Effective Training and Development

1: Ask: don’t assume or guess what people want - ask them.  Find out what they want, and what works for them (or doesn’t)

2: Process or outcome?: some people are motivated more by results - the destination: others, by how they feel, and how engaged they are - the journey.  Find out which, if either, matters most, then focus on that.  If you don’t know, then work to deliver both…

3: Deliver what they want: put yourself out to put others in.  If it matters to them, and is no/low cost to you, just do it

4: Remove blocks: yes, focus on the postives, but also tackle the negative.  If they are clear about what they want, then why isn’t it happening?  Find the obstacles to achievement, and work to get rid of, or past, them

5: Focus on soft resources: research (and my experience) shows that what really matters are the things that you can guarantee to provide as an individual: support, guidance, respect, valuing them as an individual….rather than material things such as money or equipment…

6: Share the journey: it can be a lonely road, travelled alone.  Offer to share the trip.  Be there with them - or help them find a buddy…

7: Build self belief: a lack of belief or confidence can be a real block.  You may have faith in them, but they don’t.  A good way in is to find other areas or aspects in their life where they have been successfully motivated…

8: Reward and reinforce: praise, acknowledge and celebtrate success - each step forward matters, and so does your recognition of it.  Be genuine and sincere: take pleasure in their progress

9: Strategy can be key: many people know what they want, but not how to get it.  Others work hard to achieve - but are using the wrong strategy.  If the drive and determination is there, along with the talent, then look hard to see if it’s the strategy that’s flawed.  If it’s not working, then it’s not the motivation, it’s the strategy - so change it

10: Out there or in here?: as well as process or outcome being important (see 2 above), it may be important to have a desired ’state’.  For some, it isn’t about what they want to achieve externally (out there), but more about how they feel about themselves (in here) - their personal state.  It may be more important for some to be, rather than to do….to be happy, be content, be fulfilled, be at peace…