Are you ready to learn?
“When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”
– Attributed to Siddhartha Guatama (Buddha)
As an educator there’s nothing more exhilarating than witnessing fully engaged audience members having ‘lightbulb moments’ throughout your training sessions.
On the flip side, few things are more disheartening than encountering participants who approach learning opportunities with closed minds, cynicism, and an unwillingness to embrace new possibilities.
When confronted with such cynicism I try to remind myself by paraphrasing Buddha, ‘The Teacher Arrives When The Student Is Ready’ and evidently, they are not ready. Well, not yet!
As a leadership facilitator, I always aim to prime the space, allowing for people to have many ‘ah-ha’ moments. When this happens, it’s like there is ‘magic in the room’! People discover incredibly valuable and transformational insights that will totally enhance and reshape the way that they lead.
But this transformation can only occur when we are in a state of true readiness.
For people who are ready to learn, they love discovering powerful and transformational ideas, concepts, and roadmaps on how to lead more effectively.
It’s amazing how often participants say, ‘This stuff is game changing – but where were you years ago when I really needed it’. My response in these situations is perhaps… you weren’t ready then.
But here you are – right now. Prepared, ready and in an optimal state to hear, learn and embrace these concepts and apply them back into your life.
Imagine your workplace, where everyone readies themselves for new learning opportunities by allowing the ‘Teacher To Arrive’.
Following are four actionable steps to prime yourself for readiness, cultivating a proactive learning mindset:
Love It
Open your heart, not just your mind. Be open and vulnerable enough to allow the power of learning new, deep insights. Take note to what’s resonating and why you are ‘ready’ at this moment to wholeheartedly embrace your newfound self-discoveries.
Challenge It
Go in with a healthy dose of scepticism, whilst maintaining an open yet non-cynical stance. Not all concepts will resonate and indeed you may disagree and be challenged with some new ways of thinking on offer. But dare to confront your preconceived notions, personal narratives and pre-existing beliefs.
Explore It
Become a ‘Learn It All’’, not a ‘Know It All’. Cultivate your unwavering curiosity. Enjoy embarking on a journey of exploration with things that pique your interest – often unveiling more revelations for even greater discoveries.
Action It
The critical element of nurturing a learning mindset is to be ready for action. The application will embed your shift in perspective and promote the behaviour that is required for true change.
At Proteus, we live by a Mantra: ‘If you really want to learn it, then teach it’. This means that whenever you find inspiration in a workshop, a TED Talk, a podcast, or a book, picture yourself teaching these insights to another person. The results will be a higher level of understanding, growth and future improvement for you, and your audience.
It will guarantee that you will be ‘Ready To Really Get It’ in a much deeper sense, as this new knowledge is shared across the workplace with people who are also Ready For The Teacher To Arrive.
Richard Dore
CEO – Proteus Leadership