This question swirled in my mind at a one-day “training the trainer” seminar in Chicago. We want our adult learners to retain what we’ve imparted to them. Our training is supposed to meet their needs. So, how can we help our trainees apply the principles they’ve learned to address those needs?
“Practice and repetition!” the seminar leader emphatically said. We need to be practicing what we’ve learned and to keep on repeating it until it becomes a habit. Of course, this is not a new idea, but it bears repeating.
If we’re training writers, they must keep on writing and applying the writing principles to produce excellent articles or novels. If we’re training editors, they need to keep repeating the best editorial practices to help their local writers come up with life-transforming books. Publishers should keep on implementing the applicable ideas and insights for a successful publishing ministry and business. We trainers want to help men and women practice what they learned in our training. Practice, repeat, make adjustments, practice, repeat, make adjustments….until the principles become part of their system.
After a workshop or seminar, we need to follow up our learners to see how they are doing with their calls-to-action. We should write them emails, call, send letters to encourage them. I appreciated the phone call I received from the company rep one week after the training seminar in Chicago.
What other ways can you help your learners apply what they’ve learned from?
–Ramon Rocha III, MAI director of publisher development