98. The Ability to Unlearn

We are so often focused on our ability to learn and help those around us that we never stop to see if there are things we need to unlearn. The ability to unlearn things that are no longer serving us is paramount to growth. Never be afraid to unlearn in your life! I love that we are so focused on increasing student learning in education! This concept is so vital and you have heard me talk so much about keeping our focus on the students as much as possible But have you ever thought about the process of unlearning? Last week on the podcast we talked about the power of questioning and if we find that certain habits or practices, or thoughts are no longer serving us do we know how to unlearn something? We become so set on our practices and things we believe to be true that we can stop ourselves from growing. But once we do question and decide that a certain way of thinking or doing something is not serving us best anymore we have to spend the time to unlearn, establish new routines and habits and see things anew! Adam Grant has a great book called “Think Again” that teaches us to stop and think about everything in our lives again to see if what we thought was true really is. This often means you are going to need to loosen your grip on some ideas and perceptions you have held onto for so long to see if they hold water. So the process of actually unlearning is very related to habit formation and Charles Duhigg is one of the best sources. I talked about habits in episode 57, 26, and 17. Check those out for some deeper foundation. But remember the basics of the habit loop, we need a cue, routine, and reward. Stop to see if the routines can be replaced in your life to change and unlearn the current habits you have. Use your decision making power to set the appropriate cues that can help the habits stick and reward yourself with appropriate rewards in the process. So what are some long held beliefs that you think it might be time to unlearn? Start down the road to questioning and unlearning those things that no longer serve you! I am here to help you as you get stuck in the process.