.

Each day we execute countless skills because of muscle or mental memory. We don’t need an instruction manual to brush our teeth, make coffee, or take a shower. If we did, we’d never get out of the house. How many similar skills do we fail to master in our professional lives—skills that would streamline our lives and reduce our labor intensity?

Once mastered, bike-riding skills opened the doors for other possibilities. Learning to ride fast, take the turns, and balance others on your handle bars immediately followed the initial skill acquisition. No one developed an action plan or accountability chart. We knew what had to be done and did it every day it didn’t rain.

Even if you haven’t ridden in decades, every person reading this believes he or she could get on a bike right now and ride successfully. We have no fear of failure because we don’t expect any. Want to create a culture that is characterized by learning and innovation? I have a feeling you already know how.

March 27, 2014 0 comment

Self Governance

The Embarrassment of Improvement

by Chris Bijou May 8, 2013

written by Chris Bijou

Why is it so embarrassing to admit we need help?

Don’t we all need help every day of some kind?

We ask an executive assistant for help calling someone back…or setting an appointment.

We ask someone to make us lunch at Arby’s.

We ask the pilot to fly the plane and flight attendant for a drink.

We ask the dog to stop barking, the kids to play nicely and our projector to connect quickly to get the presentation started.

(*Side note: It’s funny we recognize this every day without realizing it. Those who walk around TELLING the world verses ASKING are known as: JERKS. Other words also apply. We need less Jerks.)

So, why is it, our first reaction is often to hide, when I find most people are more than willing (and actually feel valued) when asked.

Asking builds loyalty

Actually one of the most powerful loyalty builders is to ask for help. Try it next time you are trying to get through a gate keeper. Just use the phrase, “Could I get your help for a minute…” If you sincerely mean it, it works more often than not.

Inefficiency at its best

One of my sales VP’s and I were working a conference. A mature gentleman came up to the registration desk at the Marriott with a huge cart full of boxes. One was actually a typewriter. Out of curiosity our VP asked about the load.

The man: “This is my mobile email transcriber.”

VP: “Oh, so what does that mean?” He replied, trying to hold back a laugh.

The man: “Well, I travel every night and I load this in my car. My wife gets my emails from the office during the day. She re-types them up on the typewriter. Then she faxes them to me. I type a response and then fax them back. She types them back into the email so my company can get their reports.”

Seriously? How can we help this guy?

Gibberish

One of my other managers went to help out a company improve performance. He gave an assignment. Part was written and part was oral. One gentleman stood up in front of the group to give his answer. He held a printed paper but struggled to say anything meaningful. This man had been the lowest performer in the group for years, often going long lengths of time without closing anything. His deals were also sold incorrectly; he had huge customer issues and was costing the company 2 or 3x what they were paying him. What finally came out was that he didn’t know how to read or write. The paper was nearly gibberish. He hid in their system and went from company after company for 25 years. He always found someone to write for him by pretending he didn’t have time. How is that possible? Where’s the management? Where were his peers?

Text to Speech issues will get you fired

You know another group that consistently needs massive help today? It’s the 20 to 30 year olds. I’ve interviewed so many that can’t speak. Seriously, they can’t communicate. They hold a thought for a few sentences. Then when asked to explain further, it’s so choppy, so disconnected. They are speaking like they text. The communication flow is agonizing in many of these ultra-intelligent young people. This is a mental life skill practice that needs help now. It’s becoming epidemic in service, sales, contact centers and the typical internal meeting.

(*Side note: One thing I truly appreciate about many of the Gen Yers is that they will ask for help once they recognize the problem. They just aren’t getting any or don’t know where to turn.)

Want to go beyond the stress of hiding in your career? Build trust as you ask for help often so you don’t have a nuclear event that destroys you. People are almost never fired for asking for help. They are often fired when they are found out because they didn’t.

May 8, 2013 0 comment

learning

To Avoid Dangerous Plateaus, Create a Culture of Fast Learning

Amanda Setili, President, Setili & Associates

Too Busy to Learn?

Why Don’t We Forget How to Ride Bikes?

The Embarrassment of Improvement

About Nick Vaidya

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