EPMEPM: BD & Growth

Getting The Most From Your Training Investment

The real estate industry relies heavily on two types of training – storytelling and knowledge-based training. Being able to recognise these types of delivery helps us draw out the greatest value from them. Sarah Bell explains.

Understanding how we learn as adults, with our independent thoughts and our own experiences, is arguably the most important part of any learning journey; it increases the value of each learning opportunity.

Narratives from our successful peers have a valuable place in many agents’ learning process. This type of training is based on story rather than content, posing the question: why has storytelling endured as the most prolific form of information sharing throughout human history? The insights gained from the experience of others, particularly elite performers, can provide a measure of national currency, a benchmark of excellence and social proof: if someone can do it, then it is possible that anyone can.

The popularity of storytelling in real estate training is probably testament that the stories do, in fact, have value – but the value of the story lies mainly in the reflection, self-awareness and self-directed learning that occurs in the learner. Take the well-known fable of Aesop where the tortoise beats the hare, for example. Tortoises aren’t known for being faster than hares; instead the value lies in the learner’s guided reflection that consistency is preferable over ad-hoc bursts of activity for achieving goals.

By contrast, knowledge-based training is about the transmission of facts, trends, skills and understanding from instructor to student.

To understand how we learn, visualise the process of transferring water from one bucket (the instructor) to another (the learner). For an effective transfer to occur, there has to be a partnership between a capable instructor with relevant content and a capable learner who perceives the content to be relevant to them. This is a much more straightforward process for children, because they are naturally dependent, lack their own experiences and prejudices and their young brains are able to absorb knowledge more rapidly.

As adults, we all learn in different ways. Much has been made of the fact that the mode of instruction should cater to the different learning style preferences of each learner. Some learn primarily through visual material (words and graphics), while others prefer auditory (listening) or kinaesthetic (moving and doing) modes.

While we may have a preference for learning through one mode or another, ultimately the content itself will determine the best mode of delivery, based on relevance. For example, very few people would argue that teaching athletics is best done by auditory mode in a classroom with an instructor speaking on how the learner’s body should move! A kinaesthetic mode of delivery, with practical demonstrations for students to copy, would be the best way to learn that type of content.

The art and science of adult learning, known as andragogy, was developed relatively recently by a famous American educator, Malcolm Knowles (1913-1997). Although his work was aimed primarily at educators, understanding how we learn helps us get the most out of our training investment.

Knowles reduced the principles of adult learning to the following six key concepts:

  1. WE NEED TO BE MOTIVATED TO LEARN
    This means taking steps to find out what the training will involve and having a clear expectation of what we hope to achieve by attending particular courses or sessions. If you are going to knowledge-based training, have an idea of what you want to get out of the day and an understanding of how that learning will enhance your work.
  2. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO RELATE LEARNING TO OUR OWN EXPERIENCES
    The experiences and knowledge that we bring to learning actually increase its value. By remaining independently thoughtful about your own workplace, market and experience, you can refine the content that is delivered into a small list of items or projects that will impact you and your work the most.
  3. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO RELATE LEARNING TO OUR GOALS
    We learn better when we can link the learning to a real-life problem that we are facing. If we are experiencing a very hot market where turnover is high and stock levels are low, we may be more ready for training that addresses the shortage of listings rather than how to deal with properties that linger on the market.
  4. WE NEED TO FIND THE CONTENT RELEVANT
    The onus of relevancy can be put on the instructor; however, where we have invested in the training we find value when we can link it to our situation. If we are going to a day that showcases million-dollar agents and their stories, it is important to understand (like the tortoise and hare fable) that it is our reflections on the narratives that will be valuable, rather than any attempt to duplicate the careers and circumstances of top agents.If we sell apartments in an area with mediocre property value, there is little from the million-dollar lifestyle that seems relevant; however, we can reflect that the same consistent prospecting, the same authenticity in helping people with property and the same 24/7 mindset will help us rise to the top of the apartment kingdom – even if that has a $200,000 ceiling.
  5. WE NEED TO SEE THE PRACTICAL APPLICATION
    As adults we have to take in a lot of information and balance so many demands on our time. The pursuit of knowledge for knowledge’s sake just doesn’t cut it above our other priorities, so any theoretical or abstract training needs to be drawn down to our real-life work situations.For example, instead of doing a three-year psychology degree to help us understand how people think, we could do some practical training on DISC profiling for sales presenting. This is sufficient to help you better understand your customers and their decision-making processes.
  6. WE NEED TO FEEL RESPECTED
    Finally, learning occurs best in an environment where we feel safe and valued as human beings and professionals. If we can’t ask questions for fear of humiliation, or feel that the ‘superstar’ narrative is so narrow that it could only apply to their particular pedestal, there is little value to that learning.So when it comes to investing in training, remember Malcolm Knowles and his six key points. Understand how you learn and choose carefully – based on your learning preference, goals and experience to date – to make sure you get the most out of your investment.

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Sarah Bell

With a background in research and investigations, Sarah Bell married into the real estate industry in 2009 and has found a passion for both the business and its people.