Why Mentoring? Why Now?

Today (Tuesday 29th July 205), I posted an announcement on the social media channels #LinkedIn, #facebook and #Instagram advising my professional community that, at this late stage of my career, I am now offering a professional mentoring service. The posts looked like this... 

And my social media feeds blew up! 

I have been overwhelmed with the responses. In LinkedIn alone, 100+ 'likes', 49 comments and endorsements and 11 reposts; in facebook, 19 likes and 15 comments; and in Instagram, 17 likes and 7 comments - all favourable, supportive, affirming and just downright humbling. I've never had such positive reaction to anything I've posted before. 

It seems like I've hit on a professional service offering that has resonated with many. 

Indeed, I've already had several enquiries and am lining up exploratory calls with some people to see if there's a potential fit and to consider options for entering into a mentor/mentee relationship with each other. I am very excited about all of this. 

But, to my initial question: Why mentoring? Why now? 

Because I'm not done yet. Yes, I'm 'getting on a bit' now, but everything still seems to be working (don't ask), although I no longer have the stamina for commuting, nor for working 5 days a week either, thank you.

My career has spanned almost 50 years, over 35 of them in Learning and Development, but I've got even more years of lived work experience dating back to 1976 when I left drama school in Edinburgh (See my profile at the top of this blog page). 

And now, as I approach my 70th Birthday in December, it's time to slow down, look up, and focus on what I seem to have done best all through my career - support individuals and help connect them with others on their workplace journeys. 

I want to acknowledge all the brilliant, talented and generous people I have worked or interacted with professionally throughout this time, many of whom have become good friends and many of whom I have looked up to - and still do - as leaders and mentors in their own right. You know who you are. 

So for now, onwards! Work to do. People to help.

I’ll keep you posted.

Re-Ignition

Tomorrow (Wednesday 10th May 2017) is Day #1 of the CIPD Learning and Development Show at Olympia in London, one of the premier L&D events in my annual calendar, alongside the LPI's LearningLive in September and the L&SG's Learning Technologies Conference in February and June. These are my three 'go-to' events, sometimes as a speaker or session chair, and sometimes just as an attendee.

Each show has its different high points and at this year's CIPD L&D Show, mine is going to be being one of the speakers in the Ignite Lab at 16:45 in the Digital Learning area of the Exhibition. In numerical terms, there are 9 speakers, each with 5 minutes to talk, supported by 20 slides, auto-timed for 15 seconds each. As if that is not a challenge in itself, to make things just a little more challenging, I'm first up!

This will be only my third ever Ignite presentation, having delivered my first at the CIPD Annual Conference in Manchester some three years ago. I was on stage with some big hitters - Andy Lancaster, Perry Timms and Paul Taylor - and anyone who was there may remember my 'paper blizzard' as I referred to my prompt notes and discarded them willy-nilly on the floor after each slide. In truth, that represented my under-rehearsed approach and an element of panic on my part. But at least it gave my fellow presenters and others in the room a good laugh. I think the topic was well received as well, if slightly overshadowed by flying postcards.

I recently delivered another ignite session at the Sussex CIPD Branch meeting in March, and had taken the time to rehearse and tweak (and repeat several times) beforehand. I blogged about that, and what I learned, here.

Yesterday, there was a flurry of tweets and conversation on Twitter amongst some of my fellow Ignite Presenters for tomorrow's session, when the list - and running order - was shared with us. The main theme was nervousness about the format and our individual concerns around being able to keep up with the auto-timed slides (there is no 'Pause' button once you've started!). The fear of it not quite working out in front of an audience. I share that nervousness, and it got me thinking about the pressure that we put ourselves under when we accept and undertake things like this.

Public speaking remains one of the biggest fears for many people, irrespective of their professional domain. We beat ourselves up thinking such thoughts as "Who wants to listen to what I've got to say anyway?", "The others will be so much better than me", "What if I dry up?", and, especially in the case of doing an Ignite session, "What do I do if I can't fit it all in and I run out of time?". I suspect there may be a restless night ahead for some of my colleagues, and indeed, myself.

However, in this Mental Health Awareness Week, it strikes me that this is as nothing to what many with mental health problems must experience daily, as 'panic attacks' or self-loathing 'voices' which disturb or disable their everyday functioning.

