When you learn, what does it feel like? Peaceful? Difficult? Joyful? Painful?
Learning feels like flying to me. Jumping off a cliff face to soar through the sky would take courage, even if you were born to fly.
Learning also takes courage.
Growing up, I was convinced that I wasn’t smart: memorization is not my gift. Our school system valued rote learning, which meant learning = memorizing.
But in undergrad, I discovered Sociology, Psychology, and Social Work, and my fire for learning was ignited. I was surprised that I loved learning! Learning shifted from a chore to a passion.
I now have a front-row seat to thousands of individuals and teams experiencing learning. I see resistance, defensiveness, anger, fragility, and tears. But mostly I see courage: curious questions, letting go of old ways of thinking, and new realizations when leaders see that with unearned advantage comes misunderstandings, missed noticings, and blind spots. Without courage, learning is only a cerebral exercise, that doesn't result in change, let alone shifts in power and increased equitable outcomes.
Learning about, applying, and receiving accountability and support in anti-oppression commitments isn't for the faint of heart. It takes courage.
These thoughts about learning mark our third conversation in a series of posts about the core values of Process Consultants: listening, helping, and learning. Previous posts dug into The Magic of Listening, and unpacked power dynamics in Helping Isn't About the Helper.
As process consultants “we work collaboratively to constantly learn together, equipping you to lead the process you have created for your organization. Through developing the knowledge and skills necessary to lead, the process becomes sustainable.” (Source: Matt Visser)
The Society for Process Consulting is the credentialing and community-building space for process consultants. It's a space to learn courageously.
In which spaces do you grow courageously?
Process consultants take a very unique approach. We recognize that you are the experts in your systems, even when stuck. We hold the critical role of listening to leaders and teams in order to co-design solutions that move your organization forward, to bring about the transformation that you seek. We value the courageous learning required to make sustainable, organizational change. And we employ the shared values of listening, helping, and learning, which are not sequential, are often iterative, and constantly work together throughout our relationship.
Learning – especially about ourselves, or organizations and systems, and our leadership – takes courage and bravery. It requires us to be curious and focus on “getting it right” instead of “being right” as Brene Brown demonstrates.
My hope is that we don’t lose sight of the joy of learning alone and together, that we support others to value time spent learning, relish in the joy it brings, highlight the ways it expands our minds, and celebrate the new possibilities and pathways it illuminates. Invest in it and prioritize it, especially when it takes courage.
What do you love learning about? How can you prioritize it?
Fellow leaders and learners, I wish you courage and resilience for the journey.
Peace to you,
What I’m Reading & Watching
Regarding This Topic:
- The Courage to Not Know by Brené Brown
- Transcript: Episode 101: Brené Brown on getting it right on Hello Monday with Jessi Hempel
Questions for Consideration
Regarding This Topic:
- How do you learn best? What ignites your passion for learning?
- With whom do you learn? If you lead a team, how do you incorporate learning?
- Consider the organizational cultures in which you interact. Is learning valued? Is it OK to not know something?
- When do you notice resistance to learning? When is it the hardest to be courageous? What's worked in the past for you to notice and overcome that resistance?
Leadership & Learning
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