In a TEDX talk by In Eduardo Briceño he talks about the Learning Zone and Performance zone. We might be under the impression that we are learning new things regularly in our life and work, but the concept of having a Learning Zone and Performance zone kind of makes us think about it.

We all know that there is an element of learning that happens sub consciously as part of work, in talking to people, reading a book, watching TED talks, a movie or documentary, browsing the internet and so on. But often we are unable to quantify it. we might learn and understand but then probably forget if we do not put it into practice. And the fact is there are many things we learn that we do not immediately put to practice. May be we should train ourselves to be conscious of our learning so we are reminded to practice it.

Blogging helps us solidify what we learn in life by sharing it with people

Blogging has been so good for me in that way. Because as much as possible I blog on new things I learn, books I read and so on. In that process I get to rethink what I learned.

Take notes the old fashion way, in a book, in a paper; when we read, when we listen to talks

You might also have seen people always carrying a note so they can write down pieces they hear or read. I have done that while reading. I keep a bookmark on which I can scribble and change the book mark once it is full. It works. At least for me. Lately I have found that I never return back to them… And I make notes on my phone…

Embrace change as change pushes us into our learning zone whether we like it or not

If we are entering a job we will know that we will be in the learning zone for a while. We learn about new systems, new people, a different culture. Our brain starts working fast and connecting and reconnecting the NEW with what we KNOW and in the process building new buckets of information for use. I am not saying we should keep changing jobs, but when we change our jobs we are forcibly pushed into our learning Zone. So why not think of ways to deliberately push ourselves into that zone every now and then, either at work or on the side.

Build a romance with something that we have no clue about. The learning we will need to do from scratch will help make our mind more crisp

One of my favorite is to engage in side projects and they can be related to work or something new. The beauty of side projects is they are completely voluntary and you will choose something where we love the time invested in it and not just the outcome. It is not more money that drives our side projects nor is it lack of it. It is just who we are and every side project is our own learning zone

Here is that talk I mentioned at the start of the Post

Categories: On Learning

Tags: Career, new things, On Learning, Work