Forever in the Groove

Instructional Designer, Lisa Emmington, puts lifelong learning on repeat.

Lifelong learning. It’s like sending all your vinyl to the charity shop in the 1990s, then regretting it 20 years later. Life is full of lessons, and for me, they arrived in unexpected shapes and seasons; from a dodgy car deal in a pub car park to becoming a Microsoft Certified Trainer, from teaching reluctant teenagers to mentoring the next generation of instructional designers.

I was reminded of this recently when a letter dropped through my door about a company pension scheme I joined at 20. I wasn’t in the job long, but now, as I turn 60 this December, it means I’ll receive a tidy little tax-free bonus and a monthly income that will just about cover my fuel costs. Nearly-60-year-old me is very happy that 20-year-old Lisa made that decision!

But if you’d asked that younger version of me what 60 would look like, she’d never have imagined this. Back then, 60 was the retirement age for women. And yet, here I am, still freelancing, still learning, still curious, with no intention of stopping anytime soon.

Lessons behind the wheel

At 20, I had just learned to drive. With my boyfriend (now husband of 36 years), I’d bought a car, a house in a new city, and started a new job. The car was my first real-life education: don’t buy cash-in-hand from a stranger in a pub car park. It led to a crash course in buying parts from scrapyards, using jump leads, and how to report it stolen when it went for regular outings with joy riders.

Navigation was the next classroom. Milton Keynes, with its grid roads and endless roundabouts, was a maze. I taped a Post-it map to my steering wheel, flipping it upside down to find my way home. I got lost, often, but I adapted. Over time, the city became home, and I learned to trust my sense of direction.

Finding my calling

The job that funded that pension letter wasn’t glamorous. I’d abandoned teacher training after three days, realising I’d made the wrong choice. I landed a secretarial role instead. One day, I attended a training course and had a lightbulb moment: this is what I want to do!

Around the same time, shiny little Apple Mac IIs appeared on our desks with almost no instructions. I was captivated. I tinkered, experimented, and before long, became the go-to tech helper in the office. That was the spark: I wanted to train people in IT.

But enthusiasm alone doesn’t get you hired.

Enter the YTS scheme, the government initiative that took on inexperienced trainers for a pittance. My baptism of fire was teaching 16-year-olds who didn’t want to be there. It was tough, but two years later, I had experience under my belt and doors began to open.

Building a career in tech

Commercial IT training was no easier. If I wasn’t in front of a class, I was preparing for the next one. But the grind paid off. Within a few years, I became a Microsoft Certified Trainer and a Certified Lotus Engineer. By 29, I’d met my goal of going freelance before 30, by just four months.

Freelancing opened new doors. While working with a client, I stumbled into the emerging world of eLearning. What started with curiosity soon became a passion. I pursued it seriously, earning a TAP Diploma in eLearning from The Training Foundation and a Professional Certificate in eLearning from the University of Chester. Two decades later, I’ve designed countless programmes, courses, and resources and I’m still learning every day.

Learning, then and now

Today, my journey has shifted again. I’m working with a business coach to move into mentoring new instructional designers and supporting small businesses with eLearning tools. Outside work, I started dance lessons in my 40s, dog training with my two spaniels in my 50s and was signed by a later life model agency last year.

The data backs up my instincts. The IMF’s World Economic Outlook (April 2025) found that a 70-year-old in 2022 had the same cognitive health score as a 53-year-old in 2000. The Learning and Work Institute’s Adult Participation in Learning Survey 2024 revealed that more than half of UK adults (52%) are either currently learning or have done so in the last three years.

The message is clear: we don’t stop because we get old, we get old because we stop.

A note to my 20-year-old self

If I could go back, I’d tell 20 year old Lisa not to worry so much. It really does work out. I’d tell her to embrace each lesson, whether it’s how to bump start a car, how to survive a room full of reluctant teens, or how to reinvent yourself at 40, 50, or 60. And I’d add one last piece of advice: hang on to that vinyl collection, you’ll still be adding to it when you’re 60!

Lisa Emmington is an instructional designer, eLearning developer, dog lover, dancer and later life model. Not necessarily in that order.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisaemmington