I continue to face a harsh truth. I am a consumer of knowledge much more than a producer. By this I mean, I love to learn and to fill my head with new ideas, different perspectives, research, concepts and more. As a business leader, do you connect with this? Do you seek out advanced skills training, new industry ideas, ways to improve and grow your business? There’s a lot of merit to this- a continuous path of learning and growing, additional knowledge to offer clients, and staying connected to the current and relevant. However, for me, I am also aware that while the information I’ve gathered in my brain may percolate, may synthesize, may sometimes move to action, it also is frequently left dormant, hardly seeing daylight. I have become painfully aware of the condition my consuming condition is in! I want to shift to more purposeful steps, to take action.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, I’d like to share an approach offered by Ryan Hawk, host of the podcast The Learning Leader Show, author and keynote speaker. Ryan has an approachable, actionable framework that I’ve found easy to follow:

Ryan builds upon a concept shared by Charlie Munger (Vice-Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway), “…All of us should become a learning machine”. In support of this belief, Ryan maps out four steps that he subscribes to daily. He submits that following this approach supports our being intentional and more of a “doer” with what we initially consume.

His four steps are:

1. Be an intake machine, a consumer of knowledge

2. Experiment, test, try out what you’ve learned

3. Reflect, be introspective, decide what’s staying in and what’s going out

4. Teach it to other people

For me, this framework is instructional for several reasons.

• As I embark on new learning (consumer), I have heightened awareness around my commitment to then “do” something with the information. I set an intention of moving from static information intake to dynamic action orientation. I follow with thinking about how this learning applies to me and others. I finish by sharing my learnings with others.

• Before I add new information, I am mindful to test myself around steps #2-4. I question if I’m going to follow through with my mission of moving from consumer to producer. If I’m not all in, I recognize I’m at choice: Do I still go forward with my “old” approach, consumer, or do I abey until a better time or altogether abandon the idea because the information won’t support my goals. 

• I build time into my daily to-dos for action/reflection and sharing. The reflection piece is one I wholly believe in but many times don’t enact. Yet, without contemplation and evaluation, the opportunity for additional learning and insights is lost.

I’ve been putting this learning machine approach into action and have found that I’m more selective with how I spend my time. I’m more intentional with my learning. I keep this framework in mind as I choose what I’m going to consume. This helps direct my focus and my productivity.

Time is precious and managing it is a constant push-pull for business leaders. This framework supports maximizing our hours and activities which can lead to improved outcomes, increased ROI and a sense of fulfillment. So rev up that machine!

Conflux Business Coaching is about merging the best of who you are with who you want to be. Let’s connect and explore additional ways you can move your business forward by being purposeful and intentional with your learning. Together we’ll ensure you’re a learning machine!