Here at Wellknown, there are a few things that have brought our team members closer together. We’ve bonded over a shared love of reading (looking at Lolli, Hannah, and Emily here), an interest in walking and the great outdoors, cooking, crocheting, and pretty much anything that sparks our creativity.
One thing that we’re all united by is our love of learning.
Why’s learning so important to us?
Because we want to create the best possible learning experiences.
When we’re learners ourselves, we can put ourselves in our learners’ shoes when it comes to designing great online experiences.
We’ve all encountered boring eLearning (and cursed the time we’ve had to waste scrolling through it!). It’s our mission to relieve learners from the click-next curse and do something different with what we put out into the world.
As learners ourselves, we feel the pain that comes with poorly executed eLearning, and we’re constantly striving to create the antidote.
Because we know there’s always more to learn.
We may be masters of our craft, but there will always be room for improvement. If we didn’t continually push ourselves to be better, we’d be failing our clients and their learners.
We acknowledge our weak spots and tackle them head-on to make sure we can each become even better at what we do. Whether it’s our leadership skills, communication, writing, or creative skills that could do with being sharpened, we’ll always make the time to dive into targeted training that can help us to hit our goals.
Because it’s fun!
It’s true — we love to learn! Whether it’s to pursue a personal interest or enhance our professional development, when we remain committed to keeping our learning journey on track, we expand our horizons, open doors to new opportunities, become better equipped to help people — and we have fun doing it.
How do we keep our commitment to learning?
By pursuing learning opportunities outside of work.
At Wellknown, each member of our team is equipped with their own personal learning plan, allowing them the time and space during the working day to follow a path of professional development.
Additionally, a few members of our team choose to take their learning one step further…
Meet Lolli!
By day, Lolli is our dedicated Communications & Marketing Lead, putting her years of copywriting and marketing experience into action and helping us spread the Wellknown word.
By night (and on the weekends), Lolli studies for her PhD with the University of Leeds! For her research, she explores how complex narratives are impacted in the process of text-to-film adaptation.
“I’ve always felt more like myself when I’ve been in education,” explains Lolli. “I honestly couldn’t imagine my life without it.
“Even though I’ve always put a lot of pressure on myself to achieve good grades, it’s a different kind of pressure for me, and I think it’s an environment that really helps me to thrive.
“I also studied for my undergraduate degree and my Masters by Research with the University of Leeds, so it’s really nice to be back! I took a year out after graduating with my Masters, and I’ve been itching to get stuck into my PhD ever since.
“It will be five years of part-time study while I balance my research alongside my responsibilities at work, but I’m determined to enjoy it as much as I’ve enjoyed every other learning experience, and I know it will definitely be worth all the hard work!”
In her free time, Lolli exercises her creativity by compiling her own arts and culture magazine and editing novels for independent authors. She’s also an active supporter of the local live music scene and enjoys learning Spanish with the help of a little green owl…
Adam also loves to learn!
Having recently taken on a new role within the team, stepping back from course builds to look at the wider picture for the business, Adam has dedicated a lot of his time in and out of the workday to learning more about business operations so that we can scale up more effectively.
“It’s been really fascinating to move away from the daily tasks of running a business and have the opportunity to focus on big-picture plans and strategies,” says Adam. “There’s been a definite learning curve for me, and it’s one that I’m still riding as we push forward into the next exciting phase for our business.
“One thing I’ve been making a lot of time for is reading the books of people who have also been in this position, trying to launch a relatively young business with a dynamic team of talented, remote-working people.
“The book I’m reading at the moment, and particularly enjoying, is Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman. I’ve found it really valuable in shifting my mindset in the way I think about work and the tasks we need to tick off every day.
“There will always be work that needs to be done, new technology that needs to be researched, and innovative methods of approaching challenges — but it’s best to see it as a river that you can become and travel along with, rather than something to fight against or get to the end of.
“It’s a great book, and one that I really recommend!”
And Hannah can’t get enough of learning!
Hannah is the woman at the helm of Wellknown. Whilst a lot of her time is spent keeping the company cogs turning, she never misses out on a learning opportunity!
“Learning is a really important part of my life,” says Hannah. “One of my biggest drivers is that I love to see people succeed; whether that’s someone I work with, someone in my friendship group, or anyone else I know. It gives me a fire in the belly to see people doing well, so if there’s anything I can do to help people by way of sharing a learning opportunity, I am there!
“I believe that learning helps people to tap into their own potential. It can help to create aspirations for the future and empower people to see themselves in roles or positions that they didn’t really think were for them. I spent too much of my life with that mindset, thinking that things weren’t for me and just not having the confidence to pursue my aspirations or put myself out there for new opportunities, but I’m not that person anymore thanks to the learning I’ve undertaken.
“I think because I’m so busy at the moment I don’t have as much time to actively pursue learning as I’d like, but I always try to take opportunities as and when they arise. When I’m doing something I enjoy, like walking to work or doing the school run, I’ll stick a podcast on or I’ll mull over a problem that I’m looking for a solution to — because even problem-solving is learning.
“Sometimes in your workday you get unexpected opportunities for learning, where something will happen and you become a reflective learner, thinking about why it happened, and considering what you might do differently next time. In this way, I suppose learning incorporates itself into my day whether I seek it or not, which I’m all here for!”
By staying on top of the latest trends.
Whether it’s a new eLearning design software, a new take on an old approach, updated pedagogical methods, or emerging learning styles and ways of addressing different needs, we do what we can to keep an eye on developments in the industry so we can stay up to date with the latest trends and make sure our learners can benefit as a result.
By treating every day as a school day!
It’s an idiom for a reason — because it’s true! Never a day goes by where we don’t learn something, either about ourselves, our work, our clients, or their learners. By approaching every day with an open mindset, we can make sure we’re receptive to changes and new opportunities; learning by doing, and learning from our mistakes.
By getting regular feedback from our clients.
Client feedback provides rich ground for learning — whether it’s 100% positive, or there have been a few pain points. Whilst negative feedback is never what we hope for, we make sure to take it all in our stride and address any points for improvement directly, grateful for the opportunity to do things differently.
Ready to put your next eLearning project in the hands of people who love to learn?
We’re always excited to hear more about what you’re working towards. If we sound like a good fit for your next project, why not drop us a line?