Hey

It’s because imagery is so important to us that we can use it very effectively in the coaching world.  Imagery and visualising images is such an important tool that I can’t believe I haven’t written on it until now…Ooops!  I aim to remedy that right now with this blog, I hope you find it interesting…as always, please feel free to drop me a line if you’d like to discuss further – very competitive rates!  LoL.

So, what is visualisation?  I’m glad you asked that – visualisation is generally considered to be any technique that creates images, diagrams, pictures or animations to communicate a message.

Visualisation through imagery has been used to communicate ideas since the beginning of man (and that’s way before I was born).  We all know of cave paintings, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Greek geometry and the list goes on.  Visualisation nowadays gets into the worlds of science, education, engineering and even interactive computer based multimedia.

The cool bit is that those images or those pictures don’t necessarily only have to live outside in the world around us; they can live inside our own minds too.  Sounds kind of obvious huh? Well, it is really; we all picture things much of the time – we even do it when we’re asleep.  So, why don’t more of us know how to control these images?  Why aren’t more of us visualising the things we want more often?  Well, maybe because I haven’t written a blog on it until now!! (Here I go again!).

Ok, so now I’ve rambled on too long.  Wouldn’t you like to know how to expand your ability to visualise?  Wouldn’t you like someone to provide you with some easy steps so that your powers of visualisation increase almost overnight?  Do you want to know how?  Ok, ok I’ll get on with it:

There are 4 real parts of visualisation that I’ve outlined.  You can learn and practice them whenever you like really, but as soon as you start I can guarantee that you’ll see things differently (See what I did there?).

1.    How Often?

Frequency – The first aspect of visualisation is frequency.  This is number of times that you visualise yourself performing in an excellent way.  Just the same way as, if you beat yourself up too often you’ll end up believing it, the opposite applies too (cool huh?).  The more frequently you repeat a clear mental picture of your very best performance or result, the more rapidly it will appear as part of your reality.

2.    How Long?

Duration – The second element of visualisation has to do with the length of time you can hold the picture in your mind each time you replay it.  If you’re really working at this, you might be able to hold a mental picture of yourself performing at your best for several minutes, or even longer. The longer you can hold your mental picture, the more deeply it will be impressed into your subconscious.

3.    How Clearly?

Vividness – This third element of visualisation has a direct relationship between how clearly you can see your goal in your mind and how quickly it transfers into your reality.  When you set a new goal for yourself, your image of this goal will probably have been vague or fuzzy, or even in black and white or grey…just not too clear at all. However, the more often you repeat it mentally, the clearer it becomes for you.  Have you ever witnessed this?  Try imagining the image as a TV picture…Huh?  What are you talking about Shaun?  Haha, relax…with a TV picture you can simply pick up the remote and alter any of the picture qualities whenever you wish…can’t you?  Well, the cool thing is that you can do this with your mental images too.  Just form the image of a contrast switch, a colour switch, a volume switch or any switch that you can control.  If your image appears in black and white simply adjust your colour switch, if the image is fuzzy simply adjust the contrast and so on…try it…it works!  Eventually, it will become crystal clear. At that point, the goal will suddenly appear in your world exactly as you imagined it.

4.    How Intensely?

Intensity – The fourth element of visualisation has to do with the amount of emotion you attach to your image.  Some people might argue that this is the most important and powerful part of the visualisation process. Sometimes, if your emotion is intense enough and your visual image is clear enough, you will immediately achieve it.

Watch out though, the whole process can help you or it can hurt you. Like nature, the power of visualisation is neutral.  It’s a double-edged sword so make sure you appreciate that it can cut in either direction.  Visualisation can either make you a success or make you a failure – like always, it’s up to you really. Visualisation brings you whatever you vividly and intensely imagine, whether good or bad.

Have fun with this, but first another word of warning – if you’re practicing this on the train make sure you know the person sitting opposite or those faces you’re pulling are going to attract more attention that you’d like.

Stay safe.

NLP offers many things to its followers and practitioners.  It’s all about expanding choices; wouldn’t you like to have more choices?

One way to expand thinking and to reveal other choices that might have been previously hidden from you is to think ‘differently’.  The process of reframing can be as complicated as you like, but essentially it’s about looking at things in a different way, it’s about taking yourself out and looking back into a situation as an observer…to be honest, it’s about lots of things that I’ll hopefully get around to writing about one day (hopefully).

