Comments

I like this rule plus it sounds contradictory to other rules I have read. Often when I meet with leaders they feel guilty for taking time to develop themselves professionally. Or they say that if accounting or HR lets it leak that I am spending money on professional development people will think that something is wrong. This is a common concern is that training and development only happens when we need to fix a broke something. The rule you mention is that develop is just that part of being better.

Posted by michael cardus at May 21, 2010 3:04 PM

Brilliant!

Posted by Jim Strock at May 21, 2010 4:05 PM

A Sound advice.

But would you like to call it the one fourth Rule?
After all, 3 hours at work and one hour at Professional development - makes the critical one hour one fourth of the total 4 hours.
That's any way small matter.
Your advice is simple,sound and Professional.
A few minutes of that 1 hour can be usefully spent at tompeters.com. I think you will agree on that.

Posted by V.VIJAYAMOHAN at May 22, 2010 12:53 AM

A good advise for the Y generation almost discontinueing handwriting skills and with this out of workplace hour break can practice "maintenance training" to prevent discontinueing verbal communication skills.

Posted by Hans Schaeffer at May 22, 2010 1:14 AM

"Hot and Now" continuing education is critical. Yet, even in technical/ creative disciplines such as engineering and architecture, the expectation is usually that the problem solving process in any project automatically includes professional development.

An engineer/architect buried in a large project - always multi-year - can emerge with an innovative world-changing solution yet find that they are now the same number of years behind their profession in overall knowledge and broad-based capabilities!Self-imposed obsolescence.

Sadly, those who say 1/3 is too much and can't work in a for-profit discipline will then impose "0" as the alternative!

Posted by Randy Bosch at May 22, 2010 9:08 AM

On the one hand, not sure I would frequent a pub that allows me as a customer...

On the other hand, we become the average of the five people we hang around most, so choose wisely and with an eye toward diverse thinking in our running mates. And make sure most, if not all, are willing to actively challenge our mental models each time we meet.

Posted by David Porter at May 22, 2010 10:32 AM

Am I right in thinking Google the company allows full time employees 20% of their week (1 day) to do what they like?

I love that concept – it’s presumably on the basis folks bring new ideas and enthusiasm to the organisation if they are trusted and allowed free time to think creatively – seems to work pretty well for Google.

We still don’t recruit for attitude and train for skills sadly.

Speaking from my experience in UK management, the challenge is this; how do we get white, male, middle-class, middle-aged, hard-nosed, rational managers who are primarily interested in bottom line objective stuff to buy into such concepts. Sorry for the stereotype I’m merely stating the reality.

Suggesting anyone on the payroll should be allowed to spend even 30 minutes a week doing what the hell they like would probably result in a referral of the person suggesting it to the local mental health service.

Sad to say we still metaphorically chain people to their desks in far too many organisations and get them to fill in forms for permission to go to the little boys/girls room. OK, OK …. Slight (ever so slight) exaggeration.

We still operate on a basis that ‘if we know where they are we know they are working’ – that has always been factually incorrect and is a crazy rationale in my opinion. If you manage with that belief the only thing you know is where someone is and sorry you don’t know what outcomes they are CAPABLE of.

Happy Sunday all – the sun is shining gloriously and life is wonderful :- )

Posted by Trevor Gay at May 23, 2010 3:19 AM

I think this is a great idea! There are so many places you can network- over a pint, at a cafe, on an airplane- just talk to people! It's the simple stuff that works. Don't over-think it. It's not rocket science...unless you are an actual rocket scientist I suppose.
Cheers
Candice Reed
Author of Thank You for Firing Me!

Posted by Candice Reed at May 23, 2010 2:37 PM

The 3/1 rule may be outdated!

In many professions, for instance marketing communications, the "learning" and "doing" are inexorably intertwined.

When someone in MARCOM (me, for instance) creates a presentation or design an email, we need to research what is the latest and greatest, what may work, etc. Usually "on the go" learning and doing happens together, with more medium term "professional development" happening in the evenings, or when there is free time, or when we go to a mall on Sundays for fun and casually happens to observe buyer behavior, etc.

More formal "professional development" may happen once a year or so, when we sign up for a course, etc.

To me, the most important aspect of "professional development" happens when you are called to do the impossible, which I suspect, is common in MARCOM! To deliver results, you have to be among the best in the world in what you do, regardless of where you are. "On the Go, inside of work" learning is your best tool to achieve that.

Jay, Bangalore

Posted by Jayakumar Hariharan at May 24, 2010 1:03 AM