The only time to start cross-training your team is when your team knows what they are doing. There is no value in cross-training your team when they are learning or unsure of what to do. The other time when it’s not good to cross-train is when there is pressure to deliver. Pressure to learn is okay, but pressure to deliver never results in smart learning.
I recently explained this to someone… We’re all standing around looking at a hole and a pile of dirt, trying to figure out the best way to fill it up, what materials to use, what techniques to apply, what books to read, etc, etc. When all we need to do is start putting dirt in the hole. Sometimes, you just need to start.
The weird thing about getting to the bottom of your work pile is figuring out what to do next. It’s great to get there, but there is always a moment when you pick up the last item and go – “huh, this is it, now what?” And that’s where most of us get stuck, because you’ve been focused on this pile for so long, tunnel visioned to what you are doing, that it’s impossible to…
You never peak. If you don’t want to. If you keep learning, you never peak at learning. If you keep running, you never peak at running. If you keep trying, you never peak at trying. There is no peak; there is just another peak to attain.
Since the new year, everyone on my LinkedIn feed has become an expert. I don’t know what happened over Xmas, but everyone is now an expert. Which is scary, because if everyone is an expert, who is doing the learning? And if we all became experts over the 3 week Xmas break, why aren’t we selling that? And if you learned everything, how did you apply it to your job immediately to become an expert?…