A Case for Continuous Learning in the Workplace

There’s something about spring time…the days are longer and brighter. The songs of the birds in the morning are a little louder. People start to shed their heavy sweaters in favor of airy cottons in perky colors. All of those things put a little more bounce in your step as the winter (at least in Michigan) melts away.

But what about energizing your insides? What can you do to feel like you’ve opened the door to your mind and brushed the cobwebs out?

At Brightwing, we have an ABG Program (Always Be Growing) where employees collaborate with their managers and choose their own path to learning something new. It can be something traditional – like a class; something hands-on (like shadowing a co-worker to get a better understanding of their position and challenges); or something of a more personal nature – like getting a group of your co-workers to exercise together.

It is our philosophy that whatever you do to expand your mind and experiences will help you grow stronger as a person and improve the company as a whole. According to “How to Incorporate Career Development and Training with Work Requirements” published by SHRM (3/26/2010), focusing on the following will help determine appropriate training:

If you are in a position to offer growth opportunities to the people in your organization, make it an amazing experience for them. Help them see the advantages of learning something new.

And if you are the one who is given the chance to learn something new??? Don’t look for the easy way out! Challenge yourself to really do the analysis on where you want to be and how you are going to get there. Learning is all around you. In the words of Gandhi, “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”