L&D and the G.I. Joe Fallacy

By Camilla Ribas | Learning Experience Designer

If you are a Learning Experience Designer (LXD) or work with Learning & Development (L&D) in some capacity, chances are you LOVE learning. I don’t know about you, but, over the years, I have signed up for more courses and learning events than I can count—some of which I’m too embarrassed to even mention. The point is, being a learner is cool!

So, a few weeks ago, when a friend recommended “The Science of Well-Being” offered by Yale University, I had to check it out. After hearing that it was a great course taught in a very “unusual way,” I had no choice but to enroll. I couldn't hear the words "taught" and "unusual" and do nothing!  

There I was, ready to become happier and learn new design tricks in the process—a blissful win-win—until I hit a hard stop.

Don’t get me wrong, the course is great. The reason I stopped was that, in the very first lesson, Professor Laurie Santos introduces what she calls “the G.I. Joe fallacy.” The concept refers to the wrong belief that knowing something is half the battle. 

If you haven’t heard about or watched G.I. Joe, like I hadn’t, I did some digging for us. (Thanks, Youtube!)

Through my rigorous research, I learned that the cartoon always ended with a public service announcement where you would witness children in dangerous situations—like giving a stranger their home address—and an American soldier would magically appear and instruct kids on what they should or should not do. The segment always ended with the kids responding “Now we know!” which was followed by the tagline “and knowing is half the battle.” Everyone is safe, happy, and informed. The end. 

But not quite. . . . With the G.I. Joe fallacy, Professor Santos highlights how merely being informed about something is not enough to change behavior. 

So what does that have to do with L&D?

It has everything to do with our industry, because it represents a common approach many companies take when it comes to developing their employees.

* * * * *

Knowing is not enough.

We live in the age of “one-click-away answers,” but does that mean we’ve become a more skilled or capable society? 

Here’s what you should know. Done. Now you know how to do it.

But is that really the case for most of us?

A simple example of this is trying out a new recipe. A few months ago, I was determined to bake a Pavlova. The recipe was fairly simple and the ingredients list was minimal. After watching a video tutorial several times, I felt confident and 100% ready.  It wasn’t until I actually attempted to bake the Pavlova that I realized I did not know where to start. 

• Step 1: Make sure your eggs are at room temperature. 

Of course, the eggs were inside the fridge! Fast forward to the next day with room temperature eggs. Here I found myself referring back to the step-by-step instructions, and, even though I did so, the final product was just sad. 

Although the lady in the video made the whole thing seem easier than writing my own name, it was only through my own experience and reflection that I was able to really understand how things worked.

Information is important, but it is just the starting point. Just like in baking the Pavlova, it takes more than reading steps to master your “new recipe”—whatever that may be (e.g., giving feedback, leading meetings, managing a project).

Let’s be honest, for many areas in our lives, developing a new capability is a never-ending cycle of practice and reflection. So why not make sure our design approaches reflect this reality?

What it takes to change behavior.

A great way to advocate for a more comprehensive learning design approach in our industry is to invite Thought Partners to reflect on what it takes to change behavior. 

Some may say they need the right motivation to change. For others, support and accountability mechanisms might do the trick. For me personally, goal-setting and self-efficacy are my biggest allies. The truth is, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to behavior change. We do have recommendations backed up by behavioral science, but, if we had it all figured out, the world would be a much better (and healthier) place.

Acquiring new skills or adopting new ways of being is hard! We are creatures of habit, and we tend to revert back to familiar behaviors by default. So, in order for new habits to thrive, we need to do the work.

You change by changing.

Sorry, there’s no shortcut or easy way out. Learning and developing a new competency takes practice. It takes time, effort, and a whole lot of patience. That is, it takes a lot more than just being told what to do. The G.I. Joe fallacy brings to light something we know all too well.

Let’s then create learning environments and solutions that reflect this reality. How amazing would it be if workplaces gave people the opportunity to practice new skills at their own pace and in a supportive, safe, and validating manner?

You can probably tell that I am an idealist and not really a business person. That’s fair. But what is the actual cost of not giving people the environment and support they need to grow? What is the cost of having people pretend they have it all figured out? Think of it not only as a monetary cost, but also in terms of psychological costs for employees. I truly believe that we can and should find the right balance between traditional training and other development means, and we can do it all in a way that still makes good business sense. 

What if training sessions were followed up with “growth labs” where people can discuss their personal experiences and create accountability mechanisms? What if eCourses required learners to connect with a mentor to set goals and milestones? What if learners shared an action plan and had visibility into where their colleagues are with their new behavior? What if teams were tasked with identifying barriers to applying what they’ve learned? 

I may not have the answer or a clear solution, but I do believe that recognizing this “L&D fallacy” and having conversations about it could be a great starting point. 

Creating a culture of learning.

Addressing this fallacy also means recognizing the importance of a positive learning culture.

Our environments have a strong influence on us, and, most of the time, we don’t even realize it. When I say environment, I mean the physical space around us, our cultural values, and anything that can trigger or serve as a clue for action. The organizational environment you are inserted in can greatly influence your success or failure when it comes to trying out something new.

What happens if you fail? Does your work allow you to be frank about your shortcomings? Does it allow you to learn from your mistakes? Organizational cultures that foster a growth mindset might be what we need to drive a comprehensive approach to L&D.  

We can dream big with our learning solutions, but if a learning culture is centered around completion rates and attendance, then learning is just performative. Not a lot of adults feel comfortable being a novice at something, and having a learning culture that doesn’t allow for a shared social experience or doesn’t offer continued support can only make people averse to learning—the very opposite of “being a learner is cool!”

A culture of learning is one that inspires a fierce desire to improve. It expects people to take learning into their own hands while making mistakes and using these same mistakes to derive powerful lessons. 

So what can you do to help create a culture of learning? 

I know I’m offering you more questions than answers, but if you were to take one thing away from this piece it should be this: employees have the right to feel curious and excited about learning. They should have the right to experiment, fail, and discover ways to improve. Let’s move past this notion that information equals action.

Sorry G.I. Joe, but you got this wrong.