Tip #357: Make Training Preparation Easy

In diagnosis think of the easy first. Martin H. Fischer

In response to last week’s Tip, “Make Learning Sweet,” Joyce Doakes Smith, CPM,
Quality Oklahoma and Productivity Enhancement Programs Coordinator, Office of Personnel Management had this wonderful idea to add:

“I do much of what you have listed (no kites on the wall, but I have seen yours). Additionally, I have created two long slide shows (over 200 slides each) that run before class, during breaks, and over the lunch period. One is trivia information (strange laws and interesting facts) and the other is all pictures (from optical illusions to sand and ice sculptures). Other than being careful of the copyrights and credits it’s easy to do and the participants love it. It helps makes learning sweet!”

Thank you so much, Joyce!

There are lots of ways to make training preparation easier on ourselves. Here are three I've learned:

1. I have a checklist of materials I typically bring for training programs: fragrant markers, pipe cleaners, Koosh balls, kites, post-it notes, index cards, bowls and candy, prizes, agenda map, masking or gaffer’s tape, poster putty, straight pins, bell chime, annotated table of contents, printout of PowerPoint slides, clean copy of participant masters, digital camera, etc. I just check off what I need. It doesn’t matter how often I train, if I don’t have an item written down, I can easily overlook it.

2. When making flip charts ahead of time, Danny Papakalos showed me that it is very easy to create a colorful border on the page by holding two different colored markers in the same hand.

3. When creating PowerPoint slides, Caroline Chen showed me how to easily copy text and formatting rather than starting from scratch each time.

What are your tricks for making your training preparation easier?

May your learning be sweet.

Deborah

Tip #350: Avoid Mistakes When Using Audiovisuals in Training: Don't Misuse Them

“Experience is the name we give to our mistakes.” Oscar Wilde

Trainers have a plethora of audiovisual options from which to choose. Some trainers don’t realize that there is more to life than PowerPoint. They also overuse or misuse audiovisuals. Here are four mistakes that trainers should avoid.

Mistake #1: Consistently using AV to entertain rather than educate

Trainers who flash through a large number of funny but irrelevant slides are wasting precious training time in the same manner that a trainer who begins a session by telling lots of jokes that have nothing to do with the training itself.

If you are a trainer, your mission is to educate. It is just fine to make your training program entertaining, but make sure that the audiovisuals you use relate to and do not detract from the training content. For example, if you use accelerated learning techniques, you might have a slide or cartoon that relates to the metaphor for the training, such as a photo of people white water rafting for a stress management class. You may use entertaining photos, animations or cartoons that reinforce a key point.

But please don’t use so many bells and whistles with your PowerPoint slides that the participants are focused more on the movement of the text than the content of the text.

Mistake #2: Reading the AV with your back to group

There are four things wrong with this picture. First, it is never a good idea to have your back to the participants. It is typically not our most appealing side. Second, when you face away from the group, it breaks contact with the participants. Third, it makes it hard to hear your voice. Fourth, there should only be a few key points up on the screen. So if you have to read the slide, there is probably too much content on it.

Mistake #3: Not using audiovisuals to supplement a lecture

If you are giving a lecture (or better yet, a lecturette), then the reason should be that you have information none of the participants possess. That being the case, you will be providing new learning that needs to accommodate different learning styles. The aural learners will be very happy with the lecture. However, without text, color and/or pictures to view, the visual learners will be left wanting. So make sure to use audiovisuals to supplement your lectures.

Mistake #4: Not using flip charts effectively

Flip charts are wonderful audiovisual aids when they are used properly. Write large, using colors easy to see, such as blue, purple, black, or dark green. Make sure that each page has a title, because we typically use flip charts when we want to retain and post key information.

Use a page for only one topic. Do not save paper by writing different topic points on the same page, even if there is plenty of extra room on the page. It will confuse the participants. Consider jazzing up the flip chart by using colorful markers to create a frame. Try holding two different colored markers in one hand as you frame the page.

Avoiding these four mistakes and using audiovisuals properly should improve your training delivery and presentation. In next week’s Tip, we will add four more mistakes to avoid when using audiovisuals.

May your learning be sweet.

Deborah