formal means, informal learning helps us sense and respond to situ-
ations we face.
Despite such noble responsibility, informal learning receives
little attention. Perhaps that’s because it sounds ad hoc, inadver-
tent, and unmanageable. Although you cannot scheduleinformal
learning, you can acknowledge, uncover, liberate, access, promote,
jump-start, nurture, integrate, encourage, follow, and even cele-
brate it in an effort to foster a learning culture in all types and sizes
of groups.
Even if informal learning is invisible, its value can be seen.
In an economy fueled by sparkling innovations and distinctive
information, what people learn informally can move ideas through
organizations and help people generate something new.
As a leader and as a colleague, you can play an important
role in nurturing informal learning with the people around you.
Even though it might sound paradoxical, you can create an
organizationwide discipline of informal learning without destroy-
ing the social, spontaneous, and serendipitous aspects that bring it
to life by simply understanding it, paying attention to it, and
valuing what it offers to everyone. Here are some steps to get you
started.
Acknowledge Learning Within You
At Xerox PARC, in Palo Alto, California, former chief scientist
John Seely Brown focused Friday lunch meetings with his team
members on what they did well, what they did wrong, and what
they learned along the way. At one meeting, some team members
casually remarked that whenever they saw Brown make a certain
face in response to someone’s idea, it was obvious the idea didn’t
stand a chance. Brown had the next meeting videotaped. Sure
enough, he saw for himself that he did sometimes display a disap-
proving expression. From then on, when that feeling washed over
him, he worked at changing his facial expression and listening more
attentively to what the person was saying.INFORMALLEARNING 93