"Mr. Grundl, I already know everything you're saying." I flinched when the young, smart man fired these words at me. It was during a book signing, right after a lecture. I was seething inside: "You spend years delving into your topic so that others can benefit from it, you write books, give lectures, transform leadership teams with your institute, give interviews on TV and radio—and now some smart aleck claims it's all old news." I was annoyed. But why?
I followed a well-known psychologist's advice: if someone hurts you emotionally, look within yourself for the reason behind the hurt. After some reflection, my anger gave way to insight. It has become fashionable to know many things. Many methods, many theses, many theories, many books. Especially in the continuing education industry. Yet it is clear to everyone that intellectual knowledge (knowing) does not necessarily produce the desired results (being able to do). With this fresh insight, I asked him, "Do you know it or can you do it?" He became quiet. His forehead reflected intense thought. Finally, he grinned sheepishly, nodded gratefully, and walked away.
Successful learning is more than just accumulating knowledge.
He certainly did not lack intelligence or ambition. He had made a common mistake in his thinking. He wanted to know more, do less, and impress more with rhetoric than with results. He believed that intellect was more important than emotions. And that understanding something intellectually was enough to master it in practice. But he had not yet grasped that everything learned must first enter the heart and then be put into practice in order to change the world. This error in thinking also plagues continuing education when it seeks to cram ever more new knowledge into people's heads. It is often much more effective to implement a small amount of knowledge in depth, but all the more crucial knowledge.
Successful learning is not just about acquiring knowledge. It encompasses the lengthy process of assimilation, so that knowledge can be put to use. This unpleasant moment made that really clear to me. This dialogue brought it to light:
It's not what you say that counts. It's what you achieve that matters!
Companies can purchase as many personality tools and conduct as many training sessions as they like—if the transfer process is weak, much will remain the same. In change processes, people fight like Don Quixote against the windmills of change. In the battle between "head and gut," the gut usually wins in the end.
As a teacher, always allow time for assimilation if you want to make your employees stronger. Reduce the amount of knowledge for more important content. Demand consistent implementation until everything is in place. This is uncomfortable, but successful. Take the same time when working on yourself. Never underestimate the energy required. Change is highly active, not a passive process that happens on the side.
Results instead of words
Who someone is is never revealed by their words, but only by proven results. Being able to explain humor does not automatically make people laugh. Knowing your sales pitch inside out does not necessarily mean you will close deals. And being full of seminar knowledge does not mean you will inspire transformation in others. Even the best leadership training is useless if you do not first internalize the new know-how and then exemplify what you want to convey to your employees every day.
The closer your actions are to your words, the better you are. Intellectual understanding—emotional insight—practical application: I wish you this from the bottom of my heart: less knowledge, more skill!
Grundl's reasons: balance between theory and practice
Many people talk about things that they understand in theory but have never experienced themselves. Alexander von Humboldt summed this up in the following words: "The most dangerous of all worldviews is the worldview of people who have never seen the world."
The life of Alexander von Humboldt in particular shows how important it is to absorb knowledge and then use its essence to make a difference—to strike a balance between theory and practice. You can learn more about this in the new video from Grundls Gründe: "Alexander von Humboldt – Theory vs. Practice." Here, I invite you to consider where you can condense and reflect on topics from theories in order to reconcile them with practice.
Image source: © ninocare Pixabay
