Do you want to really kick off with training measures next year? We support you in this and present to you today the Flow Theory. This helps you achieve maximum learning success for your employees. It's that easy to stay in the learning flow!
Motivation is fundamental to achieving one's own learning goals. Simply memorizing dry learning content rarely brings real joy – motivation tends to be limited for many people. This is completely understandable, as the Flow Theory confirms: When learners are not challenged, motivation to achieve corresponding learning successes declines. Are you wondering how to motivate your course participants to continue pursuing their learning objectives? With the Flow Theory! But what does the theory actually state?
Motivation is the foundation of the Flow Theory
Maybe you know this situation: You were so focused on a task that you completely blocked out your surroundings. You were essentially fully in the flow. If so, you are already familiar with the Flow Theory from your own experience! According to the Flow Theory, intrinsic motivation is so high that learners forget their sense of time and space. Learners completely immerse themselves in their activity.
However, that is by no means negative! Because the learning flow allows you to continuously improve your skills. The best part? You achieve your learning goals without being overwhelmed. Learners fully engage in their activities and are encouraged by experiences of success to continue learning. Consequently, they enter a flow where they continuously expand their knowledge.
Info: In general, a distinction is made between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. If learners are extrinsically motivated, they are driven by external factors. Rewards positively affect their achievement of learning goals. If learners are intrinsically motivated, they seek inner satisfaction. This can be triggered by a strong interest in a topic, fun, or a specific challenge they want to tackle.
As a personnel officer, you should ensure that you motivate your employees extrinsically in such a way that they can grow beyond themselves level by level. You should challenge your employees in the right measure. Because only then do they enter the learning flow:
With the Flow Theory, your employees are challenged in the right way! // Representation: blink.it
The crucial feature of the Flow Theory is that learners are fully engaged in their activity and are continuously challenged in an appropriate manner. However, be careful to maintain the balance between over-challenging and under-challenging. If this balance is uneven, it affects the motivation of the learners:
The Flow Theory explained by example: This is Tom
Tom has only been working in his dream job for a few months. He just graduated and now wants to really take off in the working world! However, due to his young age, he is often underestimated by older employees. Therefore, he is assigned tasks for which he is overqualified. As a result, he often finds his work boring, and over time, his job becomes monotonous. Tom has no challenge in his work life that would allow him to grow and develop.
After a few weeks, Tom addresses the problem with his superiors. They agree with Tom and recognize the potential that he has. However, they may have been a bit too generous with him and assigned him tasks that are currently overwhelming. Now Tom learns what stress is: He's been given his chance and doesn't want to disappoint! However, he does not know where to start or how to cope with the high pressure. Tom's initial motivation and anticipation for the new job has disappeared since he doesn't feel like he is making progress in his job. Slowly, Tom thinks he is not the right person for the position. However, Tom is mistaken!
Tom's example illustrates that the right balance of over-challenge and under-challenge is essential for the learning success of employees. If employees have no challenge to grow from, they often feel underestimated. The same applies if employees are overwhelmed. In both cases, they might lack sufficient prior knowledge or their learning goals may be too ambitious. Both situations lead to a rapid decline in employee motivation. Because feelings of happiness that are triggered, for example, by achieving learning goals are absent. Therefore, motivate your employees in the spirit of the Flow Theory to achieve learning objectives level by level! This way, they can directly see their learning success and feel validated in what they do. This not only helps your employees develop further, but also your company! How you enable your employees to learn in the flow, you will now learn:
This is how your employees learn in the flow!
Do you want your employees to not experience what Tom experienced? Then the question arises on how to motivate them properly! The following four tips will help you:
1. Adjust the workload to the position and qualification
Your employees have different qualifications and therefore different competencies. So make sure that when allocating task areas, these align with the qualifications and strengths of the employee, appropriately challenging them. This way, the work routine provides a challenge that the employee can master!
2. Trust your employees with various areas
Diverse tasks make the work routine more exciting and challenging! This prevents your employees from falling into a monotonous routine and not being able to develop further.
3. Encourage independent working
When new employees take on their own areas of responsibility right away, it leads to more self-responsibility and a higher learning effect. The more diverse the tasks are, the more they learn about the company and their role. The learning success is directly tangible since learning goals are achieved in the concrete work process!
Reading Tip: How can new employees work independently as quickly as possible? Find out more now about how to make the onboarding process even more effective: Performance Support: The secret weapon for your onboarding
4. Provide further training opportunities!
Further training should not be neglected in your company because only through a continuous learning process do employees grow personally and in their competencies. There are various approaches:
Online courses: With learning platforms like blink.it, you have the opportunity to package your content clearly into courses. This allows for learning in the flow. Your employees can verify their knowledge through quizzes or surveys and visualize learning successes directly!
Webinars: Through webinars, learners have the chance to deepen their knowledge on specific topics. The webinar can either take place live or be recorded. Depending on their workplace, learners can participate flexibly.
Blended Learning: Take advantage of both in-person and online training and combine them in a mixed model. At the same time, you provide learners with additional flexibility that they do not have in a live webinar.
How do you feel when you have achieved your learning goal? Proud and full of energy? There’s a simple reason for this: Achieving learning goals not only releases feelings of happiness but also leads to a more positive self-perception. Now is the optimal time to define new learning goals! Because the learners now have the motivation and confidence to tackle new challenges and continue learning in the flow.
Online courses offer your employees the chance to deepen their knowledge and grow beyond themselves while in the flow. However, your employees' learning success depends on how the course content is prepared and their motivation to pursue learning goals.
Do you want your employees to celebrate learning successes and grow beyond themselves next year? Then start now with blink.it and boost your first online course by participating in rocketday 2023!
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