‘Ah-ha’ moments: When learning becomes understanding.

Learning something is not the same as understanding it. To truly understand something (it is called transformative learning in some circles) what you have learned has to be integrated into your life experience.

This week  I had an ‘Ah ha’ moment, a moment of transformative learning or understanding.  I have been struggling with finding ways to develop my business, to get my message out to more parents so that children have a better chance of reaching their learning potential.    I am a teacher, learning about business is new to me and sometimes a struggle.  It is a new way of thinking that does not always come easily.

My business mentor (yes, I have one and he is very helpful) asked me to create a plan of where  I wanted my business to go and how I was going to get it there.  I thought this would be so easy, after all I had been telling others about the need for goal setting and planning for years!

When I started putting my thoughts on paper it was not as easy as I thought it would be.  I was struggling to create something that made sense.  The good news was that I knew there was something wrong, that there was something missing from my thinking process.  I knew that there had to be a reason why I was finding it difficult to create a business plan.  I just didn’t know what the reason was!!!

If this sounds familiar it should.  My whole business is based on the need to understand why children find it difficult to learn.  Now the tables were turned (don’t you hate when that happens?). I needed someone to help me understand why I was finding my task so difficult to do.

I was getting very frustrated.  I KNEW how to create a plan, I acknowledge the importance of goal setting, I thought that I understood what I had to do.  It was only when I realized that I needed help, that something just wasn’t working, and that I knew who could help me that my problem got sorted out.

My mentor understood ( the best mentors do) and he was able to give me some insight into why I was having difficulties.  What is more, he was able to do it in a way I understood and accepted.  I had one of those wonderful  ‘Ah ha’ moments when learning becomes understanding.

Nothing had changed, I hadn’t suddenly developed new skills, but I had been able to transform my learning into a full and better understanding of what I had to do and how I could do it.

Why am I telling you this?  Why am I letting you know that even though I am an expert in how people learn I needed help so that I could learn?

This is why -

1.  It’s all about the journey

Life and learning is a process, not a product.  People who treat learning as something that is final, finished, and then forgotten just don’t get it.   They see learning as an unattainable mountain top rather than the process of getting there.

2.  We all need someone to help

We need people to help us see what we can’t see for ourselves.  We need a trusted mentor who can use their skills and experiences to help us develop our own.

3. Ain’t life grand? 

You are never too old to learn and to have those wonderful transformative moments when obscurity become clarity.

I know that many schoolchildren are in the same situation I was in.  They KNOW how to do their work but they get frustrated because they can’t get it done.  They need to understand why they are struggling to learn so that they know how to overcome their learning barriers.

They need an ‘Ah-ha’ moment just like the one I had earlier this week.  And just as I needed someone to help me get to that moment so they need someone to help them get there.

That’s what I do for children and parents, I help them discover their own Ah-ha moments, and it is so much fun!