Here’s a little metaphorical tool that I came across a long time ago and have used to great effect in many situations.  You will have read my past posts on the use of metaphors and you already know how powerful they can be.  This one is a metaphor that helps to reframe thinking and provide motivation.  Feel free to use it with your clients.  It works especially well for those who are stuck in a rut or require a kick start to examine their options…ALL of their options.  I’ve made it into a Pdf for you to save you a bit of work –  just click here.

It goes like this:

Imagine that you have won money in a competition:

Each morning your bank will deposit £86,400.00 into your private account just for your exclusive use (for those of my readers in the USA insert $). 

However, this prize comes with conditions.

The first set of conditions :

1. Everything that you didn’t spend during each day will be taken away from you.
2. You may not simply transfer money into some other account.
3. You may only spend it.

Each morning upon awakening, the bank opens your account with another £86,400.00 for that day.

The second set of conditions:

1. The bank can end that game, without warning; at any time it can say, “It’s over, the game is over!”
2. It can close the account and you will not be able to open a new one.

What would you personally do?

You would buy anything and everything you wanted, right?   Not only for yourself, but for all the people you love, right?  Even for people you don’t know because you couldn’t possibly spend all that on yourself, right?  You would try to spend every penny and use it all, right? 

ACTUALLY, THIS GAME IS ALREADY YOUR REALITY!

Each of us is in possession of such a magical bank.  We just can’t seem to see it. 

THE MAGICAL BANK IS TIME ITSELF.

Each awakening morning we receive 86,400 seconds as a gift of life and when we go to sleep at night any remaining time is NOT credited to us.  What we haven’t lived up that day is lost forever.  Yesterday is gone forever.  Each morning the account is refilled, but the bank can dissolve your account at any time…AND WITHOUT WARNING.

Well…what will you do with your 86,400 seconds?

Aren’t these seconds worth so much more than the same amount in pounds? 

Think about it…and while you’re doing that always rethink about this:

Enjoy every second of your life because time races by so much quicker than you think. 

Take care of yourself and enjoy life…go on, try it, I promise it’ll be good.

Until next time.

I haven’t written much on the L&D side for a while so I thought I’d put something together that dealt with one of the fundamentals of the L&D world.  This blog is designed for those L&D Professionals out there who have years of experience (us old ones) and those that are relatively new to the game (you keen ones).  We’re in a world of ‘weights and measures’, of squeezing ‘more bang for your buck’ and of accountability; Return On Expectations (ROE) is one of those measurements that, if done correctly, will keep those in the boardroom happy (well as happy as they’re ever going to be) by demonstrating the degree to which your training satisfies their expectations.

I’m still surprised to this day of how many ‘Train the Trainer’ packages out there simply miss out a whole block of learning around evaluation and measuring stuff in general.  If you’re looking to develop yourself into the training world then my advice would be to steer clear of training courses and packages that fail to even mention Kirkpatrick’s tried and tested model of evaluation.  Now, I can’t claim to own any of the Kirkpatrick model, but I’ve given you a brief rundown on the elements below to help (Well, this is as good a place as any to throw it in):

The Kirkpatrick Model

Level 1: Reaction

This measures to what degree participants reacted favourably to your learning event.  This sort of thing is usually measured on a ‘happy sheet’ or ‘not so happy sheet’ if you’ve messed up.  I can tell you though, in my experience, the CEO is not interested in whether or not your delegates liked the finger buffet or that there was a bulb out in the training room.

 Level 2: Learning

This measure illustrates to what degree participants acquired the intended knowledge, skills and attitudes based on their participation in your learning event.

Level 3: Behaviour

(sometimes spelt ‘behavior’…it’s American!)

This level is about measuring to what degree participants apply what they learned to their job.

Level 4: Results

And finally, this level is designed to measure to what degree your targeted outcomes occur as a result of your learning event(s) and subsequent reinforcement.

You’ll sometimes see Kirkpatrick’s levels of evaluation the other way round, starting at level 4 and moving back to level 1 and there’s a reason for this.   You can see that these levels (3 & 4) are really the juicy ones that the CEO, Directors and all the hangers on will get excited about.

So, let’s go a step further now and look into the juicy levels in more detail.

Start at the end! (Huh?) 

