In order to stay in touch with what is going on in the Training Industry, I read a few blogs from other trainers. While reading one of these, I came across the following quote that had been attributed to the UCR University Honors Program in California, “While ever you are talking, you’re not listening. If you’re not listening, you’re not learning.” It encapsulated so well some of my thoughts lately.
As trainers, we are the speakers in most of our training sessions. In my job at Versitas, I am often in front of a classroom of students. I talk to the students at the beginning of the class and listen to their needs in regards to our goals for the class. For the most part, though, in my role as the teacher I do most of the talking. I realized that my profession puts me in a position to talk more and listen less in the classroom. However, as a technology trainer I am compelled to constantly learn and keep up with technology… to “listen” as the quote above references.
I realized how much of a balancing act I do in my career to turn off my trainer hat and consciously try to listen more to others and to learn more about new technology and training issues. On the days I teach, I go home in the evening and am not very talkative. My husband wonders what is wrong with me since on my non-teaching days I can talk his ear off. After teaching during the day, all I want to do is be “off the stage”. At those times, it is easy to just sit, listen, and learn.
Most of the times in my life, though, I am very content to be the teacher/helper/trainer. Like the above quote states, I need to listen and learn some times, too. I have to keep abreast of new technology to stay up-to-date. I have to listen to others in my field and outside of my field to hear their reviews and opinions of current and soon-to-be-released software.
In order to keep up with everything, I needed a plan or at least some tips to keep learning but in an effective manner. (If my family and friends are reading this, they are laughing because I always need “a plan”.) Below are a few tips that I employ to stay up-to-date.
1. Don’t just randomly read information. Find the blogs/websites of a few respected experts in your field. In my case, I found a few blogs of some internationally known trainers and consultants. They will be constantly scanning the horizon, enabling me to digest the summaries from their blogs.
2. Always keep a magazine or other reading materials with you. If I am standing in line or sitting in a waiting room, I can be learning something related to training or technology instead of just reading whatever is available.
3. Set aside time each week, maybe during your lunch hour or instead of watching a television show, to learn. After turning off the television more at my house, I realize how little I miss some of the shows that I thought I could not live without.
I know that these tips may not work for everyone. They are just my plan to help me learn more effectively and efficiently. I’m keeping up with new technology more, which makes me feel more confident when I’m teaching or talking with others. I hope some of these tips work for you, too!
Tags: software, teacher, technology, technology trainer, trainer, training industry, training issues, Versitas
We should all listen more and speak less. We would all be the better for it.
NPR Techonology? I will have to check that one out and add it to my podcast subsciptions!
I listen to NPR Technology podcasts while I’m driving… it’s a great way to keep up with the latest trends!