We will deliver our sessions and feel great that we've done it. We will (hopefully) receive some positive feedback and we will no doubt indulge in some self-congratulation and mutual back-slapping. But then, we are a little community, we have shared our anxieties, our fears, our feelings in advance, during and after our sessions. We will have been witnessed. No-one will die and we will all get on with our lives.

Those with Mental Health issues may not have those luxuries, that community, those shared discussions, that recognition. They may well not be presenting any outward signs of distress, may even be seen as high-functioning, particularly in a professional or work-related context. Remember that everyone is fighting their own battles that you know nothing about. Be kind.

And that applies to yourself as much as you should apply it to others. And not just tomorrow either.

Enjoy the show!

Igniting Conversations

Yesterday (Tuesday 14th March), I presented an Ignite Talk to the CIPD Sussex Branch L&D Forum at Brighton & Hove City College, at the invitation of Janet Webb, of Janet Webb Consulting (@ JWebbConsulting), who was facilitating the event.

After the opening half-hour 'network and grab-a-sandwich' bit, a full evening programme on the future of L&D, using new formats, kicked off with 'Open Space' discussions around four provocative statement/questions:

• "For learning events, content is more important than delivery."
• "Do coaching and mentoring programmes deliver value for money?"
• "What is the future role of L & OD?"
• "Classroom based learning is now largely irrelevant."

Facilitated by Janet, our mixed group of some 20 participants, exercising the 'rule of two feet' (move on if and when you have had enough of any of the group conversations) shared their views and opinions and then came together to review the session.

I was a little surprised to hear one to two people question the value of the exercise without predefined 'outcomes', and concerns expressed about how we were supposed to remember/retain any personal learning points. This led to a useful discussion about how to develop and maintain reflective practice as part of our toolkit, with references made to blogging as being helpful here.

Incidentally, it's always good to see the Twitter community show up from outside the room in these discussions, as Janet tweeted out the questions and a couple of tweeps commented in. As it happens, only a few of us in the room last night are regular tweeters, so we encouraged the room attendees to consider joining in to the regular Friday morning #LDInsight tweetchat and I'm looking forward to seeing who shows up on Friday.

All too soon, it was my turn to share my Ignite talk. For those who don't know, Ignite is an internationally-recognised templated speaking format, designed to encourage speakers to share topics and ideas quickly and concisely, using 20 slides, auto-timed to display for 15 seconds each, which makes an Ignite talk just 5 minutes!

This was to be my second-ever attempt at delivering an Ignite talk; the first being at the CIPD Annual Conference in Manchester in 2015, as part of Andy Lancaster's first "Ignite Lab". Those of you who were 'fortunate' enough to have attended that session might just remember the paper trail I left all over the stage, reflecting the fact that I was under-rehearsed and under-confident on that occasion - but people (well, Sarah Harvey anyway) still remember my performance, if not the content, two years later.

In contrast, for last night's event, I was very well-rehearsed, having learned my lesson in 2015! I spent most of the day practicing, editing, practicing, and repeating, to get the script, the flow and the timing as smooth as I could, whilst still delivering a coherent and well-paced talk - no easy task, believe me!

And it's just as well that I did, because when it came to loading my slide deck and switching to 'presentation' mode, I was unable to see my notes on my own screen and had to rely only on what the audience could see on the big screen. (And no, I hadn't thought to print them out as a fall-back!) Janet was delighted! "That'll make it look even more spontaneous and authentic" were her last words to me as she introduced me to the room...!

Well, I got away with it. Having rehearsed it so often, I was only caught out by one slide appearing where my mind went blank and I had absolutely no idea what I was meant to say at that point. I managed something vaguely relevant and that got me back on track. And then, it was over. And the audience grilling began...!

What's an Ignite talk for? Why would you do it? Where does it fit? When would you do it?  Does it have to be 15 seconds per slide? Is this the future of learning - rapid fire content delivery? 

So here are some of my reflections and learning points that emerged out of the Ignite Talk exercise and the discussion afterwards:

• Be clear what your message or idea is
• Be sure that an Ignite Talk is the appropriate medium to share the story, and that it's appropriate for your audience
• Be brief / Be clear / Be concise - it's not a race to the finish line
• Rehearse, tweak, rehearse, tweak, repeat, repeat, repeat...
• Be prepared to discuss afterwards
• Prepare and share support material/handouts etc to add context and detail which couldn't be covered in the 5 minute talk
• Consider if and where Ignite Talks might fit into a larger programme or event - Setup? Opposing viewpoints? Summary and Calls to Action?
• Think of Ignite Talks as the presentational equivalent of a 5-minute tweet or indeed, a series of 20 15-second tweets. If you can't say/illustrate your story or message within that framework, it may not be the right tool for the job - on that occasion.