Ha ha… let me explain… Showing the value of training begins before your programme even starts.  You need to be absolutely clear on the Level 4 results that drive your organisation.  This is why any L&D professional worth his salt has several fingers in several pies all at the same time!  Don’t panic though because these drivers are nearly always associated with sales and profitability or mission accomplishment in a non-profit organisation.

You could consider such things as retention, customer satisfaction and/or sales targets.  Concentrate on these sorts of ‘bigger picture’ elements and you’re well on your way to generating ROE.

You can’t go far wrong if you sit down with any stakeholders during the planning and investigation process and establish clearly what evidence is required at each level to show your training is a success.  Don’t leave that meeting until you pin them down in defining measurement methods, tools and techniques before you even start designing.

In the past, (and I’m guilty of this too), learning professionals have focused most of their efforts on training events (Levels 1 and 2).  It took me a while to realise (isn’t hindsight a wonderful thing?) that the largest ROE actually occurs after your training and on the job … this is the Level 3.  It’s kind of a ‘no-brainer’ then that you must work closely with other managers who will be overseeing work on the front line.  This is easier said than done because managers are very busy people and a significant proportion of them are looking for some level of improvement in performance near to the bloody miracle level!  Beware of weak managers who only too quickly blame your training for low levels of motivation, performance and communication in their team…this is down to them!

So, in order to get the best possible results (and to provide you with an umbrella) all of those things needed to drive things forward must already be in place.   These things include any processes and systems that reinforce, monitor, encourage or reward the performance of agreed critical behaviours on the job.

As a consultant I’ll always look at those relationships between the training department and other departments around the business because these relationships are the best predictor of programme success.  Only a joined up approach to training is going to deliver ROE, if this isn’t in place then you’re training programme is more of a jolly than a professional learning intervention.

Here’s some figures ZZ^zzzZZZ_z…

Training events alone typically result in only 15% transfer of learning to on the job behaviour (Brinkerhoff, Robert O., “Training Impact Evaluation Senior Managers Believe and Use,” Get Zeroed-In on Learning and Measurement, Issue 6, 2006). Yes, someone has actually measured it…rather them than me!!

Here comes the interesting bit though ‘The successful implementation of the required drivers creates the other 85 percent of learning transfer required to accomplish ROE’.

So, there you have it…Spend less time on cutting the crust off the sandwiches (Levels 1 and 2) and more time thinking about on the job involvement after training (Level 3).

Some people love lists and bullet points, so I’ve summarised my ramblings below…with bullets:

• Make sure that the evidence to be collected is defined clearly at the beginning of the project by the stakeholders and your data/evidence/feedback is collected throughout the process.
• Make sure you have a variety of such evidence so that it creates a story that is easy for everyone to understand and appreciate.
• There will be no ambiguity surrounding which evidence is important and what results should be highlighted because you’ve created the plan and carried it out in partnership and agreement.

If all else fails…make sure you ask the boss, “What will success look like to you?” 

We

Haha, I can hear you all now, “Bendiness? That’s a new word, he’s finally tipped over the edge, Shaun – has officially – lost – it”.

I thought I’d explain a few things about comfort zones, as I understand them. Those trainers out there can use this explanation when setting out your ground rules at the start of your sessions. Those coaches out there can use this information to safely stretch your clients and those psychologists out there can…well…just can.

It speaks for itself really; a comfort zone is an area where we feel comfortable. In our comfort zone we perform well and feel confident. We begin to feel uneasy and even frightened when we move outside this zone. People get anxious and fearful simply because they’re stepping out of the psychological boundaries they themself have created.  Limiting ourselves in this way prevents us achieving our ultimate performance and success (whatever that is!). Therefore, it’s wise to clearly identify, challenge and expand personal comfort zones.                                                                                                                  

So, why do we need to expand our comfort zones at all?

Well, because what is comfortable for you now will, at some point, become a limitation. We all had to leave the comfort of the womb in order to grow and develop our potential. Think of another, more recent time when you were forced to move out of your comfort zone, for example when accepting a promotion or bungee jumping, now think about where it took you and the final destination.

So, here’s my take on it…

…It helps to think that there are actually 3 zones:

1. Comfort zone
2. Stretch zone
3. Panic zone

Now, if you think of these 3 zones set up as concentric circles. The inner circle is your comfort zone, the second circle your stretch zone and the outer circle your panic zone.  Can’t think?  Here’s a picture – Click.

