Trainer Bubble - Training Resources, Training Games, Course Material, Management Training

Bill Gates High Schoool Speech

2012-01-23T09:25:00.003Z

Some time ago, Bill Gates gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality.

This concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won’t care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won’t be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault, so don’t whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent’s generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they’ll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.

Mentor Relationship Stages

2012-01-10T14:30:00.000Z

Mentoring is a learning support mechanism where an experienced person provides guidance, knowledge and advice to someone who is in development or has less experience in a given topic or function.

The role of mentor is a very important one and whether the relationship is formal or informal, the fact is that a good mentor can be instrumental in the development of not only a mentee’s skills and knowledge, but also their behaviour, attitude and social outlook.

Mentors have a varied role and this can range from ‘challenging friend’, who acts as a sounding board, shares experiences and facilitates the mentee’s development, to ‘assessor’, who may also be required to assess competencies and skill levels in conjunction with the ‘challenging friend’ role.

A mentoring relationship has four definable stages within its life cycle:

1. Getting to know each other – establishes expectations of a mentoring relationship. In the early stages, a large part of the mentor’s role involves being supportive and creating a reassuring environment for the mentee. Initial meeting agendas might include:

getting to know each other personally
identifying the mentee’s learning needs for career and professional development

2. Goal setting – establishes expectations of learning by:

identifying potential learning opportunities at work and the technical and theoretical learning that might result (e.g. brainstorm possible areas of learning that relate to the development or profession as a whole, suggest useful contacts, check for other training opportunities, etc.)
agreeing meeting schedules and ways to arrange meetings by writing a Mentoring Agreement

3. Progress and maturation – the longest stage. At this stage, the emphasis of the mentor’s role should change to that of a challenger and stimulator to encourage deeper learning and reflection. A balance needs to be reached so that mentees continually explore their limits but not to the extent that they feel overwhelmed. Emphasis should be on issues of professional development. Later meeting agendas might include:

reviewing general progress and achievements to date and giving guidance on ways to improve performance and progress
reviewing any work-based learning

4. End – a final meeting is essential. For many mentors it can be tempting to avoid defining the end or separation stage and to regard it as unnecessary. However, a final review session is crucial to provide closure on the relationship for both the mentee and the mentor. The mentee and the mentor are jointly responsible for providing a proper ending to the relationship.

This structure provides a clearly defined approach to the mentoring process. It will ensure you are both clear on the progress of the mentoring relationship and allow you to consistently review and support development.

This article is a short excerpt from the Trainer Bubble training materials for Mentor Training, which can be purchased from our website at www.trainerbubble.com

Communicating with Customers - A Process

2011-11-18T10:24:00.001Z

When we communicate with customers, there are four key stages that we should progress through. These are…

Open & Initiate

Be prepared – Anticipate the needs of the customer, with information already to hand.

Welcome – Greet customers professionally and convey a positive attitude through your tone of voice, body language and general demeanour.

Position – Where you are contacting the customer, explain the purpose and benefit to them and check that they understand and agree to the conversation. Where you are being contacted by the customer, provide a clear response to acknowledge their needs and ensure you are best placed to help them.

Gather Information

Listen – Remember the facts conveyed by the customer and the feelings behind their message. Ensure you note their concerns and are able to understand and appreciate their requirements.

Ask – Question customer effectively to understand their situation and what is important to them.

Restate – Ensure customer realises you understand what is being said and agree to what is being asked where relevant

Solutions & Options

Offer Information and options – Give customer information that helps them. Provide options and choices. Use explanations that are clear and free from jargon.

Set expectations – Be clear with the customer about what you can and cannot do. Be specific.

Explore further needs and gain agreement – Ask good questions. Try to assess level of agreement. Promote the available solutions.

Confirm & Close

Ask for a decision – Ensure you clearly, precisely and confidently ask for a commitment from the customer.

Summarise and check – Review the key points with the customer and check that they are happy.

Thank them – Make your customers feel important by leaving a positive message.

Follow up – Do what you said you would do. If someone else deals with the customer further on, ensure the transition is smooth and all information is passed on.

By following this clear structure, you will ensure all of your customers receive a positive experience each and every time they communicate with you. The process is simple and the tasks within it can be learnt and applied quite easily.

This short excerpt is taken from our training course materials on, 'Communicating with Customers', which you can purchase from our website at Trainer Bubble.

The Greatest Speech Ever Made

2011-10-05T13:52:00.000Z

The following video clip has been developed around the final speech from the Charlie Chaplin movie, 'The Great Dictator' and is required watching as far as I am concerned. It's amazing to think that one of the most poignant and meaningful speeches written for our times was actually penned by a comedy actor in 1940. It just goes to show that greatness is timeless.
Time for your emotions to be stirred...

A Customer Care Disaster, or ill-advised PR stunt?

2011-09-30T08:52:00.000Z

Whilst perusing the internet today, I came across what seems a very bizarre response to a customer complaint that has apparently gone viral on the internet. The company in question is Australian based clothing retailer, 'GASP'. The original story comes from an article that appears in, 'The Herald Sun' and you can take a full look at the complete story including the original complaint on their website.

I was left scratching my head with this one, as I can't be sure if it is a really poor response to a customer complaint or an even worse attempt at publicity. Now, if it is publicity they want, then I am stoking the flames here (as well as many other sites), but surely this is not good publicity? Take a look at the response to the complaint below. To set the scene, the complaint was regarding a customer that went into one of their stores to purchase a dress only to be harassed by the member of staff who was rude about the ladies dress size, amongst other things, when she showed reluctance to purchase. Here is their 'customer service' response...

Dear Keara O'Neil,

Having now had the privilege of having both version of events, I am now in a position to respond to your complaint.

From the very outset, one thing that you should be mindful of is; Our product offerings are very, very carefully selected, so to ensure that we do not appeal to a broad customer base. This is something which is always at the forefront of our minds when undertaking buying duties.

The reason for this is to ensure that we only carry products which appeal to a very fashion forward consumer. This by default means that the customer whom is acclimatised to buying from "clothing for the masses" type retailers, is almost frightened by our range, sometimes we have found that this type of customer, almost finds our dresses funny, and on occasion noted comments such as 'it looks like a dead flamingo'. When we receive comments like this, we like to give ourselves and our buyers, a big pat on the back, because we know we are doing our job right, and modus operandi is being upheld.

Our range is worn by A list celebrities to the likes of Kim Kardashian, Selena Gomez and Katy Perry to name only a few. Now, as one might appreciate, the style counsel for these types of celebrities are not ones to pick "run of the mill" type clothing, and they do so on the basis to ensure that the styles are cutting edge, and only worn by a select few. Similarly these items are priced such that they remain inaccessible to the undesirable.

Insofar as our employee goes; Similar to our product offerings, our employees are selected with a similar approach. Chris whom served you is a qualified stylist whom has a sixth sense for fashion, and Chris's only problem is that he is too good at what he does, and as I am sure you are aware, people whom are talented, generally do not tolerate having their time wasted, which is the reason you were provoked to leave the store.

