As I contemplated the "target audience" of this writing I realized its contents have a broad reach. Conceptually, these thoughts can be applied to the educational process as well as to “corporate America.” I will make three separate applications of this thought, first to the educational learning environment, second to the corporate America consumer engagement process, and lastly to leadership in general.
The focus - Emotional Connectivity.
What I believe to be true is that Emotional Connectivity matters, truly matters. Copious amounts of research accompanied by my own personal experiences have taught me that students learn best when they have a safe emotional connection to their teacher and the learning environment. Emotional connectivity is the gateway to learning.
You may recall that in the opening statements I wrote that this concept has a broad reach and can also be applied to corporate America. Considering that, I also believe that consumers are more likely to purchase a good or service when they have – or - perceive they have - an emotional connection to a company’s representative or brand. This is what great brands like Disney unequivocally understand. It is their top priority.
Consider these three thoughts:
- Emotional connectivity is the gateway to relationship.
- Relationship allows opportunity for meaningful engagement.
- Meaningful engagement opens the gateway for a person to choose to learn, grow, and improve.
Consideration #1
In the illustration below are three major components. The student, the teacher, and the educational content. These three interact in an interchangeable fashion. Each component brings unique value to the other:
The sub components are relationship, expertise, and relevance. When a student has a safe and appropriate relationship with a teacher, and, that teacher is an expert in their content, and, the student sees and understands the relevance of the content because of innate understanding of the teacher's ability to convey it, the stage is set for meaningful engagement. It is on this "stage" where there is an opportunity for learning, growth, and improvement.
Consideration #2
Next illustration:
In this illustration there are also three major components: the consumer, the employee, and the product or service. These three interact in an interchangeable fashion. Each component brings unique value to the other.
The sub components are relationship, expertise, and relevance. When a consumer has a safe and appropriate relationship with a employee, and, that employee is an expert in their product or service line, and the consumer sees and understands the relevance of the product or service, the stage is set for meaningful engagement. It is on this stage where "brand" is built and "products / services" are sold.
Consideration #3
Next illustration:
In this illustration there are also three major components: the followers, the leader, and the value proposition of leadership. These three interact in an interchangeable fashion. Each component brings unique value to the other.
The sub components are relationship, expertise, and relevance. When followers have a safe and appropriate relationship with a leader, and, that leader is an expert in their "value proposition" of leadership, and followers see and understand the relevance of the value proposition associated to the leadership philosophy at hand, the stage is set for meaningful engagement. It is on this stage where leadership thrives, "brand" is built and "products / services" are sold. It is also on this stage where much, much more can occur.
In my next few writings I plan to explore these ideals in more detail. The "take always” that I hope you have from this writing are that:
- The concepts of emotional connectivity are relevant in both the educational world and the business world.
- Business and education share similar paradigms that have remained - and still remain - in strong and separate silos for many years. Each silo can complement each other and those compliments will become more necessary in the next decade.
- Meaningful engagement matters, in all settings, and is created by relationship, expertise and relevance.
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As always – if you would like to learn more about this topic or book me to speak or with your organization, operators are standing by!
As always – if you would like to learn more about this topic or book me to speak or with your organization, operators are standing by!
Visit the website at www.docentus.com
Follow me on Twitter - @ronniemo66
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