Woo-hoo, I’m on a roll! 3 blog posts in 3 days!

Ok, so what did I learn yesterday? I had a to-do list, and my goal was to focus on Single Focus (working on a single task at a time) as much as possible. That was my goal. I didn’t achieve it, but that’s ok.

Instead of working through my to-do list, I worked through my PLN (personal learning network). I may not have accomplished my work tasks right then which means I’ll have to make up that time. But what I did accomplish was re-energizing and refreshing my brain.

I attended an online video chat  (eLearnChat). In a wide-ranging conversation we moved from discussing what makes a good leader to why the L&D field is so resistant to being a part of the C Suite. We also chatted about why L&D degree programs don’t teach more business courses and consulting courses.

And then we got to the power of networking on Twitter. I’ve met almost everyone on the show and in the chat room in person…but that is only because I had first met them on Twitter.

After that show was over, and I was glancing at Twitter, I became part of a flash chat mob helping one of my Twitter friends work through how to teach a person to be a good coachee/mentee. Of course, we got into communication styles, feedback, personality traits, listening/questioning skills, and a host of other things. I learned a TON!

The key point is this: many managers would think that I was wasting time and goofing off. Thankfully, my manager understands that although I wasn’t specifically focused on my deliverables, everything I learned yesterday will make me a better employee. Just the fact that I was reflecting on how to receive feedback and how to move L&D departments to the business goals means that I’m going to incorporate those concepts into my deliverables.

Seriously, I really do incorporate things I learn into my courses. For example, I’m working on developing a course designed for sales people to help them with a new product. Because of everything I learned yesterday, I’m going to focus even more on the business goals of the company rather than “nice-to-know” information.

So to sum it up – I didn’t get my deliverables done, but I did get re-energized and I learned something new. So it was a good day. Sometimes you’ve just gotta take a break and stop in order to work and move forward.