Whilst I concede that you work for chain retailer, unfortunately that does not make us like for like. It is probably fair to assume, a lot of what I have said in this email, either doesn't make sense to you, or you totally disagree with it all, which is what I would expect (unless of course I have you totally wrong – which I doubt).

Let me guess, you would never, ever hire Chris in the course of your duty, would you? This is the very reason, why your comment "from one retailer to another" is so disproportionate, it's almost as though we are in a totally different industries. Chris is a retail superstar, who possess unparalleled ability, and I am sorry you feel upset by him, but he knew you were not going to buy anything before you even left your house.

So if you would like to do us any favours, please do not waste our retail staff's time, because as you have already seen, they will not tolerate it. I am sure there are plenty of shops that appease your taste, so I respectfully ask that you side step our store during future window shopping expeditions.

Thank you for your enquiry.

But it doesn't end there. GASP replied to the criticism of their response with this:

We respect that not all consumers strive for a glamorous appearance; some prefer to simply blend in. [...] We respect and welcome all customers whom wish to visit our store, even though the intention to buy may not exist. But we ask that their opinions be expressed through blogs, social media or around a warm latte, but certainly not inside our stores.

So, having taken a look at this really badly worded response, what do you think? Publicity stunt, or poor customer service? Whatever it is, if I was the boss, I'd be having a rethink about the people working for me and an even harder consideration about what customer service training or even complaint handling training my staff need.

Body Language Training - How to Spot a Liar

2011-09-12T16:27:00.001Z

We're still on the theme of developing a video at the moment and are really starting to explore the potential behind the idea. This latest clip shows how you can use animations to add a little bit of an alternative approach to training and retaining learner engagement throughout training by changing the method of delivery.

This video focuses on body language training and specifically, 'How to spot a liar'. Of course the approach is one of fun, but there is a serious intent behind the animation and key body language messages are addressed. If you can imagine using this as a clip within a wider body language training programme you will be able to see the potential for learner involvement and a slight move from traditional methods.

We encourage yo uto use some of the tools on the internet to add impact to your own training.

Remember, you can purchase our body language training materials from the Trainer Bubble website.

Elevator Experiment - Social Proof in Action

2011-08-22T15:47:00.001Z

Here's a really interesting social experiment that was carried out by the people at Candid Camera. It provides a perfect example of social proof, which can be useful knowledge to have when you want to influence others.

What you will see here is that people are influenced by the behaviour of the other people in the elevator, after all, they can't all be wrong can they?

The principle of social proof states that one important method people use to decide what to believe or how to act in a situation is to look at what other people are believing or doing.

Our need to revert to this behaviour usually happens in two instances. These are:

Similarity – people are more likely to follow the lead of others that are similar

Uncertainty – when people are unsure and the situation is ambiguous they are more likely to follow actions of others to determine what is correct

Social proof is inherent in many aspects of our life and is certainly growing with the advent of the internet and other technical advances. The use of reviews by many websites, including Amazon is an example of social proof in action. More recently, Blogs have become a method of creating a following of like-minded people.

Social proof can be an extremely powerful tool in the marketing of a company’s products and services. After all, if your current customers (who happen to be a lot like me) are so happy with your products, then surely I will be too?

This youtube clip is really helpful in demonstrating how individual's can be influenced by others and the need to pay close attention to the theory of social proof. This is covered in more depth in the Trainer Bubble training course materials, 'The Power of Influence', which is available for purchase from the Trainer Bubble website. You should buy these, everyone else is!

Icebreaker - A new way to present them

2011-08-19T11:04:00.000Z

You might have guessed that we're a little addicted to creating videos at the moment. We think it's a really interesting way to deliver information and we thought we'd test the concept on an icebreaker. See what you think...

Body Language Training

2011-08-17T13:50:00.002Z

We've been getting a bit carried away with the promotional videos lately. Here's our latest effort for our Body Language Training materials available at www.trainerbubble.com

Trainer Bubble Promo Video - Just for fun

2011-08-04T11:12:00.003Z

I've just been having a bit of fun with creating a new promotional video for Trainer Bubble. It's not as slick as I'd like it, but was good fun and helped me procrastinate a bit today!

Team Building - Developing a Team Vision

2011-08-03T10:19:00.002Z

When trying to implement a team building programme, a useful starting point is to help the team appreciate what makes a team work to the same goals and principles. Core to this team building principle is the ability to develop a team vision.

Every team must have a clear understanding of what they are trying to achieve and how this fits into the wider organisational picture in order to work effectively. It helps if this is presented in a challenging and meaningful way, where individuals feel that they are contributing to a wider goal.

Without this sense of purpose individuals begin to work independently and become focused only on their own set tasks with little concern for the impact it might have on others in the team or organisation. I’m sure you can think of situations where somebody says they are, ‘just doing their job’ and yet the impact of their actions has a hugely detrimental effect on others.

Quite often in business the purpose and direction of an organisation is summed up with a vision statement. You may already be aware of some of the larger organisations vision statements from the past…

Land a man on the moon and return him safely to Earth by the end of the decade. - NASA

PepsiCo's responsibility is to continually improve all aspects of the world in which we operate - environment, social, economic - creating a better tomorrow than today. - PepsiCo

To be the world's best quick service restaurant experience. Being the best means providing outstanding quality, service, cleanliness, and value, so that we make every customer in every restaurant smile. –McDonald’s

To empower people through great software – any time, any place and on any device. - Microsoft

Now, you might not agree with these vision statements or even think they are clear, exciting or achievable. However, they do provide clarity and a common purpose to the organisation it was designed for. When trying to improve team building and develop teams, this is crucial.

The idea of using a vision statement can also be useful for teams within an organisation as it gives everyone a guiding principle that clearly emphasises the aims and focus of the team, while giving everyone a common purpose and goal.

A key benefit of a vision statement for a team is that it provides clarity when their might be confusion. For example; if a team member is presented with a difficult decision to make that could affect the rest of the team or the organisation as a whole, they can think to themselves, ‘Does this action align with our team vision?’ The answer will tell them how to progress.

A good example of how well someone buys into a vision statement and is clear on their role within an organisation relates to the NASA vision statement provided in the slide. The story goes that President Kennedy was on a tour of NASA headquarters and was being introduced to the staff. Upon leaving he walked passed a gentleman that was quite clearly a janitor holding a broom. In his usual polite way JFK said to the man, “...and what do you do here?” to which the janitor replied, ‘Sir, I’m putting a man on the moon.”

I think it’s clear that this guy had bought into the vision of his organisation!

This is a short excerpt from the Trainer Bubble training course materials for, Team Building, which can be purchased from our website at www.trainerbubble.com

Work Better

2011-07-12T11:45:00.000Z

We found this image on the internet and thought it was pretty much true. We hope you do too...

Free Training Resources, Energisers and Icebreakers Update

2011-06-15T16:17:00.001Z

We have had to have a bit of a reorganisation of our main website at Trainer Bubble. This is due to the fact that our free training resources section has grown to epic proportions and we now offer over 400 free training resources, icebreakers, training games and energisers on our website.

