Moral Dilemma #12


I had an appointment for some specialist lab work to be done. Given they were once a prospective client, I knew a fair amount about this organization. For example, through some government changes, they lost $100,000++ in funding, so I knew that, as a business, they needed to look for ways to create more revenue.

One of these ways was to install flat-rate parking meters. Pay your $4.00 and get a parking pass that lasts all day.

What many people do, though, is before they drive out of the lot, they swing past where the pass purchase machine is and hand their all-day ticket to someone who is waiting to pay.

I know they need to increase revenue before more staff and services are affected by the government funding loss. But I don’t necessarily agree with the notion of having to pay $4.00 to park for about 15 minutes at a lab that I was sent to by my doctor. And then, add to the equation the fact that I don’t pay for the lab work because it is covered by my health insurance plan, I’m only out of pocket $4.00 so that really is not a big deal, is it?!

Do you drive out of the parking lot when the appointment is done or do you swing past the machine and hand your pass to someone so they don’t have to pay?

Read All About It

Newspaper articles and editorials are a perfect example of microlearning (the form of instructional design I’ve been using for over 15 years).

They (hopefully) inform us of the who, what, where, when, why and how of something in a format we can consume very quickly, often in less than 4 minutes. Regardless of the bias of the newspaper, legitimate articles and editorials can lead us to challenge our thinking, which is never a misuse of time.

Just this morning, a particular lead story in my local broadsheet newspaper was, to me, both informative and insightful. And I know it is excellent microlearning because, even though I put the paper down a long time ago, I’m still mulling over what I read, considering it’s points and even curious to potentially look in to a few different aspects of this point of view.

Action – Today, engage with something as simple as a newspaper article with an open-mind that says “this could be a really good learning opportunity for me”.

We create wonderful (and often overlooked) opportunities of enrichment and growth with something as simple as a newspaper article.

On Golf

Not being a golfer myself, an analogy using the game is not something I would usually think of. So when a client sent me a blog post by Jon Gordon called “Think Like A Golfer“, I was intrigued.

I don’t need to know how to play golf to see the point of his analogy.

Because it is the same point as mine – there is always something positive going on in your day that needs and deserves your focus and attention (like the balls you did get on the green easily rather than those you didn’t). And, in my opinion, there will always be more than just one success every day.

And the more ‘golf’ you play, the easier it becomes to see them!

“Four” (or more).

The Great Manager / Leader

leadership2

The eastern philosophy of leadership states:

“The wicked leader is he/she who the people despise.
The good leader is he/she who the people revere.
The great leader is he/she who
the people say ‘We did it ourselves.’” – Lao Tsu

What makes a great manager/leader?

There are many characteristics of great managers/leaders.  Among the top eight is that great managers/leaders:

  1. Help develop people;
  2. Create positive environments and care about the well-being of their team;
  3. Treat people with respect, honesty and trust;
  4. Are able to communicate;
  5. Are self-aware and can acknowledge weaknesses;
  6. Pick their battles wisely and set the tone for healthy debate;
  7. Are responsible, flexible, courageous, tenacious, and patient; and
  8. Display a combination of humility and presence.

In the above list of eight, please note the importance placed on ‘people skills’ – the ability to achieve great results by dealing with people in a friendly and effective way.

However, “people skills” is what most mangers/leaders admit they lack!

It is reported that the lack of ‘people skills’ is the number one reason that managers/leaders do not meet performance expectations.  According to the Institute for Executive Development (2010), under-performance is about the lack of interpersonal and leadership skills, such as the ability to build relationships, collaborate, and influence.  Furthermore, in a study reported in the Harvard Business Review (April 16, 2013), it reveals that most managers lack empathy and the ability to build people-to-people relationships.

Where can managers/leaders get ‘people skills’ training?

