Dumb. Pathetic. Contemptible.

Dumb. Pathetic. Contemptible. Most companies don’t even have a Chief Training Officer (What? employ me – thank you,

Dumb. Pathetic. Contemptible. Most companies don’t even have a Chief Training Officer (What? employ me – thank you, Tom Peters for reminding me of this). Training your employees – why bother? Because training is the coolest thing ever.I am an amazing trainer because:

I Love to make people feel amazing, every day
I Understand the Power of The Mind
I make it so GREAT people BEG for it
I LOVE to train.

The matchless opportunity to help people grow and to help organisations achieve Excellence, which in turn can be translated into Ecstatic Customers and, then, Ecstatic Shareholders.

I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. Maya Angelou

Watch this classic Ed Byrne sketch where he slates Alanis Morissette. It took him 9 months to write for 5 minutes of material. It takes Jerry Seinfeld SIX MONTHS to develop TWO–THREE MINUTES of new material. Winston Churchill’s rule of thumb: 1hour of preparation for 1minute of a speech. So why so long? What is the deal about training? For many business owners the answer to that question may well be“we don’t – it’s just not worth it”

After all, it costs lots of money, it takes people out of work for too long and there’s no guarantee that it will improve performance….is there?

So really….why bother?

The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development cite a lack of training, development and career opportunities as major reasons for employees leaving a business, and high staff turnover can be costly.The Institute of Employment Studies report that the main drivers of employee engagement which directly impacts on motivation and employee performance, are feeling valued and invested in by your employer, feeling enabled to perform well and having opportunities to develop. After extensive research, Gallup developed a 12 question survey that assesses factors that impact on employee engagement, which they found has a strong correlation with superior job performance. The questions include reference to having opportunities to do what you do best, having your development encouraged, talking about your progress and having opportunities to learn and grow.

Basketball coach John Wooden, perhaps the best coach of anything, ever:

I was never much of a game coach, but I was a pretty good practice coach.

Tom Peters again:

Your principal moral obligation as a leader is to develop—day by day—the skillset, “soft” and “hard,” of every one of the people in your charge (temporary as well as semi-permanent* (*there is no “permanent” circa 2014) to the maximum extent of your abilities. The good news: This is also the #1 mid- to long-term … profit maximisation strategy!

It often seems to me that the attitude toward training is, another damn cost item, or how much do we have to do? On the receiving end, given the half-assed attention to the product (the training itself), the attitude is, how much of this do we have to go through? Instead I imagine—and I think everyone should imagine— WORK ON ME FIRST.

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself—Leo Tolstoy

To develop others, start with yourself.—Marshall Goldsmith

So if development is a good thing what does that mean in reality?  Employee development might include, but is certainly not limited to simply training in a conventional classroom style.Training as we knew it has progressed, so that the right solution for your business is cost effective, targeted to your needs and focuses on specific measurable outcomes that improve individual and business performance.

You must have (bare minimum requirement people – see me after school):

ON boarding and Induction programmes for all new starters (Let me write them!)
On the job learning that is supported by the business but directed by the individual learning as they need to
Self-directed learning with books, journals, trade publications, internet research and relevant business forums
Attending conferences, presentations and trade shows
E-learning with interactive internet and computer based training resources
Mentoring from a colleague or a more senior member of the team
Coaching that is targeted at individual development with focussed outcomes
Action learning sets aimed at solving business issues and developing skills at the same time
Training events geared to your specific business needs and using the best techniques and tools in maximising learning

A key to the success of any development is the involvement and support of the senior people within your business as they create the environment for growth, encourage development and provide opportunities for learning to be applied in the workplace. Excellent managers will be seeking positive outcomes, looking for attitude and behavioural changes and will be encouraging continuous development. Successful business will be measuring the ROI (Return on Investment) of development and ensuring that it really is worth the bother

As the business world is continuously changing, organisations will need to provide their employees with training throughout their careers. If they choose not to provide continuous training they will find it difficult to stay ahead of the competition. The other benefit of training is that it will keep your employees motivated. New skills and knowledge can help to reduce boredom. It also demonstrates to the employee that they are valuable enough for the employer to invest in them and their development. Training can be used to create positive attitudes through clarifying the behaviours and attitudes that are expected from the employee.

Training can be cost effective, as it is cheaper to train existing employees compared to recruiting new employee with the skills you need. Training can save the organisation money if the training helps the employee to become more efficient.

You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine. John C. Maxwell

So…say

1. Hello.

2. Thank you.

3. Eye contact.

4. Fierce listening.

5. “What do you think?”

6. “How can I help?”

Be Amazing Every Day

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