The sheer size of these free training resources was really slowing down certain sections of the website and so we have re-grouped the sections from one main 'Free Training Resources' section to four separate sections of Free Materials & Resources, Energisers, Icebreakers and Training Games.

Of course we are sure you will still be able to find all the training resources you need, but you might have to dip into different sections rather than accessing them all from the same page. Having said that, we have now found that it is a lot easier to sift through the areas to find what you want. It just might take a bit of time to get used to it.

I hope you all still enjoy accessing our free training resources! We look forward to providing much more in the future.

Kid learns how to ride bike and gets inspirational

2011-06-02T09:52:00.002Z

Sometimes we all need a little inspiration in life and this kid gets the thumbs up from me. This video could be useful in a motivational training session or anywhere you'd like to add a bit of lighthearted fun and a wink to being inspired...

Word 2007 Training Materials added to www.trainerbubble.com

2011-04-12T14:47:00.001Z

We've recently added Word 2007 Foundation Training Course Materials to our website. These Microsoft Word 2007 Foundation Training Course Materials can be used either with the full training materials in a classroom environment or by individuals working from the supplied workbook.

The Word 2007 Foundation materials set out to give the participants the core knowledge required for using Microsoft Word 2007. Therefore the materials are useful for anyone with limited or basic knowledge of Word 2007.

Visit our website to view these Microsoft Word 2007 Foundation training materials.

Post Office Entry Examination 1897

2011-03-10T10:51:00.004Z

I saw this Post Office Entry Examination from 1897 on a wall recently and had to share it. How well would you have done? I'm pretty sure I would have struggled to get the job!

Why not use this test as an icebreaker to your training courses and find out what your participants think? (click on the image to make it full size).

Physiological find a word

2011-03-04T09:54:00.008Z

This popped into my inbox lately and I thought it would make an interesting icebreaker or energiser during training. I'm not sure of the 'scientific truth' of it, but it should add a bit of fun to proceedings. I've not known anyone yet to look at it and not want to let everyone know their words! (click on the image to make it a reasonable viewing size).

Placebo Effect - The power of the mind

2011-02-15T10:03:00.003Z

This interesting video talks about the effect placebos have on us and what this means.

What's interesting for me here is that if placebos have these effects on us, then the idea of believing in yourself in order to achieve great things is supported. As Yoda once said, 'Do or do not, there is no try'.

Marshmallow Challenge -- Training Game

2011-01-05T10:09:00.005Z

I was recently looking through the TEDtalks website and came across this really interesting talk by Tom Wujec who uses a training game called, 'The Marshmallow Challenge', which has thrown up some interesting results for him. I recommend everyone to take the time to watch his talk as it really is quite interesting...

Further to this, Tom has set up his own website, which provides the instructions and other useful information about this training game. This can be found at http://marshmallowchallenge.com/Welcome.html

I recommend you take a look.

Of course, this type of feedback will probably come as no surprise to you as it's pretty typical of all training games that you run in a training session. You can see for yourself by using some of the Trainer Bubble training games on our website. As with all of our training games, the materials are free to use.

Talent Management

2010-10-26T11:35:00.004Z

The concept of talent management has evolved into a common and essential management practice and what was once solely attached to recruitment now covers a multitude of areas including organisational capability, individual development, performance enhancement and succession planning

Organisations find greater value in formulating their own meaning of what talent is than accepting universal or prescribed definitions and there are considerable differences in how talent is defined across different industries and sectors. That said it is helpful to start with a working definition for both ‘talent’ and ‘talent management’:

- Talent consists of those individuals who can make a difference to organisational performance, either through their immediate contribution or in the longer-term by demonstrating the highest levels of potential.

- Talent management is the systematic attraction, identification, development, engagement, evaluation, retention and deployment of those individuals who are of particular value to an organisation, either in view of their ‘high potential’ for the future or because they are fulfilling business/operation-critical roles.

*source CIPD

The issue with many companies today is that their organisations put tremendous effort into attracting employees to their company, but spend little time on retaining and developing talent.

This definition underlines the importance of recognising that it is not enough to just attract individuals with high potential. Developing, managing and retaining those individuals as part of a planned strategy for talent is equally important, as is adopting systems to measure the return on this investment. More organisations are also now broadening their definitions, looking at the ‘talents’ of all their staff and working on ways to develop their strengths.

If you want to develop your staff and help them understand the implications of talent management, visit Trainer Bubble and download our Talent Management training course materials.

Equality Act 2010 - Training Materials

2010-09-21T10:57:00.003Z

Trainer Bubble have just added Equality Act 2010 training materials to our portfolio.The Equality Act 2010 comes into play on the 1st October 2010 and will affect every organisation in the UK. Make sure you are ready with our half day training course materials available at www.trainerbubble.com.

Whatever our role within an organisation, we need to know about equality. An employer may be small or large - equality law still applies. Whatever the sector an organisation is in or whatever the type of systems and processes it uses, equality issues are all around.

The focus on equality issues is sharpened by the implementation of the Equality Act 2010 which is effective from 1st October 2010. All employers and employees have legal obligations under the Equality Act. Of course, embracing all of the changes brought about by the Act are employers of choice - those forward thinking businesses that recognise the benefits to everyone of showing respect and dealing with issues openly and fairly at work.

Equality Act Provisions coming into force on 1 October 2010...

The basic framework of protection against direct and indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation in services and public functions; premises; work; education; associations, and transport.
Changing the definition of gender reassignment, by removing the requirement for medical supervision.
Levelling up protection for people discriminated against because they are perceived to have, or are associated with someone who has, a protected characteristic, so providing new protection for people like carers.
Clearer protection for breastfeeding mothers;
Applying the European definition of indirect discrimination to all protected characteristics.
Extending protection from indirect discrimination to disability.
Introducing a new concept of “discrimination arising from disability”, to replace protection under previous legislation lost as a result of a legal judgment.
Applying the detriment model to victimisation protection (aligning with the approach in employment law).
Harmonising the thresholds for the duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people.
Extending protection from 3rd party harassment to all protected characteristics.
Making it more difficult for disabled people to be unfairly screened out when applying for jobs, by restricting the circumstances in which employers can ask job applicants questions about disability or health.
Allowing hypothetical comparators for direct gender pay discrimination.
Making pay secrecy clauses unenforceable.
Extending protection in private clubs to sex, religion or belief, pregnancy and maternity, and gender reassignment.
Introducing new powers for employment tribunals to make recommendations which benefit the wider workforce.
Harmonising provisions allowing voluntary positive action.

To purchase these Equality Act 2010 training materials, visit Trainer Bubble now.

New iPhone App for Icebreakers, Energisers and Games!

2010-08-23T10:49:00.010Z

Trainer Bubble are pleased to announce the completed development of our brand new Trainer Bubble iPhone App, which provides users with access to 100's of Icebreakers, Energisers and Training Games right in the palm of your hand.

