Many of the most common training pitfalls come in the areas discussed in question three above. Trainers might be poor public speakers or they might be especially boring and uncreative. They might do an especially bad job designing the format of a training, giving the impression it was all done at the last minute. In addition, however, train the trainer workshops often discuss these some of these potential “hazards of the job”:
· When you have especially difficult classroom situations: This is a broad topic that can include the outrageous and the awkward. What should you do with a particularly disruptive or confrontational trainee? What about especially awkward situations? If you are giving sexual harassment training to a group of ten men and one woman, for example, should you change your presentation?
· When you’re unsure what teaching style to use: Reward sticker boards and felt boards for storytelling might work wonderfully with your kids, but they won’t work quite so well with employees. How can you be effective and entertaining without being patronizing? Train the trainer seminars often discuss how to be a respectful peer as well as an instructor.
· When you don’t know the answer: Trainees will often bring up a subject or a question to which you don’t have the necessary information to provide an immediate answer. Train the trainer workshops will help you decide how to handle these situations and whether to adapt your training to include the requested information in the future.
Train the trainer seminars may discuss these issues, but it is also a good idea for a trainer to attend these workshops prepared with questions. What anxieties do you have about training? What specific characteristics does your workplace have that might make one of these issues especially difficult? What problems have you heard veteran trainers talk about? Train the trainer workshops are designed to assist you, so take advantage of it.