Great managers/leaders know that sharpening current skills and learning new ‘people skills’ will pay off.  There are several ‘people skills’ training and development options to consider:

1.    Formal Workplace Training – in this type of training, the presentation structure is similar to a ‘class’, where an ‘expert’ teaches you ‘people skills’. Research shows that this type of training is ineffective in that the content is soon forgotten (look up “Forgetting Curve” or “Ebbinghaus”).

2.    Informal Workplace Training – should you be motivated to learn ‘people skills’ you could do this on your own. Through a process of trial and error, your ‘people skills’ training can take place haphazardly during the day. However, this type of learning tends to be unpredictable and may prove to be frustrating.  Without a structure, you may revert to your old ways of doing business.

3.    Nonformal Workplace Training – this type of training is mid-way between formal and informal. It is intentional training and offers structured objectives, and support. In nonformal workplace training, planned activities are presented by a professional trainer. These activities are just enough information, presented just in time, and are just big enough for easy consumption (frequently referred to as microlearning).  The advantage of nonformal workplace training is that learning can occur at the initiative of the individual and as a by-product of more organized activities.

How can managers/leaders find a nonformal workplace trainer?

Nonformal workplace trainers are out there; however, it may take a little work to find the best match for you.  Here are some points to consider when looking for a nonformal workplace training company.

You will want a company that:

  • Is designed on the principles of microlearning; a type of training that deals with small learning chunks accompanied by short-term learning activities.
  • Focuses on material that reflects the way you live, work and learn.
  • Makes it possible for you to train anywhere at any time.
  • Offers support and encourages self-discovery.
  • Allows you to focus on information not already possessed.
  • Is self-paced, flexible and casual; and
  • Offers a concurrent program, one for you and one for your team; a program that fills the ‘people skills’ gap until you get your proficiency up to speed.

Improving the ‘people skills’ of managers/leaders tends to improve all the skills of the people they manage and lead!

Self-Efficacy and Microlearning

What is self-efficacy?

Albert Bandura is credited with advancing the concept of self-efficacy.  According to Bandura, self-efficacy is a person’s belief in his or her ability to successfully perform tasks and to reach goals.  Bandura described these beliefs as determinants of how people think, behave, and feel.

Self-efficacy begins to form in early childhood and continues to evolve throughout life.  According to Bandura, there are four major sources that if acknowledged will strengthen our sense of self-efficacy.

1.   Mastery:  Performing a task successfully.
2.    Modeling:  Witnessing other people successfully completing a task.
3.    Persuasion:  Receiving praise or encouragement.
4.    Responses:  Monitoring favourably our emotional reactions.

Essentially, as self-efficacy improves so does an individual’s ability to perform in such areas as collecting relevant information, engaging in complex thought processes, taking decisions, implementing a plan, and working under pressure.

What is microlearning?

Microlearning is a method of learning, whereby concepts and ideas are presented informally, in small chunks of information, over short periods of time, often at the point of need, and at the point of maximum receptiveness.

What does microlearning have to do with and self-efficacy?

Microlearning is made up of microcontent, small chunks of information, focusing on single definable ideas or topics.  Learning new information, engaging in self-improvement exercises, or focusing on changing behaviours can be broken into microcontent.  Self-efficacy is strengthened as people complete successfully these micro units of information.  Consecutively, as self-efficacy is strengthened, higher learning aspirations will be set.  Additionally; people will find and use better strategies to attain the desired outcome and respond more positively to negative feedback.  It is a winning combination for all.

“It is widely assumed that beliefs in personal determination of outcomes create a sense of efficacy and power, whereas beliefs that outcomes occur regardless of what one does result in apathy” (Albert Bandura)

Privacy Settings
We use cookies to enhance your experience while using our website. If you are using our Services via a browser you can restrict, block or remove cookies through your web browser settings. We also use content and scripts from third parties that may use tracking technologies. You can selectively provide your consent below to allow such third party embeds. For complete information about the cookies we use, data we collect and how we process them, please check our Privacy Policy
Youtube
Consent to display content from Youtube
Vimeo
Consent to display content from Vimeo
Google Maps
Consent to display content from Google
Save