The final session of the evening was facilitated by Sarah Harvey (@ SavvySarahSPM), who is also the Chair of the CIPD Sussex Branch, wherein we explored the 'Goldfish Bowl' technique of observed conversation, in this case a manager/team meeting, whereby the participants sit in the middle of a larger circle of observers and have their conversation. Particular character attributes are assigned to each participant, which they are required to enact during the discussion, whilst the observers are told to look specifically for Non-Verbal Communication, Tone of Voice, Words Used and Presence.

A really enjoyable session and much respect to the four volunteers who stepped into the circle and played their parts so convincingly. Again, a valuable discussion followed regarding the usefulness of this technique, the case for using professional actors and the need for cultural understanding and fit in deploying it back in the workplace.

Thanks to Janet and Sarah for keeping us on track and on time, and for a very engaging and participative session that got us walking, talking, sharing and learning together. And of course, this blog is my reflective work, which I will refer back to when I am doing another Ignite Talk, at this year's CIPD L&D Show 'Ignite Lab' on Wednesday 10th May. Come along and see a few talks so you can get a broader idea of their impact and usefulness.

Along for the Ride

It was the annual Learning and Skills Group 'Learning Technologies' Conference (#LT17uk) at Olympia in London last week, and I had the privilege of chairing a couple of sessions in the conference. I also made time to catch up with a lot of my friends and professional network (my PLN) in the breaks and downstairs in the Exhibition.

Once again, I was reminded how things have and are changing - and how quickly - in the world of learning. In the echo chamber of social media, those of 'us' who 'get it' often comment (sometimes rather smugly) how, if only 'the rest of them' would wake up, we would transform learning in business and become the trusted partner at the C-Suite table.

'We', of course, are in the minority and the reality for many in the profession and on the supply side is much more complex - budgets, policy, practice, development time, resources, etc - and for many, that's the value of attending these conferences and exhibitions; to get a sense of good (not 'Best') practice, learn from others' experiences, make connections and have some professional 'me' time to reflect and refresh.

After the conference on Thursday evening, I attended the LPI 'Learning Awards 2017' at the Dorchester Hotel in London. I was a judge for a couple of the categories back in November last year, and I was delighted to be there to witness the winners collect their awards and receive the recognition of their peers and the rest of the industry for their achievements. I was reminded that good practice happens and is happening throughout our profession, and that much of it does not rely on technology, but instead relies on on creativity, commitment and a clear vision of outcome and impact. Technology may well enhance the process, but it's not always the cornerstone of success.

That said, my experience at the LT Conference & Exhibition reinforced my view that, whilst technology is a game changer for L&D, we need not be at the bleeding edge to realise its benefits and apply them. Leveraging what you've got is a good way to start. You've probably already got the tech you need to start to make a difference, but maybe just haven't thought creatively enough about how you could apply it for your colleagues' developmental benefit.

Have you thought about asking them? Because they are already using - or are being impacted by - tech in real life, at home, in their leisure activities, even (Gasp!) under the radar at work.

In Donald Clark (@ DonaldClark) and Toby Simpson (@ pretzelsnake)'s session at LT17uk we discussed Artificial Intelligence. Both speakers reminded us that AI is not some future dystopia about robots coming to take over our jobs, but rather that algorithms are already working away in our backgrounds and making dispassionate judgements on what we need, when we need it and how to provide it. Data is gathered from our Goggle searches, Netflix selections, YouTube watches, Amazon purchases, etc) and is then translated into tailored responses and suggestions. Think Siri and Alexa, and notice how relevant to your query or facebook activity the responses and advertising your subsequently receive really are. Many of our learners are using these tools for themselves and in so doing, now have experience, and expectations, of learning being available to them in similar, contextualised and just-in-time manner. 

What they don't want or need is a L&D-centric, push-provided, command & control solution.

The consumerisation of tech is accelerating this change, I'd suggest, putting the learner as consumer in the driving seat. We are still in the vehicle, but as trusted navigator; curating, adapting and contextualising the route for them. We need to ensure that our own knowledge is sufficient to allow us to be able to suggest the most appropriate and relevant approaches and tools for the journey. If we don't, we will find ourselves standing at the roadside, desperately trying to hitch a lift as they zoom past us towards their different, diverse destinations. 

