Reading is Fundamental

When people know better, they do better. Someone famous said that once. Maybe Billy Shakespeare or someone equally noteworthy. It’s still relevant.

But building your own capacity through professional development is expensive. Have you priced conferences lately? Wowzers! Then you have to add on travel, hotel, and meals…it’s crazy expensive. Multiply that by the size of the team that needs the professional development so they can know better, then do better, and all the sudden you’ve blown that entire line item in your budget. Poof! Like a trip to Target…gone!

Or worse…your budget is so tight you can’t even afford to include capacity building into your annual budget. When you have so many needs, it feels like professional development is a want—and it’s axed quite frequently before your year even begins. It’s a tragedy.

That’s when your right brain moxie comes in. Oftentimes, when we don’t have a lot of money to build ourselves up professionally, we must get creative. Thinking about how to learn some of the top trends in your industry, or from others who have blazed a trail before you, is vital. And there are ways you can afford it. I rely on books because reading is fundamental.

I’ve always believed that leaders are readers. And if that doesn’t entice you to build your own capacity, I also believe that learners are earners. So, for my team of six, we enjoy pop-up professional development days.

They’re pop-up because I don’t schedule them into our master calendar. I try to gauge when I think my team needs a break from the monotony of the day-to-day madness to be reminded that others have traveled this path before and would like to share what they’ve learned. It’s also a great time for us to have a team experience, as if we all went to a conference and learned something together at a plenary session, only much, much cheaper.

I know what you’re thinking! You’re thinking, “If your entire team participates, who mans the office?” Yes, our entire office participates. We simply place a sign on the door telling all visitors that we’re out of the office participating in professional development to learn how to serve them better. We direct them to the mail slot in our door for donations and include our phone number so they can leave a message, if needed. As we’re reading throughout the day, we can always check our voicemail (which goes directly to our email inbox conveniently) and email. We make our own rules.

And guess what?  We’ve never had a complaint. The world didn’t stop spinning and everyone’s needs were met when we returned. Plus, we ended the day a bit smarter with our self-care cups filled to overflowing. This is an investment that is worth the expenditure of time. Trust me! Don’t get caught up with unwritten rules of why you think you cannot do this because you absolutely can do this. Besides, I’ve been in this field for 20 years and haven’t run across many philanthropic emergencies. If you are the CEO of a hospital or the Chief of a police department, this isn’t an option for you. If you work at a nonprofit, it’s do-able.

Pop-up professional development can contain as much right brain moxie as you’d like. The last time we did this, I brought each teammate some snacks, a few self-care items to enjoy throughout the day, as well as some pens and highlighters. Then, I threw in the all-important left brain methods…the brilliance of Seth Godin and his book, Song of Significance.

We gathered first thing in the morning, I distributed the snacks, the (un)necessary supplies, the book, and I told them to find a place that they love to read and to spend the day doing just that--reading. They could pick a coffee shop, a hammock, a grassy knoll, or on a chair on the front porch right next to their puppy—learning wherever was best for them to learn!

That was it. That was the assignment. You can do this easily. Pretend you’re attending a conference to learn from some professionals. Take notes. Highlight your favorite parts. Remember what you want to tell others or the ah-ha moments that you want to implement immediately. Learn from Seth Godin or Adam Grant or Malcolm Gladwell. Learn from Penelope Burk or someone who specializes in what you do or what you want to do. This is professional development that costs the amount of a paperback book.

But my favorite part is the last-hour wrap party. The last hour of the day, we all come back together. For Song of Significance, we re-capped over chips and salsa at our favorite Mexican restaurant. We began the day together and ended the day together. What a way to bookend a regular Monday!

We all came back together with highlighted books filled with notes in the margins. We talked about our favorite parts and how we thought ideas applied to ourselves, our office, and our industry. We bonded by sharing the same knowledge, the same language, the same thoughts as the author. We left with an extra wrinkle or two in our brains. This is exactly what happens when you go to a conference. Only, they’re so expensive, you don’t typically get to go with all your peers and share the same experience. And you certainly don’t do it for under $200.

Now, of course, I’m not saying you shouldn’t attend conferences. If the agenda speaks to you, if the speakers are engaging in topics that will help you grow, and if you have the budget to make it happen—go for it. But when those stars don’t align, maybe a pop-up professional development day is an answer to your problem.

We’re going to have one next week. I searched for a day when the calendar cooperated. And I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to it. Even if you aren’t ballin’ on a budget, it might just be a good team-building activity. Because, when we know better, we do better.

Merrily, Merrily, Merrily, Merrily,

Dawn
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dawn brown creative, llc.