by Emeritus Professor (Dr) Gary Goh
The good news is that anyone with passion can become an inspirational trainer by following these seven tips, below. The bad news is that there are no shortcuts.
- Make the time: The world is constantly speeding up, and there are more distractions by the second. Trainers who make time to help and develop both their learners and one another will distinguish themselves from the rest of us staring at our mobile phones. Make the time.
- Be patient: It is easy to forget that not everyone has your wealth of experience. It takes time to develop new skills and understand new concepts. Modelling patience with your learners is a key technique to develop trust and create genuinely inquisitive minds.
- Be professional: Always demonstrate the highest standards of ethics, behaviour, work performance, punctuality, and manners. Where appropriate, dress sharply. While it is good to be down-to-earth with your learners, demonstrating the peak excellence to be achieved as a professional in your field will create a lasting impression and produce inspired learners. Expect excellence from your learners.
- Develop good questioning and listening skills: Being able to frame effective questions to encourage others to develop their thinking and problem solving skills is much more powerful than simply giving them your answers. Effective communication with learners will increase learner engagement with the subject, and learner engagement correlates directly with learner motivation.
- Develop Emotional Intelligence (EQ): In today’s competitive education marketplace, EQ is essential for commercial success. Coaches, mentors and trainers can assist learners tremendously by developing EQ skills such as etiquette, protocols, managing emotions in self and others, and negotiating. Inspirational trainers must also model these behaviours.
- Encourage goal setting: As an inspirational trainer, you need to help your learners zoom out and get a bigger picture about what possibilities lie ahead. What are your learners’ aspirations and hopes? What are their lifelong dreams? Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither are successful careers. Help your learners plan their career trajectory by encouraging them to set realistic, staggered goals for future success.
- Follow up, follow through: Take time to provide continuous encouragement and feedback to your learners, help them stay on track with their goals and objectives. This will set you apart from the pack. Whether it is throughout the training, or prior to an assessment, simple follow-ups like an email can radically shift your learners’ desire to succeed.
This article was contributed by Emeritus Professor (Dr) Gary Goh, who is an Australian Author, Educator and Entrepreneur.