Training is the act of giving new information and instructions to learners or trainees to teach them new skills. The trainer must adopt the best training practices that are suitable for different learners.
A training session is incomplete without a trainer, especially for beginners. Most trainers are not born teachers but learn through undergoing training sessions as well. A trainer who lacks interest, passion, energy, and enthusiasm while training ends up wasting the trainees’ time as well as his.
A successful training session requires the trainer to maintain the highest level of discipline possible regardless of training, whether physical or workforce training. The relationship between the trainer and the trainees determines the level of success of the practice. A good trainer knows the strengths and weaknesses of his students and acts as their motivator.
As a trainer, you need to ensure the weakest learners reach their full potential even if not reaching the same status with the best, but you need to encourage them to their level best. I will now take you through learning principles that trainers and coaches should possess.
1. Getting the Message Across
The first thing a trainer needs to know is the understanding capability of the trainees and possible interference with the learners. Trainees differ in their comprehension skills. Some are good at oral communication; others prefer written while another group like presentations and gestures.
Once you identify your trainees’ learning abilities, you need to focus on eliminating all communication barriers that may hinder your training. A good trainer should maintain a logical flow of information and use gestures in the right manner. Body language and spoken communication go hand in hand to drive the message home but can confuse your trainers if the two are not compatible.
2. Oral Communication
The second most crucial element of a good coach is speaking with clarity while explaining procedures and giving instructions. The way you give instructions can either motivate or frustrate them, whether you are training employees or you an aerobics physical trainer.
Speaking in a monotone attracts very little attention from the learners. Do not overload your points with irrelevant details but state the points straight away. Give concrete examples and references to success stories to make the training enjoyable. List all your points and then explain them in detail at a time using illustrations as much as you can. Get or ask questions from the trainees to make training interactive and interactive so that every trainee remains attentive and keen to answer any question that comes his way.
Ensure you understand questions asked by trainees before answering them and never make fun of a wrong answer from a trainee or a misunderstanding. Take questions lightly and not as challenges from the learners so that they can ask or answer quizzes. Avoid being defensive when a trainee criticizes or attacks you but remain objective to maintain credibility with your trainees. Always rehearse or note down your points to avoid forgetting or repeating yourself while training.
3. Make Training Your Role and Responsibility
A good trainer should know how the learning process takes place. A training session must stimulate the sense organs like the ears, eyes, and the nervous system to convey information to the brain. The other body organs receive impulses from the brain leading to reaction, and in this way, learning is active. A coach should know the factors that hinder learning. Some of the hindrances to training are.
- Learning plateau-The The brain rests at some point and causes learning to flatten at intervals.
- A fatigue-A coach should know when the learner is tired because an exhausted trainee cannot retain anything
- Lack of concentration-if the message is too long the learner loses concentration
- Saturation-An overloaded information will lead to loss of the excess information because the learner can only retain a portion of it and learning stops.
You should allow about half of the training session for practical work and have the trainees repeat every step as you train until they grasp them.
4. Make Training a Routine
Trainers should make training an ongoing activity in their diaries. Lack of consistency and skipping training sessions leads to trainees forgetting the first things making the whole exercise futile. Coaches need to have an excellent diary to follow up on pieces of training.
5. Address Skills Gaps
Identify areas that need more empowerment through training. Employees’ training should be compatible with their line of duties. Training security guards how to make a recipe will not add anything to their line of job skills but coaching housekeepers’ defensive skills will be an exercise in futility.
6. Reward Success
Always learn to appreciate the progress of your trainees by rewarding them. Rewards do not have to be expensive items, but even appraisals and complements alone can boost the trainees’ morale.
7. Evaluate Comprehension
Testing your learner’s comprehension as a coach helps you identify those that require additional training and those who are ready to take on the next challenge. Always make a recap of what was covered earlier before proceeding to the next level of the training.