Sometimes the biggest barrier to practice is not motivation. It’s having someone available when you are ready to do it.
That is especially true for skills that require interaction. You can study interview techniques, conflict resolution, or public speaking on your own, but practicing them usually requires another person.
In a traditional educational setting, that often means waiting until the next class, finding a partner, or scheduling time with an instructor.
On-demand practice changes that equation.
The Best Time to Practice Is Not Always During Class
Learning does not happen on a perfectly predictable schedule.
Sometimes you finish a lesson and immediately want to try what you learned. Other times, something does not click until later that evening. You might also realize the night before an important event that you could really use another practice run.
That was definitely my experience when applying for my first job after college. I did have help from my school’s career center and did several sessions with a staff member named Bill. Bill was great, but he wasn’t available to help me practice late at night before a big interview. (Side note, Bill is great and we actually still talk.)
Flexible learning tools give learners more control over when that practice happens.
That flexibility is not just a convenience, it’s a necessity. Research by Gallup has shown that taking time away from current responsibilities is one of the biggest obstacles for training. In some cases, giving people the ability to decide when they are ready to engage can remove one of the biggest hurdles to learning.
I Had Help, But Not Everyone Does
Thinking back to my own experience, I was one of the lucky ones.
When I was preparing for interviews, I had Bill to help me practice. Having another person willing to go through interview questions with me gave me a chance to say my answers out loud, hear how they sounded, and get more comfortable before I had to do it for real.
That kind of help is incredibly valuable.
It is also difficult to build an educational program around everyone having a Bill.
An instructor can run mock interviews, and classmates can practice with each other, but those resources are finite. They may be available Wednesday afternoon when the class meets, but not Sunday night when someone has an interview Monday morning.
Technology cannot replace the value of a person who is willing to help. It can make access to practice much less dependent on whether that person happens to be available.
On-Demand Practice Makes Repetition Easier
Availability also changes how often someone can practice.
If every attempt requires coordinating with another person, learners naturally have fewer opportunities to repeat an exercise. When a simulation is available whenever they want it, trying again becomes much easier.
That matters because the second attempt is often where things get interesting.
You can recognize the question that threw you off, approach it differently, and see whether the new strategy works better. Then you can do it again.
That kind of repetition is much easier when practice does not depend on someone else’s schedule. Learners can keep going while the experience is still fresh instead of waiting days or weeks for another opportunity.
Practice Should Be There When Learners Need It
Classroom instruction, instructors, coaches, and peers remain important parts of education.
On-demand practice does not need to replace any of them. Instead, it fills some of the space between those interactions.
Sometimes people need an instructor.
Sometimes they need a Bill.
And sometimes they just need a way to practice right now.
