“If anyone can refute me – show me I’m making a mistake or looking at things from the wrong perspective – I’ll gladly change. It’s the truth I’m after, and the truth never harmed anyone.”
Marcus Aurelius
The above quote from Marcus Aurelius should be the mantra for all trainers. We should all be constantly seeking the “truth” as shown by the evidence and research.
If the evidence and research show that the language you are using, like muscle memory, is not accurate then you need to change your language and explain things in a manner consistent with the evidence.
If the evidence and research show that the way you have been delivering training is ineffective if you are interested in actual learning, understanding, recall, and ability to apply the material people are learning, then you need to change the way that you are teaching.
If the way that you are currently using videos may be setting people up for failure, rather than success, then you need to change the way that you use videos.
If the way you are running your Academy flies in the face of the research on the proper application of the principles of Stress Inoculation, then you need to change the way you run your Academy.
Many trainers will gladly change when the evidence and research show there is a more effective way to deliver training. By “more effective way to deliver training”, I mean more effective for the learner, not easier for you as the trainer.
Some trainers, however, choose to ignore the evidence and hold on to the old ways and to the inappropriate language. The excuses you hear are:
- This is the way we do things here.
- This is the way we have always done it.
- We want to hold on to “tradition”.
- It is too much work to change the syllabus.
- It is just easier to keep using this language.
- This is the way training was done when I went through, and I turned out just fine.
- We need to weed out the people who, “Don’t have what it takes.”
All of these are excuses not to change. If you are holding on to these excuses, then “the truth” is not what you are after. If you get to the point in your career as a trainer where the truth is not what you are after, it is time to move on from training.
Being a good trainer is a lot of work. Being a good trainer requires a commitment to the truth and to the people you are training. Being a good trainer requires the humility to admit when you make a mistake, or are looking at things from the wrong perspective, and change.
Take care.
Brian Willis
Winning Mind Training – Providing practical training to law enforcement professionals in the areas of instructor development, Performance Enhancement Imagery, leadership and mindset.
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