Many years ago, I used to believe that trainers should only train what they really know about. I still think that now! Any delegate can spot a fraud that is making it up. I have managed people in various careers over the years - mostly I wasn't that good until I learned about coaching. However, I train management skills and I am upfront with my delegates, 'I am not stood here as an expert. You are the experts. My job is to offer you frameworks, concepts and ideas for you to evaluate against your roles now.'
I won't train anything that I don't know anything about - I know some trainers just say yes! I don't anymore. You only need that sticky moment once or twice where it becomes apparent to everyone in the room that you are literally a paragraph ahead of the delegates and the rest is just evidence of you talking out of your behind!
Here is the big however. I believe a good trainer can design ANY training. Once you have learned to adapt to different learning styles and you know how to structure training, you can design it.
Here are the design steps in a nutshell as far as I am concerned for ANY course:
- What is the purpose of the training? What are the objectives? In other words, assuming training is the right route, what do they need to know or be able to do by the end of the training that they can't do now?
- What exercise/role play/case studies etc. will bring out the learning needed for part 1?
- What questions will I ask them or method will I use, after the exercise/role play etc. to demonstrate that learning has occurred?
- What input do I need to give them before or after the exercise to prepare them for the exercise or cement the learning?
- What booklets/PowerPoint do I need to get ready?
As a memory device:
Outcome/objectives?
Tell/input
Exercise/activity/role play
Discuss and review questions or method.
Hope that is useful to you.
Take care
Paul
This week, I was asked to look at putting together a customer service course. I haven't run anything to do with customer service for years. I thought about where would I get all the up to date material from for the new course? (if it comes off)
Then I was reminded of the best design tip ever. Do nothing ...for a long time! Not having looked at the material for years was the best thing I could have done. I opened up the power point presentations and instantly I knew what to do to improve. It is easy to forget how much knowledge and techniques etc. that you learn 'along the way.' It was actually a joy to go through all the old material; keep the good stuff and bin the out of date material - very cathartic.
So, the best design tip ever is either ignore the material for years and then look at it. Or, if you can't do that, just give it to someone who has never seen it = same effect.
Take care
Paul
