As many practitioners will testify, it is after we have completed our formal education, professional training and certification that the real learning begins. The day to day experience of solving problems with live humans is when we discover the limits of our knowledge. It is also here that we find out that the reality is quite different to what is taught in class and the version that appears in (most) textbooks. Individuals, organisations and certifying bodies alike recognise this need to continue our learning once we are working in our respective field. The terms continuing education, continuing professional development and variations thereof will be familiar to most practitioners across disciplines (sadly it is not so well established in the coaching profession). What is less clear is how we might best tackle this ongoing quest and make good choices from the growing array of options with regards to content and the modes of delivery that are available to us.
NAVIGATING CONTINUING EDUCATION…
The quest to continue to learn and develop is a somewhat solitary pursuit. For most professionals it falls to us to find and fund these opportunities to be exposed to different ideas, voices and methods. Beyond budgetary restrictions, working environments vary a great deal in the extent to which they support these endeavours. More evolved organisations recognise the value for all parties and so are highly supportive, including providing learning opportunities ‘in house’. Other environments are less conducive to knowledge sharing and professional development.
A notable example is working in the bubble of professional sport. I was in my fourth season in professional rugby before I discovered the acronym ‘CPD’ and learned what it stood for (continuing professional development, it turns out). Ironically this revelation occurred at a rare knowledge sharing event that brought together the respective performance staff from each of the professional teams, organised by England Rugby.
Those who work in professional sports in different parts of the world will testify that teams are highly guarded and averse to sharing information that might confer a competitive advantage. Whilst this reticence is understandable, it also serves to restrict exposure to ideas and different ways of thinking for those within the organisation. Recognising this, more enlightened organisations have begun to invest in personnel and resources to better provide for the continuing education and professional development of their staff. A notable mention here goes to Oklahoma City Thunder who recently recruited for the role of Director of Learning and Development to support these ongoing efforts within their organisation. Some professional teams will also periodically engage consultants and outside speakers to provide in-house workshops and learning opportunities for their staff.
When it comes to our independent efforts to continue our learning, we are faced with a growing array of options ranging from formal learning (such as conferences) to informal knowledge sharing and peer-learning. It is interesting to note how and where coaches and practitioners engage in their own learning and what they find most valuable. During a recent gathering of over a hundred seasoned practitioners the attendees were polled on this question and a clear majority (62%) favoured informal learning as their preferred method of professional development. Of the remainder, 29% preferred what was termed ‘non-formal’ delivery (workshops and clinics), whereas only 9% preferred formal learning such as conferences and courses.
THE FUTURE OF CONFERENCES…
Conferences are described as formal learning in the sense that they take a very conventional didactic approach. In other words, the speaker is the nominal authority on the topic they are presenting on and the audience is essentially there to be talked at. There is very limited exchange in views between delegates and the presenter, beyond the token five minutes for questions at the end of a talk.
A common reflection from those who attend conferences is that the real value is in the interactions that occur in between the sessions. Conferences bring a large number of people from different regions and parts of the world together in the same space. Beyond networking opportunities this also provides the opportunity to meet and interact with peers who work in different environments as well as authorities in related fields.
Recent events have of course forced an abrupt shift to online delivery. There are clear logistical advantages to online events and this certainly reduces the cost, not least removing the cost of travel and accommodation. However, as we have identified, remote delivery also removes the elements of networking and in-person interaction that is one of the richer parts of the conference experience.
WORKSHOPS AND CLINICS…
Arguably there are a couple of different reasons for the relative popularity (albeit a distant second place in the recent coaches’ poll) of ‘nonformal’ learning delivery in the form of workshops. A notable benefit is the opportunity for hands-on practical learning, in addition to whatever theory is presented.
Another likely reason is the greater scope for dialogue with the individual delivering the content. Whilst there are similarities to conference presentations in that the instructor or facilitator leading the session is the de facto authority on the topic, there is far greater opportunity to ask questions and have some back and forth to get clarity (and perhaps challenge what is being said or demonstrated).
Once again, circumstances over recent months have been a major barrier to hosting these in-person events (I had to postpone three events in March and April), prompting a switch to online events. Online delivery clearly does not lend itself to delivering the practical component and providing hands-on learning in the same way. Likewise, whilst there is some opportunity to ask the facilitator questions, there is generally less back and forth and the online medium also removes the element of peer-learning during the event.
Webinars are of course now well established; however, arguably the biggest under explored opportunity with this medium is providing a forum to interact with the speaker, rather than simply presenting content. Perhaps with the growing shift to remote learning this switch might start to occur. Certainly there was an explosion of events hosted via Zoom and other online media during the recent lockdown, which will likely serve as a catalyst for the growth and evolution of this type of event.
INDEPENDENT STUDY…
Beyond periodically attending events (either in person or online), continuing to learn requires us to be an autodidact. The quality of our self-directed learning does however depend on our ability to access relevant content.
There are a burgeoning number of online courses to enroll on and a host of books available for purchase, albeit these vary widely both in terms of cost and quality of the content. Peer-reviewed publications have a somewhat higher level of quality control, for those who are fortunate enough to be have access to journals at least; otherwise, many journal articles are behind a paywall (and the cost to access single articles is often exorbitant). That said, those who are willing to search can still find free to access to a great deal of content.
Indeed aside from cost, one of the bigger challenges for self-directed study in the Information Age is being able to filter and select good quality content from the seas of information we have at our fingertips. Some online courses are staring to include the facility to interact with the rest of the cohort, but for the most part the process of critically evaluating the content is left to the individual.
Likewise the reflection that is necessary to derive meaning and apply the relevant parts to our own context is generally also something that must be undertaken independently, which is a shame as this process benefits a great deal from having somebody to help interpret the information and gain real understanding…
MENTORSHIP AND PEER-LEARNING…
As noted earlier, by far the most popular channel for continuing education among experienced practitioners is informal learning, in the form of conversations with colleagues and peers in the field. Mentoring is certainly one of the more important avenues to support professional development, particularly for early career professionals. Having access to quality mentorship with one or more trusted individuals in the field can provide enormous value in a variety of different ways.
Returning to a previous point, a knowledgeable mentor can serve as a filter to help the learner to select the most relevant information sources and access high quality content. They can similarly assist with interpreting the content by offering a different perspective and sharing their knowledge of the source to help the learner to critique what is presented, highlight the key findings and draw their own conclusions. Having an experienced sounding board can similarly help a great deal in relating the information to a real world context in order to derive meaning and understand the practical application. Finally, from a professional standpoint, a mentor can also serve as a trusted confidante to provide career guidance as well as supporting applications and unlocking new opportunities.
Clearly there is a time commitment involved with providing mentorship, and given the evident value provided to the mentee it is important that there is value provided in both directions. The question of value exchange has become topical given the recent growth of paid mentorship as a professional service for early career coaches and practitioners. From my own point of view I always derive value from the experience of mentoring others. Nevertheless I absolutely recognise the need for there to be reciprocity in the mentoring arrangement.
Sadly there are what my friend and colleague terms ‘psychic vampires’ out there who are happy to make demands on your time and expertise without any apparent willingness to give back in any way, or indeed express any genuine appreciation. Perhaps requiring individuals to pay for the privilege might go some way to avoiding this scenario. Equally I understand the concerns raised that requiring others to pay for the service can make the arrangement somewhat transactional, which in a sense goes against the very ethos of mentorship. No doubt this debate will continue…
Of course mentoring comes in many forms. It does not necessarily have to be a hierarchical relationship or a master and apprentice scenario. Peer-mentoring is an often overlooked solution. As there is greater equality both in terms of professional standing and experience this scenario lends itself to a reciprocal relationship and both parties are able to benefit from having an external perspective to support their learning and professional development.
Peer-mentoring also opens up a host of different opportunities to gain perspectives from different environments and domains. I have enjoyed and derived a great deal of value from cross-discipline peer-mentoring relationships with colleagues in related fields. There is even the possibility of peer-mentoring with individuals in entirely different fields; there are often parallels and lessons to be learned from professionals in other domains (which was a major theme of the latest book).
CREATING A LEARNING COMMUNITY…
An extension of the peer mentoring approach involves bringing a group of professionals together to create a learning community to serve as a forum for sharing ideas and perspectives. In essence this form of informal learning is a scaled up version of mentorship that provides additional benefits, including a host of different perspectives and experiences. It also seems less of a daunting commitment and so avoids many of the barriers to entry that can be present with the more conventional one-to-one mentoring arrangement.
As with other forms of peer-mentoring, everybody brings experience and expertise, so each member of the group has something to contribute. This in itself creates a sense of equality in general and in terms of the value provided to all parties. Creating a sense of shared ownership nonetheless remains important; one mechanism that I have employed to help this is having a rotating chair, so that members of the group take turns setting the agenda and leading the meeting.
Nevertheless, groups of this type do require some curation. The most straightforward way I have found to build these communities is to begin with a nucleus of hand-picked individuals and then grow the community over time with the help of the group. From the outset it is crucial to be selective when inviting prospective members. Whilst the strength of any learning community lies in its diversity of thought, perspectives and experiences, it is equally critical to preserve the desired learning culture and dynamics of the group.
To use the example of a group that I recently brought together locally, I had some very clear exclusion criteria! When assembling the nucleus of the group I specifically approached individuals who brought a wealth of experience from different environments, but equally importantly there were some specific character traits that served as the basis for selection. Aside from a sense of curiosity and openness to learning, humility was a huge factor - and borrowing from the All Blacks I had a clear ‘no d**kheads’ policy. I needed to be confident with each member of the group that they would be willing to park their ego at the door, not seek to dominate every discussion and not seek to exploit the community to serve their own agenda.
Once the nucleus was gathered, each member of the core group was then invited to propose up to two individuals to invite from their own network. Once established, new members of the extended group were in turn invited to propose one person. In each instance, the inclusion and exclusion criteria were however made very clear. It was also made explicit that having vouched for a particular individual the existing group member would subsequently be held responsible for the new person’s actions! So far this approach has proved successful…
IN CLOSING…
The commitment to learning and becoming better as professional involves undertaking to create opportunities to be exposed to different ideas and perspectives. Engaging one or more mentors, either in the conventional sense or in the form of a peer-mentoring relationship, greatly facilitates this process. An extension or scaled version of this is either creating or securing entry to a learning community, either in the local region or an online learning community.
Equally, whilst professional development and continuing education works best when it is a collaborative effort, as with any form of collaboration the success is reliant on doing the work independently in between. Independent learning and self-reflection remain integral to not only improving our knowledge and understanding but also developing our professional judgement.
Reflective practice ultimately means troubling ourselves with difficult questions. As part of this we should periodically undertake an in-depth audit of our way of working as a whole to critically examine both our reasoning process and how we practice. This means dealing with the attendant uncertainty and periodic anxieties! On the one hand it is crucial to be decisive and act with conviction in the moment; however, we should then follow this with regular after action reviews to evaluate our process and actions with some degree of objectivity. To come full circle, enlisting others to support this review and reflection process greatly assists with identifying the key lessons and also providing some assurance that we are on the right track.
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