The best place to learn is in your stretch zone. We don’t learn much in our comfort zone…we’re generally lazy like that. We also don’t learn much in the panic zone, or at least we’ll concentrate on only learning what we need to escape the panic zone; this learning doesn’t have to be permanent. So it makes sense to help people come out of their comfort zone and sit in their stretch zone. However, the stretch zone isn’t really that comfortable…come on… if it was comfortable it’d be called the comfort zone surely?
Because the stretch zone isn’t normally that comfy, we don’t have to stay in it. We can dip in and out. When we dip out of our comfort zone into the stretch zone the boundaries are blurred and, if done correctly, the boundaries between the two zones can be flexed… or bent. ‘Bendiness’… Things are sounding better now aren’t they?

When working with a client or group of learners, it’s your job to bounce them into their stretch zone and then return them safely to their comfort zone, keep doing it and the boundaries between the two flex and the result will be an expansion of the comfort zone… so, in other words, the more you do this bouncing the more you become comfortable with whatever you’re bouncing with.

How do we expand our comfort zones?

Try this exercise on for size:

1. Identify 3 of your comfort zones…and write them down.

This first step will allow you to identify and examine your limitations. What is holding you back? Are there things you want to do, places you want to go? Yet somehow you speak about it, know the theory, but just don’t take action. These are your comfort zones. For example, you may lack discipline in your fitness plan, or, as in my case, you might be fearful of letting go of your monthly salary to start your own business. Come on…You know where you are holding back!

2. Name a comfort zone you are ready to challenge…and write it down.

Pick one comfort zone you are ready and willing to change. Break it up into chunks by answering the following three questions (you can add more):

How does it hold you back?
What are your fears?
How do you know you are ready to change?

3. Face the fear and expand.

You see, the thing is, comfort zones are relative; they are merely the limited perceptions of our minds. Comfort for me might be stagnation for another and my advance is another’s retreat. We have nothing to fear in overstepping the boundaries we have created in our own minds.

Next, clearly list the actions you could take to expand your comfort zones. What are you going to do differently in the next 7 days?

You’ll need to be specific about dates and what support you will need.

I hope this article helps. Remember, you are the author of your own life; you create your own destiny. As you break down your barriers and allow for bendiness, confidence and passion emerge and grant you nothing but Forward Motion.

Hey

People frequently use metaphors to describe how they feel and what they want.  As a coach, it’s all well and good knowing the theory behind things, but unless you practice, practice, practice the best you can ever hope to be is a book worm!  I think there are enough worms out there in the world, so what I’m going to do in this post is to develop your understanding of HOW to use metaphors effectively.  If you’re coaching already and not using metaphors to their full potential this will rocket you to another level (anybody see what I did there?).  To paraphrase Einstein’s thoughts of creativity: no problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.

So here goes…

You might be one of those people who think of metaphors as simply a creative way to get a message across or just a story, a tale, or a load of mumbo jumbo.  If you think this way you might also be asking, ‘Why is Shaun writing about this subject in the first place?’  And I’m glad you have asked because nowadays many linguists and psychologists believe that metaphors are far more than this; you should jump aboard.  I agree with the chain of thought that metaphoric description may be a closer representation of what’s really going on in our minds. They’re more about describing our thinking patterns and structure and less about fairy tales and stuff like that. 

Now, it has been estimated that the average person uses several metaphors in every minute of conversation, but, in my opinion, this isn’t the whole story.  This statistic doesn’t really tell us how many unexpected metaphors are used.  By ‘unexpected’ I mean the metaphors they don’t realise they’re using but still use them as an integral part of their thought structure.

Like me, the best facilitators and coaches are discovering that Clean Language can have extraordinary results (well…if I don’t blow my own trumpet, who will?).  Clean Language is a questioning process created by the psychotherapist David Grove.  It enables a deeper self-examination and investigation of a client’s own thought, habits and perceptions and allows them to go on to find their OWN unique solutions.  Just click on David’s picture to check out a bit more about Clean Language.  

This is the cool bit…By asking clean questions relating directly to the metaphoric content of a client’s conversation you will automatically deepen thinking.  I guarantee you’ll be astounded at the deeper level of thinking and understanding you can achieve in your sessions…and more importantly, so will your client.  It works because you’re focussing attention on the structure of their thinking and experience, rather than the same old problem-content thing that they’ve thought of in the same old way many times before.  The different level of thinking can’t do anything but lead to different kinds of creative solutions.  How cool is that? 

