Why have them? and how can they be used differently in virtual training? Although some people don’t enjoy them, icebreakers play a vital role in live training whether that's face-to-face or virtual. It’s difficult for people to contribute when they don’t know who each other is, so it’s a good way of introducing everyone to...
As training designers we often get into conversations about intellectual property and copyright of training materials. Most L&D professionals - especially independent ones - are very precious about their material and don’t want anyone else (not even their clients) to have it. But in this Netflix age, I do wonder if it's possible to copyright...
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Why are training designers often asked to work for free? I know times are hard, but more and more freelance consultants are being asked to put in a CONSIDERABLE amount of design time into work that may or may not come off. Freelance facilitators know that not all their time is paid for, that they...
As a rule, we human beings like to have an easy life. There is a well-known law in physics that states that an object moving along a system will always choose the path of least resistance i.e. it will naturally select the route that is easiest to negotiate. People are no different. It doesn’t mean...
When I created a guide for a client in 2020, to help theri middle managers move up to senior leadership, I summarised key points from all my reading into single sentences - focusing on practical actions. You can DOWNLOAD THE LIST HERE There are also a couple of very good articles that you might find...
It's one of the most common questions asked by L&D practitioners - ESPECIALLY those who aren't dedicated designers. Does it REALLY take a long time? What is normal? Are you being inefficient or unrealistic? What tips can help you to design training effectively and efficiently? Well, in a series of videos, drip-fed in the Facebook...
Creativity has always been important in learning design - but we are looking at it with fresh eyes in their new virtual world. But what do we mean by creativity and why does it matter?
I've long been a fan of using case studies in training events. But first, let’s clarify what I mean by a case study. I’m not talking about a retrospective account of something you (or someone else) did to demonstrate good practice. Leave those for the marketing people. I’m talking about a fictitious scenario that people...
To many people detailed design is lots of slides – or at least slides with notes. Many L&D professionals don’t do further than creating what I would call an outline for their sessions. This is risky (and a missed opportunity) for all the reasons I quoted in the last blog. However, they may do this...
