When you live what you teach, magic happens

Ever sat through an online learning course, staring at endless videos, your eyes glazing over, slowly losing the will to live?

Enter a tax lawyer and a musician.

Sounds like the beginning of a joke, doesn’t it?

Back in 2004, they decided to upend the rather dismal world of online learning.

They imagined something far more interesting: a place where people could learn from each other and enjoy the experience.

And that’s how Cahoot Learning was born. Their entire learning platform is built around engagement.

So, when I was invited to present a storytelling masterclass for a team that knows a thing or two about keeping people engaged, I relished the challenge. No pressure!

The entire team works remotely and this was their first time gathering in person.

Well, almost.

Scott joined us remotely on a laptop. The team had stuck a large A4 photograph of him above the laptop, which I found so endearing.

I’ve presented plenty of hybrid sessions where the poor person joining online might as well have been on another planet.

Not Scott.

He was very much part of the action.

At one point, I asked a question and someone immediately piped up, ‘Let’s ask Scott!’

Poor Scott. Even from a distance, he couldn’t escape being volunteered by his colleagues.

One of the participants (I use the word loosely) was Honey, a gorgeous reddish Labrador puppy who’s training to become a guide dog.

She arrived with her own little rug and squeaky toy, occasionally contributing sound effects to the proceedings. At lunchtime, we met one of the team members’ six-month-old baby. Dad and baby popped in to say hello.

There was something so 2026 about this session. One person joining us remotely, a guide dog in training, a six-month-old baby making a cameo and all of us in a Melbourne laneway hotel so hip it practically hurt.

And then, just as I was explaining the importance of specificity in storytelling, the waiting staff appeared with everyone’s very specific coffee orders. Almond latte, three-quarter full. Soy cappuccino, no chocolate.

The timing was exquisite. I swear I hadn’t paid the hotel staff to demonstrate my point.

Driving home, inspired by a team that practises what it preaches, I found myself asking: do you live what you teach?