I'll have something to add about the 'research' that Rachel Burnham (@ BurnhamLandD) and I are jointly conducting into Virtual Reality (VR), to understand it's relevance to and impact on learning, and our experiences trying it out at Learning Technologies and elsewhere, in a later blog.

It's Permissable

Last week, I attended the excellent two day 'LearningLive' conference in London, hosted by the Learning and Performance Institute - great sessions, great speakers (especially the two - yes TWO - keynotes, Elliot Masie and Richard Wiseman), great company, conversations, dinner and learning. 

If you were an attendee yourself or if follow me or any of my PLN (Personal Learning Network) on Twitter and other social media you may have noticed - or indeed, contributed to - a lot of the resulting online sharing and comment. I won't re-present that stuff to you here. If you wish to access a comprehensive curation of the event, then follow this link to David Kelly's excellent blog site The 2016 Learning Live Backchannel: Curated Resources #LearningLive

No, what I wanted to talk about was something that's been very much part of my live learning (see what I did there?) recently, and was a recurring theme in many of the discussions in and out of the conference sessions - that of 'permission'. Who thinks they need it, and from whom? For what? Why do so many of us think that we need permission to do stuff or to do stuff differently? Is it the way we've been brought up? Educated? Trained? Inducted? Managed? And what would happen if we didn't seek permission, but went ahead anyway and sought forgiveness afterwards? What's the worst the could happen? Could we even be using not having permission as an excuse not to try, but to play it safe?

Many conversations at the conference revolved around changing our approach to learning and development, by applying technology, by developing new skills and by changing the relationships between the traditional provider/methodologies and the emerging self-aware, self-managing learner. For me, a  recurring and resonant theme throughout was about what permissions we feel we need to have to be able to choose and follow the paths of change.

I've been giving these questions a lot of thought recently, as I have allowed myself to start considering the possibility of no longer pursuing full - albeit self - employment, and perhaps even semi-retiring. Regular readers and other friends will be aware of my turbulent year last year, with heart surgery, followed by redundancy and my subsequent setting up of an independent L&D/Learning Technologies consultancy.  To cut a long story short, I found that my heart wasn't in it, that I didn't feel able to put in the hard work that was required to make a viable and growing business of it, but that I had to press on, despite how I felt.  But I also felt that I needed permission to take the decision to slow down, to take my pensions, and to try other things - permission from my wife, my children, my friends, my peers, ex-colleagues, PLN, clients and other professional associations.

Well guess what? They all - to a person - gave me their blessing, their permission, to follow my heart. And in opening myself up to sharing my thinking about a future without the pressure to 'do stuff' and 'make money', it turns out the only individual who's permission was being withheld was myself. It was my own perceptions of self-worth, credibility, usefulness which was holding me back. I am so grateful to my family, but also to my friends and PLN for the conversations we have had recently online and face to face at last week's conference. I know it's going to be OK; different, but OK.

Always needing permission to do stuff, or to stop doing stuff, or to do stuff differently stifles enthusiasm and creativity. But working out loud, sharing ideas and exploring possibilities, looking up and asking 'what if...?' opens up a world of opportunities. Maybe Learning & Development should give itself permission to at least try to do that.

P.S: I'm not burning all my bridges tho'. I continue to be fascinated by L&D, LearnTech and social media, just not to the exclusion of everything else. I'll still turn up at the tweetchats, the conferences and the unconferences. I'll still be mouthing off in social media. I may be doing more writing. I'm continuing to work with my existing clients and am open to any other opportunities which emerge.

Why Tweetchat?

Friday's @LndConnect-hosted #LDInsight Tweetchat on Twitter was framed around the question "What’s the toughest thing about being in L&D?"

Does that first sentence mean anything to you? Or am I talking goobledygook?

Do you use Twitter? Do you know what a Tweetchat is? Do you know what I'm talking about when I refer to @LnDconnect or what these funny @ and # symbols actually mean?

For some people it will indeed be gobbledygook; they are not interested in, and do not use, Twitter, and they will move on without concern. Others may well be aware of Twitter, but may use it in it's more 'social media' sense, connecting informally around people and topics of general interest. Others may use Twitter in a professional capacity, to listen to and learn from other people in their field. And others will use Twitter as an extended Personal Learning Network, with whom they actively engage, discuss, share and learn from.

