Tips for Successful Programming I: Getting Started

Most of the activities presented on this website are unusual ... that is, they are not the typical activities that most adults are used to seeing in training sessions.  As training participants, we are comfortable with a polite round of introductions (your name and your business affiliation only, please), followed by an overview of the topic the trainer is going to address, followed by main points, sub-points, a dose or two of question and answer, review, conclusion and evaluation (yawn).

Not that there is anything wrong with those elements -- with certain types of training, these may achieve your objectives in the most expeditious manner.  But if your desired result is some type of behavior change, something more than mere head-knowledge is needed: you're going to have to find a way to engage the emotions and touch the heart.

So you've decided to use experiential methods - facilitating engaging exercises which explore personal and interpersonal boundaries, push comfort zones, and invite (or require) new behaviors for successful completion.  You've chosen your activities carefully and have sequenced them to achieve your training objectives.

But you're starting to have second thoughts.  What if they don't like it?  What if I can't pull it off?  What will they think of me?  Your group will be here in half an hour, and you can't envision the middle aged guy down the hall (who, incidentally, you have never seen in anything but a gray business suit) hitting a beach ball in the air with abandon.  Is it time to drag out the flipchart and hastily rework your training?

THIS WILL WORK.  GO FOR IT.  To succeed, you will need to remember / do these 9 "steps":

1. Know your activities.  These are your tools, so thoroughly understand the activity guidelines, the safety issues if any, and the connection with your content, i.e., the specific learning objectives. 

2. Remember that inside each 50 year-old there is a child just waiting to come out.  Most people want to learn; most would like to connect with their peers in a meaningful way; most would actually like to play; they just need the invitation and opportunity.  If you provide the setting, guidelines for safe physical and emotional participation, the example, clear instructions, and a pat on the back, they will happily go where you lead.

3. Know that some (a few) won't.  The success of your training is not dependant on each person doing each activity.   There may be a particular individual who, for whatever reason, won't get into a given task; you will probably encounter initial hesitation from many of your participants to your unusual approach.  MAKE THIS VERY NATURAL RESPONSE ACCEPTABLE.  In your initial explanations, note that folks may be a bit uncomfortable.  Explain that one of your goals for the day is 100% participation, but that each person is completely in charge of defining what that means: participation can be actively playing, or it may be engaging in the conversation, observing others who do the activity, and offering insight afterwards for the group's benefit.  Ask for their agreement on "100% participation" as they define it.  While seemingly nebulous, this agreement provides each participant powerful incentive to remain engaged and provides you a touchstone for inviting continued participation throughout the training.

4. Before your participants arrive, get centered.  Remember why you are doing this and what you will accomplish.  Put on your game face.  As participants are arriving, greet each newcomer and engage them in casual conversation.  As basic as it may sound, be friendly -- you are already setting a tone.  Make sure that you have completed all of your setup tasks so that you are totally available to your participants as soon as they begin to arrive.

5. Once all are present, begin with activity immediately.  You want to get the energy flowing in positive ways and allay initial fears and resistance.  Choose an activity that is similar to one that they might already know, has few rules, and is just FUN.  Moonball and Pairs Tag are two of my personal favorites.

6. Once the laughter has subsided, provide everyone a brief but global view of the training: why you're doing it, what you hope to accomplish, the basic agenda and time frames, etc.  Explain that the group will be attempting various activities and then thinking about and discussing their performance. You would also explain here your expectations in terms of participation (see point 2 above).  Keep it simple -- they will understand more fully as they participate.

7. If group members don't know one another, make your next activity a name game.  Everyone is more comfortable when they can address each other by name rather than by "Hey, you."  Wampum works here very well.

8. Model the participation that you want to see.  Play when you can.  Be willing to be less than perfect.  Laugh at your own mistakes.  Applaud others' attempts.

9. After each activity, provide a structure for your participants to review and evaluate their actions and interactions and apply the learning to future activities, both within the training and once they are back on the job.  This can be a small round-robin of comments, a training journal, a formal action planning process, etc., but make sure it happens; otherwise, you're overseeing recreation, not facilitating learning.

Am I guaranteeing that you will succeed?  Well ... yes, if ...

• you have carefully chosen activities that address your learning objectives;

• you know them well and present them in ways that make it safe for others to try;

• you model the participation you want to see; and

• you enable participants to connect their actions to their working world, you will be successful.  Your participants will have enjoyed their training, will have connected with one another in new ways, and will leave with an experience-based understanding of your content.