This will save you the trouble of pre-preparing activities or using the same old icebreakers or energisers every time, as you'll have a vast resource right with you, wherever you go. Of course the icebreakers, energisers and training games can be used in any kind of event including meetings, training, teambuilding or large events. The possibilities are endless.

The Trainer Bubble iPhone App has the following key features...

Scroll through hundreds of icebreakers, energisers & training games to find the best suited to your needs

Save favourites into groups of your choosing for easy access

Use the Categories section to access activities by time or type

Alter the colours of each sectionto easily identify where you are

Shake the iPhone, iTouch, iPad for a 'Lucky Dip' activity

Regular updates, enhancements and improvements

A few screenshots...

So, if you'd like to find out more about this fantastic new app, pop over to the Trainer Bubble website or view it directly via the iTunes website.

PowerPoint in Training - When a good thing is not a good thing

2010-06-08T11:22:00.003Z

I thought I'd write a few words about a topic that often comes up in discussions about training, and that is the use of PowerPoint slides. I have received many emails, had many discussions and attended many meetings where the subject of PowerPoint in training is raised. What is obvious is that there are those that are strong advocates and others that are not so convinced by the use of PowerPoint. Personally, I fall into the latter category.

I should start by announcing that I think PowerPoint is an excellent tool and its use has helped presenters and trainers immensely over the last two decades. The idea of returning to acetates and an OHP fill me with dread. Having said that, I believe the fantastic ability and usability of PowerPoint means that those very users have become too reliant on the tool and training has suffered as a result.

As a trainer and training designer, I get very frustrated by people who equate a good training course with how many slides are included. I have even recently read a training design company's view that a days training should include between 60 - 100 slides. I'm sorry, but this is just poppycock! This would mean that you are displaying at best 10 slides per hour or 1 every six minutes. If you are showing slides at that rate, then you are simply providing no time for activities, review, discussion or even any meaningful commentary from the trainer.

This point brings me to the key element of importance regarding PowerPoint during training and that is the statement, ‘PowerPoint should support the message, not the trainer supporting PowerPoint’. Without following this critical element you fall into the trap of letting the technology, not the content, become primary.

Training should be interactive and indulgent for the learner. It should allow time for the participants to explore the practicalities of an issue as well as to absorb the theory in a relaxed environment. If we simply present information to participants in a slide format we become lecturers, not trainers. To reiterate, PowerPoint should support training materials and the trainer in order to help the learner learn. This means using the tool as a reference point, a method of highlighting a point with an image or where it is not possible to demonstrate a point without a graphic or text based representation.

Some argue that they use PowerPoint as a method of ‘sorting their thoughts’ and although their training course has 2698 slides with it, ‘I won’t be showing most of those’. Well, great, but there is always the danger that someone else training your course will and besides that, surely there are better ways of laying out the structure of a course? That, to me, is why we invented Trainer Notes.

A regular study that is carried out by a website called, ‘Think Outside the Slide’, shows the dangers of PowerPoint and how it is perceived by the audience. Although the data is aimed at presentations rather than training I think it shows very well how problematic PowerPoint can be. The data reveals what annoys people most about PowerPoint.

The speaker read the slides to us - 69.2%

Text so small I couldn’t read it - 48.2%

Full sentences instead of bullet points - 48.0%

Slides hard to see because of colour choice - 33.0%

Overly complex diagrams or charts - 27.9%

As you can see, the speaker reading slides is the most annoying thing to people and although this study was taken in 2009, the same point has been top for every bi-annual study since it started. The author reads a lot into this and it is well worth a read, but my thinking is that the participants don’t like having the slides read to them mainly because they could do that for themselves. As someone on one of my courses recently said about a previous course, ‘The trainer was so intent on putting his notes on the slides, I couldn’t help but feel he should have just emailed his notes to us.’ This brings me back to the point that training should be interactive and involve the participants throughout. PowerPoint limits the potential to do this.

On a typical Trainer Bubble training course you will find something in the range of 12 – 24 slides per day. This will include the ‘title’ slide as well as two ‘objectives’ slides (one to open and one to close the session). PowerPoint advocates might feel that this is a bit sparse and that consequently the training course lacks content. This is certainly not the case and our thousands of customers will testify to this. The fact is, our training content is based in the Trainers Notes, where it should be, and the participants that attend one of our courses will gain knowledge through the information provided by the trainer, the activities they explore, the exercises they carry out, the discussions they take part in and then finally the supporting materials they see and receive. After all, as Confucius said, "Tell Me and I Will Forget; Show Me and I May Remember; Involve Me and I Will Understand."

Confucius probably had it right too , because from various research sources we know that we remember from: the Lecture (5%); Reading (10%); Audio Visual (20%); Demonstration (30%); Discussion group (50%); Practice by doing (75%) and Teaching others (90%). Even a good set of slides will only meet the Audio Visual element of this and at 20%, that’s not a very good return. Of course it’s not possible to make teachers out of all our participants and so the aim is to involve areas from each of these principles. A good training course will do this and allocates as much time and effort to each principle as the output justifies.

To sum up, PowerPoint is an effective tool to use during a training course, but it is only as good as the person using it. Let it support your training course, but don’t let it BE your training course.

Optical Illusion? Assumption is not the way...

2010-05-25T10:44:00.004Z

Here's an interesting little diversion that goes down really well during a training session...Place the following image on a slide and ask participants which line is the longest....

Of course, everyone knows this one, they are both the same length...BUT WAIT!!!

Show participants the next slide, with this image on it...

They are not the same, the top one IS bigger than the bottom. And do you know why? Because I changed it. Things change and we should be prepared to change with them, if our mind is closed to the change and assumes that everything stays the same we have already failed.

Never assume, always leave your mind open to possibilities...

Negotiation Skills

2010-05-11T11:07:00.006Z

We recently came across this video clip, which provides a clear idea of negotiation skills and how best to use the 'If...then' strategy of negotiation. We thought it was worth sharing...

Or, if you're just looking to have some fun with negotiation skills, try out this video clip...

If you are looking for a practical, easy to follow set of training materials on negotiation skills then visit http://www.trainerbubble.com/ and view our negotiation skills training course - The Art of Negotiation.

Accredited Materials - New Partner

2010-03-18T17:02:00.001Z

We are extremely pleased to announce that Trainer Bubble have recently partnered with the Institute of Commercial Management (ICM) who have reviewed and accredited our training materials. ICM are an internationally recognised examining and awarding body for business and management students and, as part of this accreditation, ICM will provide certification for participants that complete a Trainer Bubble training course. Visit us now to find out more at Trainer Bubble.

Trainer Bubble will also be providing training materials to support ICM's social and economic development programmes overseas.

We are very proud to be part of this initiative. We would like to personally thank the team at ICM who have supported us throughout the entire partnership process. We are happy to be working with such a professional organisation.

Conference Calls - A Bit of Fun

2010-02-24T10:22:00.002Z

I'm sure you've been involved in conference calls that can become somewhat mundane to say the least. Well, I've taken to pepping them up a little lately and thought it might add a little amusement to your day to hear about it...

