Training Blog...

As a number of TTN speakers have said, if you really want to learn something from top to bottom, the best way to do it is to teach it to someone else. This forces you to really study, really get to know that subject – and the more you learn about it, the better you’ll be able to teach it. The more you teach it, the more you will absorb it. It will become ingrained in your mind, and the lesson, whatever it may be, will become second nature to you. It’s one of those great cyclical win-win things. Not only do you learn it really well, you also impart that knowledge to someone else. By giving your knowledge, you actually gain more knowledge. How cool is that?

For example, say there’s a TTN course you really like and really want to not only get those principles down, but want your employees to learn them, as well. Of course, you can just have them watch the course, but why not make a project of it? Print out the accompanying materials and guide your employees through the course. Discuss it. Ask questions. Answer questions. This way, the material will gain a more solid foothold in everyone’s knowledge base.

One of the challenges that can come with training is how to energize the employees who are doing it. The environment that we place training in, can often be just as important as what we are training on.

For an organization that is either new to training, or hasn’t offered it in years there is a simple and successful marketing tool I suggest.

Offer free food, and they will come.

“Lunch and learns” are a great way to jump start your training culture. With many of my clients, setting aside one day a month to provide pizza and a training topic have changed the way their employees view training, and the way their company offers it.

And the ROI is impressive as well. In a recent Lunch and Earn with a sales staff team, productivity within the group increased 180% in the first day! That’s an impressive amount, for a few well spent dollars.

How do you get experience, and how much of it do you need to become an expert? 

My friend recently posed this question to me. She is a recent graduate from college and is trying master the maze of job applications that need experience… but is facing the conundrum of how- do- you- get- experience- when- all- the- postions- you- apply- for- want- you- to- be- an- expert- already.   

I am sure that she is not the only one who faces this dilemma. We all need to gain experience, and there will never be a point where we are THE expert on a skill, idea, or job position.

No man was ever so completely skilled in the conduct of life, as not to receive new information from age and experience.     -Terence 

But how do we get from the point of inexperienced to expert? I think a common misconception is to believe that an “expert” can be measured by an ultimate accumulation of facts and figures. Not that these are unimportant (to write a book, I must first know how to spell). However I think a true expert is someone who is willing to constantly absorb the new ideas and learning experiences in their “expertise”. 

An expert is not one who knows, but rather one who is able to learn.

You may be an expert in sales, technology, or your profession’s leadership skills. But you didn’t always posses that knowledge you have now and if you only applied what you knew today ten years into the future… you would not still be seen as an expert.

Taking time to train and to learn our skills is crucial to developing ourselves. I will never know everything there is to know about communication. You will never have the perfect amount of leadership expertise. But if we continue to grow and meet the challenges that face us, we will know a little more each day then what we knew before.

As for my friend, she holds a wealth of expertise and experience on her resume today, compared to the little girl that I used to ride bikes with in our driveway. And she will continue to gain experience and become an expert as she continues to train and learn. Experience is the ability to learn and apply that knowledge… not a list of years working or the school you went to on a job application.

New year, new goals, new attitudes…….right?  Not always.  Has this ever happened to you?

It’s Monday morning; the sun is bright and you have an extra spring in your step.  You grab your coffee, get into your car and find that traffic is surprisingly lighter then normal.  You plan your day in your head.  You are going to tackle your “To Do” list one item at a time.  Staff meeting, conference call and your department training needs to be done this week.  Then your brain just stops.  The dreaded training.  You ask yourself, “How in the world am I going to get Howard to do the training?  I can’t get Howard to anything without complaining and bringing the whole team down.”

Ok, maybe it hasn’t happened like that exactly or in that order, but many managers struggle with a “Howard” on their team.  It doesn’t matter how you approach them or how exciting you try to make things, they are always going to find something to complain about.  The glass is always half empty.

If you Google the topic of “dealing with difficult people”, you will find many articles, tips, and training programs attached to people and companies that claim to have all the answers.  In the many years that I have been in Customer Service, I can tell you one thing….no one program or one article is going to give you all the answers.  This is an ongoing issue that managers of companies deal with every day.  Here are some small things that I have heard work from some of the people that I talk to throughout the day:

• Be aware of their personality style.  Communication with anyone goes a lot smoother if you are aware of the way the different personalities respond and react.
• Ask for their input or assistance in the areas that they have skills.  This will build trust and respect between both parties.
• Give them victories where you can.
• Involve them in a leadership role when possible.  For example, training, ask them to either lead the session or the discussion on the topic at hand.  This may open the minds of the others in the group as well as engage your “Howard” in the training that they really need.

If you try any or all of these will it always work?  I wish!  My hope would be that if you are aware and stay consistent you may start to see some small successes.  Your “Negative Nellie” may just turn into a “Happy Howard”!