April 2, 2007
Get Back in Training
and You’ll Learn More
Three weeks ago I was shopping in an office supply store. I stepped up
to the check-out counter when it was my turn to pay. The clerk behind
the cash register was wearing a name badge that said “Dane.” And below
his name read “In Training.”
I
said, “Dane, how’s your training going?” He stopped. He looked to his
left. He looked to his right. Then he leaned into me and said, “I’m not
actually in training anymore.”
I
started laughing! “What?” I said. “Then why are you wearing a
badge that says “In Training?”
Here’s what he said: “When I was in training I learned a lot more, and
people were friendlier to me.”
As
I left the store and slowly walked out to my car I thought “He’s right.
You do learn more and people are friendlier to you when you’re in
training.” Here’s why.
When you declare to the world that you are in training and that you want
to learn, you become a student. And when you tell the world that you are
a student, people want to help you. They want to teach you. You are
essentially telling other people that they have strengths, knowledge,
skills and experience that you believe are valuable and that you
appreciate.
Let me check something out with you. Pretend for a moment that your
child, or your spouse, or your employee says this to you, “I would like
to learn from you. It would mean a lot if you would help me.” How would
you feel? My bet is that you feel good right now just thinking about it.
We all like to think we have something to offer our children, our
husband or wife and our employees.
People are friendlier to us when we are humble enough to ask for help.
We
are also demonstrating our curiosity when we seek assistance. We are
telegraphing to the world that we are on a search for new ways to do,
see or experience things. In their book Character Strengths and
Virtues, leading Positive Psychologists Martin Seligman and
Christopher Peterson point to research that shows that when people
demonstrate curiosity, people learn more, are more engaged and perform
better academically and at work. Curiosity leads to better performance.
So
now I think of Dane when I catch myself acting as if I “know” something.
Rather than prove what I know to everyone, I listen and try to see what
else I can learn.
All this reminds me of my first bus trip from LaGuardia Airport to
Manhattan, 22 years ago. I hopped on the bus and took my seat. I then
turned to someone across the aisle and said, “Hi. I don’t know my way
around here. Do you know how to get to Madison Square Garden from this
bus line?”
I
still laugh when I think about what happened next. The person across
from me immediately started giving me directions. And then not one, not
two, but three other people started sharing their “best way” to get to
Madison Square Garden. They all wanted to help! And that felt great!
People want to help people who want to learn. So now I say to myself
when I head out from home, “David, are you wearing your badge today?”
How about you? What does your badge say?
© 2007 David J. Pollay.
Distributed by North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.
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