We use an automated system for most of the conference calls I have to dial in to and these are set up to allow you to record your name at the start of the call. This not only introduces you at the start of the conversation i.e. 'Andrew has joined the conference', but also announces your departure, 'Andrew has left the conference'. It occurred to me that this little tool could add a whole new dimension to conference calls and offer a little bit of light relief when needed.

I have started the idea off simply and recently made sure that I logged into the call early so that nobody heard the introduction. Then half way through a particular heated discussion where I felt we were going round in circles, I hung up the phone. Now, of course I wasn't there to hear it, but I took great pleasure in knowing that my colleagues had just heard the message, 'Common sense has left the conference'. Childish I know, but these things must sometimes be done to brighten the day.

I've got a few more ideas up my sleeve and look forward to the next conference call. Who knows? If I keep it up, they might stop inviting me.

Are they working for you?

2010-02-05T11:43:00.003Z

"The only thing worse than training your staff and having them leave, is not training them and having them stay".

Check out these worrying staff sightings from around the UK. Ask yourself, 'Is this my staff?'

Worrying Employee Sighting #1

My daughter and I went through the McDonald's take-out window and I gave the girl a £5 note. Our total was £4.20, so I also handed her a Twenty pence piece She said, 'you gave me too much money.' I said, 'Yes I know, but that way you can just give me a pound back .'

She was puzzled and went to get the manager who asked me to repeat my request. I did so, and he handed me back the 20 pence and said 'We're sorry but they could not do that kind of thing.' The girl then proceeded to give me back 80 pence in change!

Do not confuse the staff at MacDonald's.

Worrying Employee Sighting #2

We had to have the garage door repaired. The GARADOR repairman told us that one of our problems was that we did not have a 'large' enough motor on the opener. I thought for a minute, and said that we had the largest one GARADOR made at that time, a 1/2 horsepower. He shook his head and said, 'Madam, you need a 1/4 horsepower.' I responded that 1/2 was larger than 1/4 and he said, 'NOOO, it's not. Four is larger than two. ' We haven't used Garador repair since.

Happened in Moor Park , Nr Watford UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #3

I live in a semi rural area. We recently had a new neighbour call the local town council office to request the removal of the "DEER CROSSING" sign on our road. She said the reason was: 'Too many deer are being hit by cars out here! I don't think this is a good place for them to be crossing anymore.'

Story from Potters Bar, Herts, UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #4

My daughter went to a local Kentucky Fried and ordered a taco. She asked the person behind the counter for 'minimal lettuce.' He said he was sorry, but they only had iceberg lettuce.

From South Oxhey . Herts. , UK...

Worrying Employee Sighting #5

I was at the airport, checking in at the gate when an Irish airport employee asked, 'Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge"? To which I replied, 'If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?" He smiled knowingly and nodded, 'That's why we ask.'

Happened Luton Airport ... UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #6

The stoplight on the corner buzzes when it's safe to cross the street. I was crossing with an intellectually challenged co-worker of mine. She asked if I knew what the buzzer was for. I explained that it signals blind people when the light is red.Appalled, she responded, 'what on earth are blind people doing driving?!'

She is a Local County Councillor employee in Harrow, Middlesex, UK

Worrying Employee Sighting #7

When my husband and I arrived at Our Local Ford dealer to pick up our car, we were told the keys had been locked in it. We went to the service department and found a mechanic working feverishly to unlock the driver's side door. As I watched from the passenger side, I instinctively tried the door handle and discovered that it was unlocked. 'Hey,' I announced to the Fitter/Mechanic, 'its open!'His reply, 'I know. I have already done that side.'

This was at Ford dealership in St Albans, Hertfordshire UK.

Worrying Employee Sighting #8

This is a personal one that happened to the MD of Trainer Bubble. He was in a local Tesco store and after putting his items through the checkout, handed a fresh faced sales assistant a crisp £50. The sales assistant looked at him suspiciously and rubbed a pen over the £50 note.

To our MD's surprise the assistant then called over a manager and said, "It's not supposed to go that colour", to which our MD replied, "But you used a highlighter pen." The manager exchanged glances with our MD and headed off to more pressing issues.

Can you afford not to train your staff? Visit www.trainerbubble.com and view our fantastic, affordable training resources.

Worst Customer Compaints - Top Ten

2010-02-03T13:49:00.004Z

All business owners have to deal with difficult customers at some point but how do your experiences compare with the 10 worst complaints one small company faced in 2009?

Clients are hard to win and even harder to keep, but there are a select few who can make life particularly difficult. Spare a thought then for online retailers Prezzybox.com, who last year had to deal with a client who wanted to return a used toilet brush – this being just one of the many zany gripes they received from clients last year.

Read on for the company's top 10 weird complaints of 2009:

A gentleman from Leeds was keen to return the green Slanket (or blanket with sleeves) that he had purchased for his wife because her hair was ginger and it would have made her look like a Leprechaun.
A toilet brush was sent back after being used to clean an especially dirty toilet.
A Glaswegian male called Trading Standards after the bars of his football table went rusty. He had left it standing outside for two years without covering it.
A Candy Bra was returned after already having been opened and nibbled.
One unhappy customer sent back a '20 Questions’ gadget, which guesses the object you are thinking about. After answering correctly 37 times, it had failed to guess a disposable nappy during game 38.
A 'Pets Eye View Camera' was returned after a female shopper indicated that the filming was not as 'exciting' as she had hoped.
A 'Puppy Bumperstop Doorstop' was sent back by one client because, although it kept the door open, their pet hamster kept bumping into it when running around in his exercise ball.
A lady returned her 'Henry Hoover Desk Tidy' because its smile was neither big nor happy enough to cheer her up in the office.
A female customer sent back her 'Tipsy Feet' fold-up shoes because she was concerned about the fact that she continued to fall over when walking home after a night out with friends.
A customer complained that the moods suggested by their 'Oggz Colour Changing Mood lights' did not reflect the atmosphere correctly.

Dealing with customer complaints can be one of the most challenging parts of customer service. Visit www.trainerbubble.com to view our training materials on customer service and dealing with customer complaints. By training your team in the art of dealing with customers, you will ensure a positive relationship with your customers and continued sales.

Anxiety at Work - A New Training Course

2010-01-05T11:15:00.003Z

Just prior to Christmas, we added a brand new course to our website. It may well have slipped under your radar as, if you've been as busy as the Trainer Bubble team, there's not been a chance to gather breath! Therefore, we thought we'd take the opportunity to let you know all about it...

In this course we take a good look at anxiety. As we progress, the course clarifies what anxiety is, what it is caused by and why it is so important for us to know about it in the workplace.

Underpinning our course is a crucial message – making anxiety normal.

The course takes a non-clinical approach – there is no medical or scientific element to this course; it takes a common sense, practical and straightforward stand.

This course is suitable for anyone at work. It has been designed to assist us all with achieving an understanding of what anxiety is and how it might be handled whether -as a sufferer, or as the manager or colleague of a sufferer.

