Of late, I’ve been thinking a lot about idealism versus reality (for a lot of reasons). I’ve been a staunch advocate for better learning science in practice (an idealistic stance). And, we’re running a conference because we’ve gotten feedback that folks wonder what that means in practice (reality). My own situation is a case in point as well. So, I’m doing some reflecting on idealism and reality.
To start, I’m a principled kind of person. I try to follow the best recommendations from what we know about how we think, work, and learn. Perhaps I err too much on that side, as I’ve avoided things like commissions and paid endorsements. That’s because I want my recommendations to come from real value, not my personal benefit. Which should be better in the long term, but I’m also aware I’m not a great biz dev type. For perhaps the same reasons. (And, it appears in retrospect, that when I do sell myself, I do so far too cheaply!)
Despite myself, I’ve managed to be involved in some things I care about. People have come to me, and I’ve managed to support the family for the past almost quarter century(!). Yet, there’ve been good times, and lean. (In the latter, currently.) Yet I haven’t been one to jump on bandwagons, for instance the latest hype around Generative AI. You might think a voice of caution would be appropriate, but the evidence appears to be to the contrary. C’est la vie. I’m not intending to change my stance, just being aware and honest with myself (and, consequently, you).
Beyond my own issues, I see that our field still faces challenges. Perhaps from our origins – taking good performers and trying to turn them into trainers without sufficient preparation – we end up trying to meet unrealistic expectations. “Do it once, and it’s good enough!” Cheaply and quickly, of course. If we measured, we might know otherwise, but that’s still too rare. Everyone has faith that we’re ‘sufficient’.
Yet, as an idealist, I see what we could offer, if we could manage to turn things around. I am an optimist (despite any appearances as a curmudgeon to the contrary ;). We could be impacting organizational success with aptly targeted interventions. Moreover, we could be the ones guiding organizations to new insights that find opportunity from increasing change. And so I keep fighting for the principled view. AND, practical steps to get there. I keep hoping (idealistically) that there are those who want to steadily move to a better organizational position where they’re both doing well what they know they need to, and efficiently exploring the new opportunities to adapt to the changing environment.
And, frankly, that’s the opportunity I’m looking to offer. Of course, in reflecting on the realities, I recognize that people also need to find ways to do better within the existing constraints, and steadily (stealthily?) move those constraints to a better place (reality). Having done so for pretty much all my many moons of a career, I do have practical steps around that. That, too, is what’s on offer. There are ways to balance idealism and reality. Stay tuned (or tap in!).
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