{"id":10141,"date":"2015-02-11T13:45:38","date_gmt":"2015-02-11T12:45:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.targettraining.eu\/?p=10141"},"modified":"2015-09-11T15:24:51","modified_gmt":"2015-09-11T13:24:51","slug":"learned-trainer-participant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.targettraining.eu\/de\/learned-trainer-participant\/","title":{"rendered":"What I learned about being a trainer when I was a participant"},"content":{"rendered":"

I recently took part in a management training workshop. Aside from what I learned in the two days, it was very interesting to be a participant for once and not a trainer! As a participant, I was able to experience the training from a different perspective. Sometimes I felt a little bit nervous, especially during role plays. I hadn’t expected that. It certainly got me thinking about how I could transfer my experiences of being a participant into my training.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Encourage questions and check understanding<\/h3>\n

From time to time I didn\u2019t understand the task that was set and I was always relieved when someone else asked the trainer to clarify what we had to do. It took a while for me to get comfortable enough to ask questions when I was confused. As a trainer, I can keep this in mind and make sure to check that everyone understands their task, or give people an extra minute to ask questions.<\/p>\n

Power to the participants<\/h3>\n

One person in my group insisted on keeping his mobile phone turned on throughout the workshop and was constantly using it. The trainer asked a few times for him to stop using his phone but it wasn\u2019t until I got annoyed and asked him, a fellow participant, did he understand that his behaviour was impacting other people. He then put his phone away. This was interesting for me as I would have normally thought the trainer carried the most authority in the room.<\/p>\n

Encourage learning after the session<\/h3>\n

I was encouraged to read through my notes a few days after the workshop had finished. It only took a few minutes but it really helped me to remember what I had learned. That would be my top tip for learning. It sounds simple but actually finding the time to do it is another thing. In future I think I will make an Outlook appointment with myself, even if it is just for 15 minutes. I will encourage my participants to do the same.<\/p>\n

Short breaks<\/h3>\n

It was tiring being a participant. What really worked for my concentration was to have multiple short breaks. Even a break of just a minute helped me gather my thoughts.<\/p>\n

\"jonnyround\"