You know the drill. That office memo goes around detailing upcoming training and almost simultaneously there is a collective groan coming from all the cubicles. Employees are already bored and it hasn’t started yet. They are dreading the lectures that drone on and on never seeming to make a point and the only thing they are looking forward to is the catered lunch.
But it doesn’t have to be that way, nor should it be! Training has gotten a bad rap over the years because most organizations thought the only option was to provide cookie cutter curriculum modules as their employees’ eyes glazed over and they absorbed absolutely nothing of value. We’re here to tell you that your training should be inspiring. Your employees should walk out feeling totally pumped and ready to do their jobs with a renewed energy. And the way to accomplish that is by creating a purposeful, meaningful curriculum that actually resonates with the people who make your organization tick.
Think about it. If your training initiatives aren’t oozing inspiration, how will your employees?
With these nine steps you’ll be well on your way to wow-ing your employees instead of leading a training snoozefest.
9 Steps to Make Training Exciting
- Know your business – Where are you and where do you want to go?
- Study your people – What do they need to help reach company goals and what will resonate best with them?
- Leverage existing internal & external resources – There are times you need to start from scratch and times you can use what you’ve already got. Figure out what is going on in your company that works and keep it!
- Make it varied – Mix it up. Everyone gets bored with the same thing over and over so vary the types of training, how it’s delivered and anything else you can to keep things fresh and new.
- Make it tailored – Don’t make different departments fit into a training box. Instead, cater training to each one and it will be so much more relevant and effective.
- Involve your managers – Bring your managers into training planning and execution so they feel invested in the curriculum and their team’s success.
- Explain it before you launch it – Nothing is worse than coming out of left field with something you want your company to grasp and put into practice. If they know what to expect in advance, they will have an easier time and be much more receptive.
- Deliver it in bite-sized pieces – Short, digestible chunks of information are much easier for employees to wrap their heads around than long, convoluted gobbledy goop.
- Never give up on sustainment – Initiating a successful training curriculum is the first step. But maintaining it is just as important. Check in with your folks and put processes in place to make sure that training actually sticks.
The moral of the story is this – training does not have to be boring. It should be the exact opposite, actually. Any curriculum you expose your company to should be highly engaging and motivating. It should feel invigorating, not stale.
What do you do to make your company’s training and curriculum more meaningful and effective?