When you reach the end of this course your participants will:

· Know what anxiety is and what it isn’t
· Be able to discuss the impact of anxiety on colleagues, on productivity and working life
· Know the role of the manager, employer and colleague of an anxious person – and the role of the sufferer
· Be able to draw sensible comparisons between anxiety and physical illnesses

Produce a plan to define the action they will take to address the stigma attached to anxiety with a view to improving business performance.

The course was designed by one of our new designers, Sue Buck, and is an interesting addition to our portfolio. We look forward to more of Sue's work in the future as, if this course is anything to go by, we can expect great things. You can view this training course and many others at our website www.trainerbubble.com

Interview Skills - PRICE structure

2009-11-20T11:47:00.003Z

Effective interviewing is a vital part of the selection process. This means that we need a consistent approach that is both professional and efficient.

One reason that consistency is important is that we must ensure that all candidates we interview are given a fair opportunity. We believe that one way to achieve consistency is to use a structured approach.

The approach we recommend is ethical and fair and you will be using it in a way designed to put interviewees at ease so that they feel confident to talk to you. It is also very effective at collecting quality information to help you make the best possible decision.

The structure we will be using is easily remembered using the mnemonic PRICE.

Prepare

The key to effective interviewing is good preparation and planning. Skip this stage or prepare inadequately and it is unlikely that the interview will be effective.

As a minimum you should be setting the criteria you expect successful candidates to meet and the questions you need to ask to help you assess whether they meet those criteria.

We also advocate preparing a question plan to use as the basis of questions you will ask all candidates.

Rapport

At the start of the interview the aim should be to establish the right level of rapport with candidates. It is important to remember that you are using the interview to obtain good quality information from candidates. Put them at ease and they are much more likely to talk freely.

Interview

Think of an interview as a structured conversation. The role of the interviewer is to give direction to that conversation by asking appropriate questions.

The aim should be for the candidate to do most of the talking and the interviewer to do most of the listening during this phase.

Close

Candidates must be given the opportunity to ask any questions of their own. Remember, they will also be using the interview to assess whether they want to work for you.

At the end of the interview the interviewer should explain the next steps in the selection process and when and how the candidate will be contacted.

Evaluate

After the interview the interviewer needs to evaluate the information collected against the criteria established during the preparation phase.

This article is a short excerpt from the Trainer Bubble training materials, Interview Skills developed by the author Karl Halliwell. Visit Trainer Bubble to purchase this great training resource today.

A short story for all business owners

2009-11-13T12:13:00.004Z

A man owned a small farm in Hampshire. The Hampshire Department for Work and Pensions claimed he was not paying proper wages to his help and sent an agent out to interview him. "I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them," demanded the agent.

"Well," replied the farmer, "there's my farm hand who's been with me for 3 years. I pay him £400 a week plus free room and board. The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her £250 per week plus free room and board.

Then there's the half-wit who works about 18 hours every day and does about 90% of all the work around here. He makes about £100 per week, pays his own room and board, and I buy him a bottle of whisky every Saturday night. He also sleeps with my wife occasionally. "That's the guy I want to talk to...the half-wit," said the agent. "That would be me," replied the farmer

Influencing Skills - Social Proof

2009-11-09T16:53:00.003Z

The principle of social proof states that one important method people use to decide what to believe or how to act in a situation is to look at what other people are believing or doing.

Our need to revert to this behaviour usually happens in two instances. These are:

Similarity – people are more likely to follow the lead of others that are similar

Uncertainty – when people are unsure and the situation is ambiguous they are more likely to follow actions of others to determine what is correct

Social proof is inherent in many aspects of our life and is certainly growing with the advent of the internet and other technical advances. The use of reviews by many websites, including Amazon is an example of social proof in action. More recently, Blogs have become a method of creating a following of like-minded people.

Social proof can be an extremely powerful tool in the marketing of a company’s products and services. After all, if your current customers (who happen to be a lot like me) are so happy with your products, then surely I will be too?

Social proof and it's application for influencing skills is discussed in some depth in our training materials,'The Power of Influence', which you can purchase from our website Trainer Bubble.

Strategies for Handling Aggressive Behaviour

2009-09-24T09:47:00.003Z

There are times when we all run into aggressive behaviour in the workplace or indeed in any social situation. The following strategies may be useful in defusing aggressive behaviour during discussions:

Maintain self-control

It is vitally important to maintain your self-control and not to bite. The other person may try to pull you in and may well use personal abuse, vulgar or unpleasant language and threatening gestures.

Try to retain your ‘state of independence’ and not be drawn in. It may help you to think of it this way – if you become angry – who has won? Your negative response may be helping them to achieve what they set out to do.

Signal non-aggression

It is important to catch the person’s attention and give signals, which will calm and de-escalate the situation. The most important thing to signal here is non-aggression. Remember that the other person is in a very emotional state and therefore their ability to think rationally is diminished – thus the actual words you use are less important than the tone and body language you display.

Match energy levels

It is important to match the energy level of the person. If you are slow to respond, or respond too calmly, it can give the impression that you don’t care or aren’t really interested in the other person’s problem or issue. Matching energy does not mean that you should be aggressive back to that person – it means that you should quickly engage with them and demonstrate with your body language and tone that you are concerned and interested.

This article is a short excpert from the Training Course Materials, 'Building Relationships'. Visit Trainer Bubble today to find out more about this and other exciting training course materials.

Trainer Bubble has Changed!

2009-09-09T08:13:00.002Z

You may have noticed the we have been a little quiet lately, but we've not just been out enjoying the UK summer! Our time has been spent updating the Trainer Bubble website in order to improve your user experience.

Although we felt it was time for some change, feedback from customers and our own discussions told us that we didn't really want to alter the look and feel of Trainer Bubble too much. However, we did want to make it work a little faster and to improve your general experience. Consequently, you will notice that we have added images to the product listings and also improved our search function. Our International customers will also note that there is an easy to use currency converter, which should make our prices much easier to review.

Most of the changes are in the background, but you should notice faster load times and a much better experience. Of course, we've kept all the great features, including a huge list of training materials and the free section. Visit us now to see for yourself at Trainer Bubble.

Honesty video - Great for Customer Care training

2009-08-01T16:53:00.003Z

This video is great to use in training sessions where you want to demonstrate what is really going on during customer conversations...

Speeches and Presenting - Tips and Techniques

2009-07-14T12:10:00.004Z

This article from Denise Winterman from the BBC caught our eye recently, and we thought we'd share it with you...

A brilliant speech can go down in history. But most of us write words the world will never listen to. Can speech-writing teach us skills for dealing with tricky situations in everyday life?

Pants. Just one of the reasons the US Embassy in Britain is currently advertising for a speech-writer. It says knowledge of the nuances between the Queen's English and American English is vital, for obvious reasons.

However speech-writing is about much more than trying to avoid red faces. As far back as the ancient Greeks, the power of carefully crafted words has been fully understood and expertly exploited.

But rather than being all about creative flair a good speech-writer uses a number of techniques to get a point across. And these verbal tools are not only useful at the lectern, anyone can use them in everyday situations, from handling a boisterous child to reasoning with a traffic warden.
This is because speech-writing is the language of persuasion. And the average day largely consists of trying to persuade people, says Dr Max Atkinson, a communications consultant and author of Speech-Making and Presentation Made Easy.