So, have you ever come across a client who has…well…sensitive issues?  I can tell you that this is a really useful way to explore difficult or sensitive issues because the client gets to describe the metaphors in detail without needing to worry about explaining the ‘sensitive’ stuff to you. 

Here’s how it goes…

Right away you can begin to take notice of how often metaphoric descriptions come up in day to day conversations.  Just start listening to other conversations- I find MacDonald’s is great for this.  The way the seating is arranged (back to back) just lends itself to ear wigging…Umm…I mean coaching development…LoL.  Here are some examples you’re likely to hear:

‘I feel like I’m banging my head against a brick wall’

‘She’s closed herself off from me and I don’t know how to break through’

‘I need a bit of a jump start’

In a coaching session you need only ask a few simple Clean Language questions when you hear a metaphor.  Ask questions that’ll enable the client to become more aware of their metaphoric thinking.  I apologise to the more seasoned coaches out there for teaching you to suck eggs, but a reminder never did anyone any harm; when using Clean Language in this way, generally you want to repeat the metaphoric words to the client EXACTLY how they used them, don’t worry about bad grammar or misplaced words, repeat it EXACTLY.  Even better if you can match the tone, volume, pitch and speed too.  Here’s an example to give you a better idea of what I’m going on about:

“You’re off balance today.  What kind of off balance is that off balance?  Make note of whatever the client says next and repeat back their words.

Then ask, “And when you are feeling off balance, is there anything else about feeling off balance?”  Continue to explore whatever the client says, paying particular attention to the metaphoric language they use.

So there are only two questions to remember:

1.  ‘What kind of ***** is that *****?
2.  ‘And is there anything else about that *****?’

Shaun says:  Some people just don’t use metaphors so frequently.  It doesn’t mean that they don’t think this way, just that they may not be able to consciously access these thoughts too easily.  When you ask questions around any metaphors these people do use, they’ll skirt around and offer lots of conceptual descriptions or they might even try to completely change direction…anything rather than develop their metaphor further.  If this happens to you, work with them on whatever comes up, even if there are no metaphors.  Be very patient and wait for when they do give you a metaphor, don’t miss it, work patiently on it.  When these types of people eventually ‘get into’ their metaphors, they get a massive kick out of it… Result.

Hope this helps.

Have fun on the metaphor rollercoaster.

Hey everyone, I hope you’re well?  It’s a busy time for me, I’ve been away for a while and so I’ve been thinking of something special to write about so that I can make it up you.  So here goes…I hope you like it.

The NLP related articles I’ve written before have been very popular, so I’m going to talk a bit more on NLP this time too.  The NLP allergy cure is a closely guarded technique among NLP Practitioners out there.  I don’t know why some people protect information like this.  I like to share and believe in OPEN information to all.  

Huh?  I can hear you asking, “Why is Shaun writing about allergies?”  Well….if I told you that I’m one of the unlucky few people who suffer from Hayfever ALL YEAR ROUND, I need say no more.

After we look at what an allergy is, I’m going to outline an effective technique that will help those allergy sufferers out there.  The technique does assume some prior NLP knowledge and practice; so I’ll make you a deal – if you don’t understand something or need some more explanation just drop a comment and I’ll get back to you…or you could always email me at shaun@shaunmaloney.com (NO SPAMMERS PLEASE…I don’t need Viagra!).

What is an allergy?

If you have an allergy it’s your immune system reacting to a substance(s).  Some people, for example count themself allergic to cats, dogs, peanuts…and the list goes on…I even had one client who claimed she was allergic to her husband!  Now, it’s fair to say that we know these things aren’t poisonous.  I’m no chemist, but I can categorically state that a peanut is not poisonous!  But…if you have an allergy your immune system mistakenly treats a non-dangerous substance as a threat and reacts accordingly and that’s when you get the sniffs, runny nose, itchy eyes…and all the rest.

“Can we fix it?…Yes we can”…

Quite simply, we can use NLP to re-educate the immune system.  So here goes with a few tips.  Be sure to read the footnote after this list…it’s important.

