Ah, Now I Get It !!

Some of my best teachers, mentors, and coaches had one thing in common. They almost never gave me the answer.

They created the conditions for me to figure it out myself.

There is a big difference between being told something and discovering it. When someone gives you the answer, you may understand it for a moment. When you struggle with a question, test an idea, get something wrong, and finally see it for yourself, the learning becomes yours.

I have seen this in coaching, parenting, and leadership.

Our instinct is often to help by explaining. But explanation can sometimes rob the other person of the very moment that creates understanding.

Good teaching requires patience.

You ask the right question. You point in the right direction. Then you allow the other person to do the thinking.

The real learning happens in the moment they say to themselves, “Ah, now I get it.”