In each of the above cases, the numbers involved get correspondingly smaller with each group, until finally, we arrive at the participants in the regular (every Friday morning) @LndConnect-hosted #LDInsight Tweetchat. It's a loosely moderated conversation on Learning and Organisational Development topics, which is grouped by the use of the #LDinsight hashtag into a stream which keeps the interactions, comments, questions etc nicely gathered together for ease of discursive flow. 

But there aren't that many people who regularly join in. A recurring theme recently has been about bringing more views and opinions into these conversations, both from within the L&D/OD community itself and from outside - the 'customer voice', if you will. Two conversational streams emerged today - one challenging why non-L&D/OD people would be interested in the first place, and the other about why more L&D/OD people don't show up in this chat, never mind why 'outsiders' don't.

In my experience, some L&Drs find the very idea of a Tweetchat intimidating and/or they lacked confidence of 'public speaking' in an internet-wide forum, whilst others feel that they have nothing to say or contribute to the discussion. We did a quick self-examination of the timeline to check for jargon, of which, reassuringly, there was little (although some later tweets today have cautioned that one profession's jargon may mean something completely different in someone else's!).

But if the future of learning is digital, collective and social, as we are so often told, and are trying to move ourselves towards, why are so many in the profession so reluctant to show up in such an informal and rewarding space? Is it down to timing of the chat? (clashes with the commute); is it fear of saying the 'wrong' thing? (what exactly is the 'right' thing anyway?); is it unfamiliarity with the medium/channel (bet they use facebook in their private life); is it corporate policy? (thou shalt not use social media); is it concern about being seen and engaged with by peers and customers? (can't afford to be seen not to have all the answers, gotta preserve the mystique); is it reluctance to change thinking and practice? Or are Tweetchats just seen as self-congratulatory/self-sympathising chatter for the self-elected 'elite' in the profession?

Those same questions could be asked about why non-L&D/OD people don't join in L&D Tweetchats. And, as importantly, why we don't involve ourselves in other discipline/professions' tweetchats; questions about perceived relevance, value and availability perhaps? What do you think?

I'd suggest that the very fact we felt able to think about how we could engage a wider church, in the chat itself, speaks volumes.  I'd encourage everyone to dip their toes in the water. If you're in L&D/OD, try out #DLinsight (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ldinsight) every Friday morning between 08:00-09:00UK, #Chat2Lrn (https://twitter.com/chat2lrn?lang=en-gb) or #lrnchat (https://twitter.com/lrnchat?lang=en-gb), or search the Internet for other unrelated, but relevant to you, topics of interest Tweetchats. There's rich learning to be had in all these spaces, folks.

And if I can help you find your way through the social media clutter, don't hesitate to get in touch.

New Normal (2)

And so it begins...

Today is Monday the 4th of January 2016, the first day of my 'new normal' working life. Regular readers of my blogs will be aware of the challenging year 2015 was for me and my family, a milestone year of fantastic highs and significant lows. That is now behind me and I will refer to it no more.

2016 is the year where I choose what I want to work on, how I want to work on it, and with whom. I have over 30 years' experience in Learning and Development, as a business owner and in the public and the commercial sectors. I have succeeded in my various roles and responsibilities by learning as I went along, stepping up into hitherto unknown territories, relying on my own quick study and the wisdom of my colleagues and co-workers, getting whatever training was necessary - and then getting on with the job, the best learning technique of them all.

My proposition is simple. I believe that no-one goes to work to have a miserable time and that, with the right support and encouragement, we can all have fulfilling, purposeful working experiences which benefit us, our colleagues, our customers, our families and the wider community in which we all live and operate. I believe that adult to adult dialogue and conversations between and amongst colleagues and facilitators is the way to achieve this - be it peer to peer, manager to colleague, or 'learner' to 'trainer/consultant'. People make mistakes. I've made mistakes. The big mistake would be to make that mistake again because we didn't learn from it the first time round. So listen. Don't judge (everyone is fighting their own battles that you know nothing about).

And now I'm choosing to step into a #newnormal working life and am offering my experience and pragmatic approach to L&D, Learning Technologies and Social Media to anyone who would be interested in working with me to improve themselves, their people and their outcomes.

If that's of interest, get at me via comments here, via Twitter, LinkedIn or About.Me

Thanks.

Niall