• First you must calibrate the allergic response because you need to know what you’re dealing with.  Try to work out what triggers it and pay very close attention to the person’s physiology (breathing etc).  I find it helps to ask the person, “How do you know you have an allergy?”  Don’t accept weak answers, you need to drill into them and pick it apart to be clear on the allergic response.
• Be ready to anchor the response and as with all anchors you should test it at this point.  This is a great party trick by the way…you only need these two steps to make someone sneeze, for example,  just by triggering their anchor…not sure it’s ethically acceptable though. 
• Now it’s time to re-educate your immune system.  The good thing is that it’ll quickly learn how to function more effectively.  Just re-frame the allergy as a mistake.  
• Always check for ecology so that you know all is OK.
• So, now you’ll need to anchor a resource.  This just means how the person would like to be in this situation.  Don’t forget to make this resource stronger than the allergic response or it won’t stand up to the competition.
• Ask the person to see themself responding differently in these situations.  Do this at least 3-4 different times.  Some of you will know this as dissociation
• Then re associate.  Carefully calibrate as you hold the resource anchor and notice the changes.
• Future pace. 
• Test. Imagine the allergen and re calibrate to notice the changes in the physiology. 

Shaun says:  “Be a professional – When setting anchors make sure you always have a safety anchor.  It’s safe and good practice.” 

As a busy performance coach, it’s inevitable at some stage in the relationship with my clients that we come up against beliefs.  It’s a massive subject area but there are those coaches out there who labour on it so much that those of you starting out in the coaching business might often feel daunted (come on you know you do, I was there too once).  I reckon it to be a bit like hairdressing… huh? … Hairdressing?

Haha – I know what you’re thinking…you’re thinking, here goes Shaun again, off on one of his rants, but let me explain a little – don’t send people around to my house to take me away just yet…hear me out.

Have you noticed that hairdressing has become almost a science?  It’s not really.  It’s shrouded in made up names for concoctions of chemicals that simply colour your hair.  There are apprenticeships, NVQs and goodness knows what else that qualifies someone to cut a bob…or whatever it’s called.  My point is that hairdressing seems awfully scientific and complicated to me.  It seems to me that a hairdresser would need at least a degree in rocket science in order to do all this ‘hair stuff’…yet, the reality is, they don’t have a degree do they?  The hairdressing world has talked itself up so much by shrouding itself in scientific names, a huge range of products (that are basically the same), different levels of stylist that will cut your hair in a million and one different ways and it goes on…but hey… You’re worth it.  Now, before I go on and on and blog about hairdressing (How did that happen?), the coaching world has done the same with beliefs.  I’m not denying that it’s a super important aspect to get to grips with in the coaching relationship, but it ain’t rocket science and, if I’m honest, it ain’t that hard.  Anyone who tells you different is probably a ‘hairdresser’ type coach anyway.  Don’t listen to them… You just get cracking on.

To help you though, I have done a little something based on the ‘Belief Cycle’.  I can’t claim the ‘Belief Cycle’ idea as my own, but I’ve read loads of stuff on this subject over the years and so I’ve rewritten it, the wording’s a little easier to understand, I’ve taken out the pseudo rocket science and stripped it down to the bare bones ..There’s no hairdressing on this site (just look at my profile picture!  Haha).

Those of you who have just started out in coaching and those old sweats alike will hopefully find this useful…feel free to download it on Pdf and weave it into your own practice.  Find your own methods, find your own way carefully and logically and you won’t go far wrong.  Don’t be discouraged or scared by those ‘hairdressing coaches’ and corporate coaching schools and academies that try to make things sound harder than they are to make you feel like the new guy and them to feel big and clever.  Enjoy.

There are loads of training books out there.  Many are very wordy, some make a real meal out of explaining something and a few are far too wordy and plain boring.  Most, however, concentrate on training content, delivery and methods.  Not a lot include anything on training design.  I’ve just had a thought…this may be why so much training is really pants!  Ah hah! … I see an opening for a book here. 

I’ve been doing a truck load of designing recently and so I got to thinking that maybe it would be useful to blog something about the design process.  So here is an overview of the points to consider when designing a training programme.

Some might argue that the design of training is the most important aspect of preparing a training course or workshop.  Hopefully, those L&D professionals reading this will already know that design is the second element of the well-known training cycle (Do I need to tell you about this?).  Training design is usually a natural progression from clear knowledge of the training needs.  Training needs are obtained by one or more or the many techniques for TNA and I’ve written on this before. 

Before starting to design any training at all, you absolutely must be clear about whether training is likely to be the answer.  Many managers search for training as an excuse/remedy for their own failings in managing people and as the L&D professional you must have the courage to be able to explain that ‘XYZ’ is not a training issue.  Training can only bridge the capability gap.  If the problem is caused by anything other than knowledge or skill deficiency then something other than training is required…like a conversation without coffee for the manager?

