I once met a guy who drives a bulldozer on construction sites. He said, “I don’t move dirt… I create landscapes. Someday, 200 people are going to work in the building and campus we’re creating, and I’m part of making that possible.” He is an artist on heavy machinery.
Seth Godin famously talks about creating a culture shift in adult learning about pretty much anything. He talks about everyone being brainwashed into believing that at its core, learning is about obedience, control, manipulation, coercion, status, and power. That’s not learning, it’s instruction. They’re not the same. It’s boring and is designed to create average.
Superstars rise outside of instruction… not because of it. They rise from peer-to-peer learning, trust, and discovering that looks, sounds, and feels voluntary — because it is.
I would argue that the culture shift in leadership and work in our professional world reflects the same attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of a learning specialist.
LEADERS of people create work climates and cultures of learning that things that look and feel like art. Even though it may be a lot of work, it doesn’t feel like it.
Life is a team sport. Does your team create art, or work?