Delivering results and creating value for the company should be a very important goal for every employee. But investing in learning is valuable for long-term growth. So, learning to balance the two is key for engineers. We can break down this problem into two separate categories since the answers are quite different.
1. When learning new things and delivering results are aligned, there is no real dilemma since you can achieve both by performing the same set of activities. In other words, you can learn new things while you are actually working on delivering results.
Let’s take an example. Imagine you are asked to lead a large technical project which requires you to develop a deep understanding of scalability and distributed systems. For an engineer who is actually interested in learning about scalability and building large systems, this is a dream scenario! You are not only allowed to learn but you are required to do so in order to succeed. For engineers who require a bit of a push to learn new things, this acts as a great forcing function. Since this is clearly a win-win situation for the company and the individual, it usually leads to better outcomes. So, managers should think deeply about this alignment when making staffing decisions. Sometimes assigning the best engineer to the biggest project may not be the optimal outcome for all involved.
2. When learning new things and delivering results are NOT aligned, it can be quite a challenge to figure out how to spend your time. More often than not, engineers will find themselves in this situation since it is not always possible for organizations to perfectly match opportunities to individuals’ learning interests.
In this situation, I would argue that engineers should prioritize delivering results over learning new things. Engineers who are willing to do this demonstrate commitment to the mission of the company. In doing so, they generate a lot of trust and goodwill that will help them in getting more opportunities down the line which are more in line with their interests. Once you have built enough trust by delivering results, you can also get creative by finding alternative things for you to learn within the constraints of the project. Let’s take an example.
Imagine your goal is to learn to build machine learning models. But your current project may not have a need for machine learning. In this case, you can try to think of other things you want to learn that are possible within the project (The faulty approach here is to try to use ML for selfish reasons when there is no need for it and end up complicating the project). If one of your other learning goals is around picking up management skills, you can mentor/manage other junior engineers on the project by learning to delegate tasks and holding them accountable for delivering results. Since there are always multiple things to learn, changing your mindset to look for other learning opportunities can help you think positively and avoid feeling like a victim. (Of course, if you have exhausted all learning opportunities and there are none in the horizon, then it may be time to consider a change in scenery)
It is always possible for engineers to make time for learning new things outside of their regular responsibilities. But more often than not, it has to be done on their own time (this may not be sustainable for some) since not all companies are supportive of investing time into learning without a tangible benefit to the company. So, trying to find creative ways to do that as part of your day-to-day work can be a more valuable and realistic approach long-term. Good luck!