Training can be stressful to run, whether you are a seasoned Trainer, or have been thrown in the deep end by one of your colleagues. In this article, I share my top tips, based on what I have learned along the way.
Spend 90% of your time preparing the training, and 10% of your time delivering it.
Preparation is the key to training. This helps you to feel less nervous on the day, than if you just decide to wing it. In training, things usually don’t go to plan, so the more organised you are, the better you can cope with the unexpected things that crop up.
There is nothing worse for you, or for the candidates than if you aren’t organised and are frantically scrambling to get set up and deliver.
Be flexible and agile
Things hardly ever go to plan in a training session. Whether its extra candidates turning up, some not turning up, timings thrown out – anything usually can and does happen.
Getting stressed about it rarely helps, so focus instead on being flexible and agile. Take everything in your stride and persevere – the candidates will love how laid back you are.
Be inclusive and engaging
I say this almost every time I open my mouth to talk about training, but I can’t say it enough. Training that is not inclusive or engaging is training that no-one wants to attend.
If you intend on talking at your audience or showing them 1000 PowerPoint slides (and reading off them), people will cringe the next time they are told to attend your training.
Practise, Practise, Practise
Practise your training, record yourself and practise some more. The more you practise and watch yourself back, the more tweaks you can make, to deliver dynamic and engaging training. This is also a good way to notice your own body language, mannerisms and other non verbal cues that you might otherwise not be aware.
Ask for feedback
Trainers sometimes don’t ask for feedback – either they don’t want to know, or they find it awkward. Feedback is such a great way for you to learn where you can improve and see what people love about your training. Candidates also feel valued when asked for their feedback – that they matter (and of course they do!).
I hope you have enjoyed my top tips for running training. If this is not your forte, or you cringe at the thought of running training, it’s a great idea to reach out to someone who does this really well. If I can support your organisation, please reach out – [email protected]
