Is it *really* a learning problem?

(Originally posted on LinkedIn, March 2024)

How often do you find your different worlds collide to teach you something new?

One of the things I do outside work is foster for a cat rescue. Frequently the old, battered, broken and traumatised ones who have had a suboptimal start in life. I've been known to have to deploy suede gauntlets.

I was dealing with my current incumbent yesterday, who has gone from "wanting to take your face off", in the words of the head of the rescue, when she first came in (due to previous trauma), to stomping happily all over me demanding attention. My mind wandered to the parallels with how organisations might treat people who, on the face of it, are "a problem".

And I can assure you: little Nancy did not make the progress she did through a training course on "How To Cat Properly"! We did for Nancy what we always do: work out the actual issue, unpick the likely root causes, and use a holistic approach to help support the cat, make a series of changes to their immediate environment if that proves to be part of the issue, and ultimately find a position for them that best suits their needs.

If you were asked to send someone on a "How To Employee Properly" course, what would you do?

And I'd love to hear of other instances of where your different worlds have provided insights into each other!

Lastly, two things: if this resonated, there's a great book, Range by David Epstein; you may want to check it out if you haven't already: Range - David Epstein