"The way words are put together makes all the difference," he says. "It's often thought that great speakers are blessed with a gift, but they all use the same techniques. What makes people stand out is how often they use them.

"These techniques are the building blocks of effective speech-writing and can be used in other areas of life. Some people use them without even knowing. They are usually the best speakers and the most persuasive people, but anyone can learn them."

Mantra

Study great speeches and you will soon see a formula, agrees Adrian Furnham, professor of psychology at University College London. While some are more complex, others are relatively simple.

What makes the techniques adaptable to everyday life is the fact that language is governed by rules - rules we all learn from the time we begin to peak.

"Even the smallest child is learning the rules of language, and language acquisition and so these techniques can be applied to them," says Dr Atkinson.

"Research has shown that you can get a different reaction from a child depending on how you speak to them. Like everyone else, they respond to the way something is said."

In a nutshell, a great speech is communication at its most effective, and we all want to communicate effectively in whatever situation we find ourselves in, says professional speech-writer Lawrence Bernstein.

"The rules and techniques of good communication work on all levels - if you're on a stage speaking to thousands of people, asking your boss for a pay rise, trying to buy a new house, or teaching a class of 10 year olds."

So what are the best techniques?

CONTRASTS

A tactic used by John F Kennedy and by Margaret Thatcher.

People are still quoting JFK's line: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." And Baroness Thatcher was at her most formidable when she famously told the 1980 Tory party conference: "You turn if you want to, the lady's not for turning."

"Using contrasts is a real winner," says Dr Atkinson. "Research shows 33% of the applause a good speech gets is when a contrast is used.

"This is because you are often using a negative and then a positive and that has impact. It makes your point bigger and better."

It's a technique that translates into everyday life, especially with children. While explaining they can't have one thing, it's good to point out what they can have instead. "No, you can't have a skateboard of your own, but you can have a go on your brother's."

THREE-PART LISTS

Three really is the magic number. "Education, education, education" - Tony Blair's 1997 election-winning mantra. Or it can be a list as simple as "here, there and everywhere".

It's a technique used by US President Barack Obama - he used 29 three-part lists in roughly 10 minutes during his victory speech on election night, says Dr Atkinson.

The theory behind the technique is that three is the first and earliest point at which a possible list of similar words can become unequivocal. No other word needs to be added to make it a list.

"It's about completeness. A third word can give confirmation and completes a point," says Dr Atkinson. "It applies in all walks of life. Church services and prayer books are full of three-part lists. Research has shown that people know a prayer is finished when it ends with them praying for three things. They know to say 'Amen' and don't have to be prompted."

Also, it is economical - a third word is the earliest point at which a possible connection, implied by the first two, is confirmed. If you carry on listing items, say speech-writing experts, you risk being criticised for "going on and on". It can be the same in life in general.

IMAGERY AND ANECDOTES

Be it "opening doors" or "breaking down barriers", paint a carefully constructed picture with your words.

"It's about taking people on a journey and making it memorable," says Prof Furnham. "Imagery and anecdotes are some of the best ways to do this and they can personalise things."
Again, it's President Obama who experts say is a master of this technique.

"He knows how to use imagery both to increase impact and to make his points. He paints an image but also evokes associations with great communicators of the past like Lincoln and King," says Dr Atkinson.

This technique works whether addressing a nation, or guests at a wedding, say experts.

BREAK THE RULES

A good speech-writer knows the rules to follow, and also how to break these to maximum effect. There is always room for the unexpected in a great speech, and in life, says Phil Collins, former speech-writer for Tony Blair.

If done well it can grab people's attention - and he should know. Mr Collins penned Mr Blair's joke about there being no danger of his wife "running off with the bloke next door".

It was one of the former prime minister's most unexpected and memorable lines, delivered in his last speech to a Labour conference in 2006. It was deftly done and showed a real understanding of Blair and Gordon Brown's prickly relationship.

"No one was expecting it, which is what made it so good and so memorable," he says. "Pitched right and delivered well, something unexpected will make people sit up and listen."

Great Leadership Skills - Delegation

2009-07-08T13:42:00.002Z

The great leader realises that they cannot have hands-on control of every aspect of their work. In order to effectively deliver on the demands placed on them, they should rely on relevant members of their team for support. The leader that can successfully delegate will enjoy a greater level of achievement.

The Benefits of effective delegation are:

Top performers will be attracted by your approach and want to join your team, poor performers won’t!

You will have more time to focus on strategy and forward looking tasks

Team members will be motivated by the responsibility

Team members will be given the opportunity to ‘shine’

Your team will be more efficient

When carried out effectively, delegation can be a huge motivating factor for a team. Conversely, the team can be deeply de-motivated when a leader abdicates responsibility for tasks, palms off work that they do not like or delegates the task, but not the responsibility to complete it.

With this in mind, we must ensure that we are delegating work for the right reasons, at the right times and in the right way. First we must establish what it is we should, and should not, be delegating.

Do not delegate work that you can remove completely. If it is something that really does not have to be done, remove it.

Delegate routine activities that you may use to procrastinate. Things like filing, photocopying, data entry, collecting data – If it takes up a lot of time and someone else is better placed to do it, pass it on.

Things that you are not the expert at. If another member of the team will do a better job of it, let them.

Small projects – if a project can be completed by one of your team and you know it will develop their skills, discuss it with them and see if they want to take up the challenge.
Do not delegate something just because you don’t like doing it. This isn’t fair and will lose you respect.

Do not delegate jobs that require your level of authority or tasks that have a high level of responsibility and accountability i.e. job interviews, disciplinary meetings etc. (unless of course this is part of the role your team deal with).

The key is to be practical about delegation. Think about your motives behind why you are delegating. If you are honest with yourself, it is likely that you will choose the right reasons to delegate.

It is also important to delegate the authority and responsibility with the task. There is nothing worse than a leader who delegates the task, but then restricts the team member’s ability to complete it because they somehow feel they must retain control. If you are happy for that person to take on the task, you should be comfortable that they have the ability to get results.

Having said this, you should delegate the task, not abdicate it. The individual should not be left feeling that a task has been dumped on them with no more involvement from you. Schedule regular updates, ask casually how the person is progressing, give and ask for feedback and allow them to find their own way with guidance from you if required.

For positive results, you can follow this simple process...

Define Your Desired Results
Select an Appropriate Team Member
Clarify Expectations and Set Clear Parameters
Give Authority and Responsibility to Agreed Level
Provide Background Information
Establish a Clear Feedback Process

By following this simple process you will ensure that the person you delegate to feels that they have your full support throughout the process. Where they feel that the challenge is too demanding, they should have every opportunity to let you know.

One final thought to consider is that once the team member completes the task, you should ensure they receive the credit and your thanks. By celebrating their success you not only build a motivated workforce, you also ensure that your team are willing to work on further tasks for you.

