The Enemies of Learning and Change

A young man approached Socrates the great philosopher and sage and pleaded that he accept him as a student. Socrates responded by asking the young man to walk with him along the bank of a river and then beckoned him to enter the water with him. Suddenly Socrates grasped the young man and forced his head under water. He struggled frantically to free himself but Socrates held him tightly and kept him submerged. Finally, the young man became exhausted so Socrates released him and then asked: When you thought you were drowning what one thing did you want most of all? Still gasping he exclaimed: I wanted air! Socrates smiled and said: When you want knowledge as much as you wanted air, then you will get it!

The lesson for us is that to learn and change we must be committed. How we approach learning inevitably shapes what we understand to be possible in dealing with the difficulties that confront us in life. Being a committed learner is central to developing what the Dalai Lama calls a flexible or pliant mode of thinking. How each of us operates as a learner inevitably shapes what we see to be possible when dealing with difficulties that may confront us.

One way to discern how we approach learning is to consider any unintentional blockages we may have. These enemies of learning often occur as our silent statements and judgements. They may include an inability to acknowledge our ignorance or admit that someone else may know. Or we may be unwilling to allow others the permission, or authority to teach us. Sometimes it is self-doubt about our ability to learn and change, or perhaps being trapped in a mood of anxiety, or of resignation, or of resentment. Knowing and acknowledging our enemies of learning is the first step in moving beyond them.

Another key step is to identify and develop our allies of learning. These include humility, which enables us to acknowledge our ignorance and to grant ourselves permission to learn from another. Courage, so we allow ourselves to be open to new, and sometimes difficult areas of learning or to different methods of learning. Also, developing a constructive frame of mind along with a way of being that incorporates curiosity, wonder, humour, lightness and playfulness. These attributes and a determination to persist with learning will serve us well.

Throughout time people have always had to adapt to changing circumstances. However, what we are faced with currently is not just change, but change at warp speed. We are now living with change that is unprecedented in both speed and frequency. If change is about learning, then faster and more frequent change is going to require faster and more frequent learning. If this is the case, then the question is: How? We may be able to learn new skills and strategies, but how long before these become obsolete and then what do we do?

It is imperative to move to another level of learning, deep or experiential learning, or what Peter Senge calls, second order learning. Why is it that we often find ourselves stuck when dealing with difficult circumstances and issues we can’t resolve? Why do the same issues continue to limit our effectiveness in our professional and personal lives? Typically, we might respond by saying: Because we don’t know how to deal with them. In other words we have not been successful in changing our behaviour so that we can get more satisfactory outcomes. Engaging in critical thinking and reflecting on why it is so will cause us to deepen our learning. I invite you to explore and identify any enemies and allies of learning you may have.

Examine your thinking and identify three enemies of learning that are evident and that you wish to release. Ask yourself: do I confuse knowing with having an opinion? Do I confuse knowing with thinking I’m right? Do I regard knowing as having information?

Then identify three allies of learning that you wish to reinforce and that will significantly impact your ability to learn and succeed in life. Ask yourself: Is my way of being such that I am open to learning? How can I be more open to learn from other people and events? Finally ask every day; what else is possible?

as posted by Lew Smallwood on his blog today...