What is hyper-learning?

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Hyper-learning is more than fast and continuous learning. It’s the type of learning that occurs when we are functioning at our highest cognitive and emotional levels. It requires an ecosystem built upon three psychological principles:

 

• Positivity

• Self-Determination Theory

• Psychological Safety

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Positivity

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Studies show that positive emotions at workplace enable and enhance cognitive processing, innovative thinking and creativity and lead to better judgements and decision-making. Whereas negative emotions such as fear and anxiety have the opposite effect. Thus, work environments must be designed to reduce fears, insecurities and other negative emotions.

 

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Self-Determination Theory

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According to the self-determination theory, one is intrinsically motivated when the following three human needs are met:

• Autonomy: a feeling of volition and initiative

• Relatedness: establishing a sense of mutual respect and reliance with others

• Competence: succeeding at optimally challenging tasks and being able to attain desired outcomes

If employees feel that they have autonomy, relatedness, and competence, they are more likely to be highly engaged and thus more likely to perform at high levels.

 

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Psychological Safety

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People learn the most in psychologically safe environments. It is an environment which facilitates growth and innovation, allows oneself to express openly, offers permission to make mistakes and offers all employees a voice by devaluing elitism, hierarchy and rank.

 

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How to create a hyper-learning community at workplace

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• Establish a purpose: An organization must have a clear purpose on why they need to create a hyper-learning community. A typical community has the following three purposes: human development, betterment of society and creation of economic value for the stakeholders.                                                                                                                     

• Shift of mindsets: An organization must cultivate new mindsets, which involves new ways of working, sharing of knowledge, best practices, and success stories.                                      

• Change agents: The task of creation of hyper learning community must be entrusted on those who are passionate about learning and development and can work as positive change agents by inspiring and motivating people to learn.

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This article is paraphrased and adapted from a blog post by Darden Business School available at: https://ideas.darden.virginia.edu/becoming-a-hyper-learning-community-the-future-of-business

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