So, what is instructional design?

Many years ago, when I started out (with more hair too), the term ‘instructional design’ meant simply that the training course had a rather rigid and formal structure.  It’s still the case for more technical training sessions but thankfully, we’ve moved on a bit since then. 

Today, many current learning interventions are much less clearly defined.  They often follow more of a workshop route and trainers use facilitation techniques.  But, you’ll still need a plan.  You’ll still need to cover outcomes and the best ways of achieving them and the only way to get there is to do some designing.

Designing training step by step

I’ve made another free resource for you to download in the resources section of my website that you might find useful, but what I’ve done here is to break down the design process into 7 easy steps…just in case you can’t be bothered to download the Pdf.

1.  The initial idea – from an internal problem or open course proposal.

2.  Identify the needs – usually by carrying out a TNA

3.  Always link training to business objectives – essential to ensure management buy in and to keep the training real.

4.  Design the learning solution – covers training strategy and methods.

5.  Produce the material – detailed design of content, handouts, training aids, workbooks etc.

6.  Pilot the solution – run an exploratory course to test the feasibility and discover any problems, then feed back into the course design process.

7.  Evaluate and review – discover the value of the training and feed back the lessons learned.

I hope this has been useful. 

Don’t forget there’s a free download that you’ll find helpful…just click here and like magic it’ll appear.

Right…I’m off to carry on designing the next best thing in L&D.

Hey

…I have written a bit about influencing in the past, but strong interpersonal skills include influencing ability and great listening skills.  If you’re not sensitive with each of these skills you’re almost certainly going to end up in conflict.  You’re also highly likely to meet resistance in your teams instead of the higher performance you need.

How many newly promoted managers have you known that have jumped straight in and wielded their new power?  You’ve never come across that?  How lucky are you? Call it ‘Power hungry’ call it ‘Small man/woman syndrome’; unfortunately, it’s quite common for new managers to feel the need to demonstrate their newly-acquired authority and they seem to spend most of their time either trying to outdo their predecessor, slag off what was done previously and/or start to walk faster around the building than they used to.  You know how much it upsets you, so start working on a way you’re going to prevent this happening when you’re promoted (call it a life goal if you like).

I’m not really that religious but I am a big believer in “what goes around comes around”.  Thankfully, managers who see promotion as an opportunity to wield power can erode their own success and often lose credibility in the long term.  I take a sadistic pleasure in watching these ‘Titanic Managers’ go down – I know I shouldn’t but hey – What goes around comes around…Right?

On a more serious note, taking an approach that can, at best, be described as ‘autocratic’ and, at worse, ‘aggressive’ almost always leads new managers into hot water – you’re just not always around to see it.  It mainly manifests itself in feelings of low team morale or reduced team effectiveness, or both.

Interpersonal Skills – Quick Tips.

If you’re a manager of a team (newly-promoted or not) be crystal clear about the stage of development your team is at.  Is it forming, storming, norming, performing or adjourning? If you don’t know what Bruce Tuckman says about Team Development let me know and I’ll blog on it.

Consider what you can do to improve your listening skills. Are you really listening?  Do you listen to understand or are you listening to answer?  The latter is not so good…try looking out for people near you who simply listen to answer…they’re probably the managers you dislike most.  It becomes so annoying once you notice it, so be careful it doesn’t tip you over the edge.  If you dislike all your managers (or even yourself maybe) my suggestion would be to get out quick, take a holiday or learn some effective stress relief exercises…Or all 3!

Make sure you summarise your conversations before you shoot off to your next “I’m important” meeting.  It allows your conversation partner(s) to know that they’ve been heard and it also fixes it in your own mind.

If there’s something you’re not too sure about then just say so.  It’s not a sign of weakness (quite the opposite).  Go and find out and make sure you brief back.  Be sure to let your team know you’re going to do this or they’ll go and find out for themselves and likely miss you out of the loop.

That’s it for now, it’s been good.  Let me know if you want more.  I’m open to suggestions too.

Look after yourselves out there…it’s a crazy world… but fun too.

It’s nice to know that so many people are reading my blogs and even better now that I realise how far spread apart you all are geographically.

There’ll be more to come soon (there’s a lot in my head for such a small space!)

Stay tuned and thanks again.

Shaun