Learners aren't the problem. We are.

There is a complaint I constantly hear from L&D teams:

• “Learners just aren't motivated anymore.”

• “Attention spans are shrinking.”

• “They don't apply what they learn.”

I get why it's tempting to say this. It removes the responsibility from L&D teams.

But it is a cop out and I think we need to say that out loud.

When a movie bombs, nobody says the audience had a shrinking attention span. The director owns it. The writer owns it. The studio asks hard questions about what went wrong.

So why, when a training fails to engage people or change any behaviour do we point at the learners?

We designed the program. We chose what was in the room. We decided the format, the length, and what people were asked to do with it.

If our learners are disengaged, that's a design problem not a people problem.

I'm not saying learners are blameless. People have to want to grow, and organisations need to create the right conditions for them.

But it's L&D's job to design for humans as they actually are: distracted, busy, skeptical of another mandatory training. If we design for a highly motivated, fully focused learner with hours to spare, we're designing for people that don't exist.

Motivation follows good design. It doesn't precede it.

The question isn't: How do we get our learners to care more?

It is: Are we putting something in front of them that's worth caring about?

And that's on us to answer.