5 psychological tricks to get your employees learning right away!

Employees want to develop, but in practice it often doesn't happen. Deadlines, busy schedules and other priorities cause learning to keep fading into the background. The result? Important skills are not developed, growth fails to occur, and organizations run risks due to a lack of up-to-date knowledge.

But why do employees put off learning even when they know it is important? This has everything to do with human behavior and psychological barriers. In this blog, we dive into the psychology behind upskilling and provide practical strategies to get employees to move.

1. Make learning instantly valuable

People prefer immediate rewards to long-term benefits. An urgent e-mail feels more important than an online training course that won't bear fruit until later. This psychological effect causes short-term tasks to always take priority, so learning is always delayed.

How do you solve this?

• Provide immediate applicability: offer short, practical learning moments that employees can use immediately in their work, such as a microlearning about a commonly used software functionality or a short video with a concrete tip.
• Capitalize on rewards: use gamification, such as badges or progress bars, to give employees an immediate sense of progress.
• Use "learning in the flow of work": ensure that employees do not have to make separate time for learning, but that they have immediate access to training when they need it.

2. Lower the mental threshold

When employees already have to process a lot of information in their work, learning feels like an extra burden. This leads to cognitive overload and procrastination.

How do you solve this?

• Make learning manageable: long, intensive training sessions are not effective. Short, bite-sized learning interventions of 5-10 minutes (microlearning) work better and fit more easily into the workday.
• Create a continuous learning culture: make learning a regular part of the workday rather than an extra task. This can be done by using learning platforms that combine training and work.
• Encourage interactive learning: active learning, such as hands-on assignments or peer learning, makes it easier to remember information and reduces cognitive load.

3. Create urgency and commitment

When learning is not immediately necessary, people put it off. Without a deadline or mandatory certification, it doesn't feel urgent, putting it low on the priority list.

How do you solve this?

• Use deadlines and reminders: plan learning objectives and send notifications or reminders to activate employees without making them feel pressured.
• Make the impact visible: share examples of organizations left behind due to lack of knowledge or of colleagues who received a promotion or new opportunity thanks to upskilling.
• Create social pressure and accountability: set up internal learning groups and involve executives to regularly ask about progress. People are more likely to continue learning if they know others are following their progress.

4. Remove the fear of failure

Some employees avoid learning because they are afraid of making mistakes. This is especially common in complex topics such as AI, data analytics or new technologies. 

How do you solve this?

• Create a safe learning environment: make sure that making mistakes is seen as a valuable part of the learning process.
• Use playful and approachable formats: gamification and interactive simulations help employees practice new skills in a safe way without fear of real consequences.
• Reward the effort, not just the result: make sure employees get appreciation for their learning efforts, even if they don't perform perfectly right away.

5. Make learning personal and relevant

People are more likely to learn if they see immediate relevance. Generic training often does not work as well as personalized learning programs.

How do you solve this?

• Use AI-driven learning paths: let technology help provide personalized courses based on employees' roles, interests and achievements.
• Encourage autonomy: let employees choose their own learning path within established frameworks. When people experience control, they are more motivated to continue learning.
• Link learning to career development: make visible the link between upskilling and promotion opportunities, so that employees know what learning brings them. Share cases of colleagues who gained new positions or responsibilities thanks to additional training.

From procrastination to action with SkillsTown

Learning to procrastinate is a natural behavior, but with the right strategies you can break it. By integrating learning into the workflow, applying personalization, making learning active and leveraging psychological triggers, you can make upskilling an automatic and engaging process rather than a deferred task.

Want to give learning a permanent place within your organization? SkillsTown helps you with smart digital learning solutions that make upskilling effortless and impactful.

Schedule a demo and find out how to get employees to learn!

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