This article is an excerpt from the Trainer Bubble training materials, 'Great Leadership', which you can purchase from our website at http://www.trainerbubble.com

Where the money goes...

2009-06-23T14:13:00.002Z

Did you know that in a UK class of 30 at least two of the children will have a parent that is employed by the NHS? The NHS is the fourth largest employer in the world.

In 1987-88 our government total expenditure was £339.9bn compared to £541.8bn in 2007-08. The signs are that this is going to increase dramatically moving on.

The FT Today has an interesting collection of stats regarding the UK expenditure now and in the past. You need to register, but it is free.

These stats are extremely useful when providing training and can be used to demonstrate growth, development, expenditure and excess! We suggest you take a look to find out more.

Client Relationships

2009-06-01T09:01:00.003Z

Anyone who works as a training consultant and bills customers for work is likely to see the humour in this great video clip that we came across recently. Well, it made us laugh!

Great Leadership Skills - Being Inclusive

2009-05-27T15:36:00.003Z

A great leader realises that in order to ensure they achieve the best results, they must include the expertise and knowledge of their team in the decision making process. This approach means that leaders get the best from their people through empowerment, encouraging contributions and nurturing talent - rather than simply rewarding good work.

Far from just developing their own skills and knowledge, the great leader is determined to develop those around them by including them in key decisions, identifying and recognising the talents of people within the team and generally creating an environment where everyone not only feels they can contribute, but is positively encouraged to do so.

A great leader will also recognise that there may well be other leaders in their team and just because they have the title of leader, does not mean that the contributions from others should be ignored. There are times when everyone needs to display leadership skills within an organisation and a ‘titled’ leader ignores this at their peril.

Most people will agree that they are most willing to change and adapt when they have been included in the decision making process. If you think of your own experiences I’m sure you will be able to recall times when you have been reluctant to follow a leader because you felt that you had no say in the process. By being inclusive and valuing the opinion of our team, we develop a strong sense of belonging and create an attitude that the team can overcome any challenge. The importance of this to the success of a department and ultimately the organisation is huge.

This is a short excerpt from the training materials, 'Great Leadership', which you can purchase at the Trainer Bubble website.

HSE gets tough on Stress Management

2009-04-14T10:36:00.003Z

Employers are being urged to improve their management of stress at work issues after it emerged that the Health and Safety Executive issued an improvement notice for stress against the Lincolnshire NHS Trust.

This latest improvement notice shows that the HSE will not shy away from taking action when employers fail to meet their stress management obligations under the health & safety laws.

You should always take the health of your staff seriously and stress is often an area that is overlooked as the symptoms are not always physically displayed. Of course, this does not make stress any less important and we have an obligation to ensure that staff who become subject to stress issues are treated with the respect and care they deserve.

Recent statistics confirm that work-related stress is widespread in the UK working population and is not confined to particular sectors or high risk jobs or industries.

An annual absence survey carried out last year by CBI/AXA, found that non work-related stress, anxiety and depression was the most common cause of long-term absence. Government guidelines on how to manage it and a growing pile of evidence on tackling stress have not solved the problem.

Another report by the Royal College of Psychiatrists adds that sickness absences due to mental health problems such as stress are likely to be longer than those caused by physical health problems, accounting for 47% of long-term absence.

It is important that all businesses take the subject of stress management seriously. Ensuring staff are aware of stress issues and how to cope goes some way to ensuring they are better prepared to cope with stressful situations. Add to this a clear policy on stress and a structured method of working and levels of workplace stress can be reduced.

Make your staff aware of Stress Management and methods of coping with stress by delivering the Trainer Bubble training course materials on Stress Management.

Embed a key learning point through humorous movies!

2009-04-07T11:57:00.007Z

Always on the look out for novel ways to get a message across during training courses, I was excited when I found a collection of websites that allow you to subtitle your own words over different movie clips. These movies allow you to create your own input and develop a memorable clip related to any topic you want to present to your participants.

The possibilities are endless and you can play around with the idea as much as you want until you feel it is right. The method of delivery is both fun and memorable as the following clip on this link will show...

http://www.grapheine.com/classiktv/index.php?module=see&lang=uk&code=0a8dcc77381389d614bd8ff2f89e3be3

Give it a go yourself. You might want to use it to get across a message about a new product or to embed learning from a training issue that you are discussing. Here's another one I put together in about 2 minutes...

http://www.grapheine.com/classiktv/index.php?module=see&lang=fr&code=053a194bd64ba3387025223f43b202e6

Here's a few links of sites that provide this free service...

http://www.grapheine.com/classiktv/index.php

http://www.grapheine.com/bombaytv/

http://www.grapheine.com/bombaytv/v2/

http://www.grapheine.com/futeboltv/

Have fun!

Ridiculous Customer Complaints - A fun activity

2009-03-30T08:53:00.003Z

I recently came across 20 ridiculous customer complaints. A list made up from research by Thomas Cook and ABTA.

Having looked at the complaints and laughing a lot, it occurred to me that this might make a fun activity to carry out during a customer care or complaint handling training session. You simply provide the participants with the list of ridiculous complaints and ask them to come up with the best response possible by way of feedback. This will test their ability to respond to customer demands as well as providing a bit of fun to the training session.

Here's the list...

A tourist at a top African game lodge overlooking a waterhole, who spotted a visibly aroused elephant, complained that the sight of this rampant beast ruined his honeymoon by making him feel "inadequate".
A woman threatened to call police after claiming that she’d been locked in by staff. When in fact, she had mistaken the “do not disturb” sign on the back of the door as a warning to remain in the room
"The beach was too sandy."
A guest at a Novotel in Australia complained his soup was too thick and strong. He was inadvertently slurping the gravy at the time.
"Topless sunbathing on the beach should be banned. The holiday was ruined as my husband spent all day looking at other women."
"We bought 'Ray-Ban' sunglasses for five euros (£3.50) from a street trader, only to find out they were fake."
"No-one told us there would be fish in the sea. The children were startled."
"It took us nine hours to fly home from Jamaica to England it only took the Americans three hours to get home."
"My fiancé and I booked a twin-bedded room but we were placed in a double-bedded room. We now hold you responsible for the fact that I find myself pregnant. This would not have happened if you had put us in the room that we booked."
"I compared the size of our one-bedroom apartment to our friends' three-bedroom apartment and ours was significantly smaller."
"The brochure stated: 'No hairdressers at the accommodation'. We're trainee hairdressers - will we be OK staying here?"
"There are too many Spanish people. The receptionist speaks Spanish. The food is Spanish. Too many foreigners."
"We found the sand was not like the sand in the brochure. Your brochure shows the sand as yellow but it was white."
"We had to queue outside with no air conditioning."
"It is your duty as a tour operator to advise us of noisy or unruly guests before we travel."
"I was bitten by a mosquito - no-one said they could bite."
"I think it should be explained in the brochure that the local store does not sell proper biscuits like custard creams or ginger nuts."
"It's lazy of the local shopkeepers to close in the afternoons. I often needed to buy things during 'siesta' time - this should be banned."
"On my holiday to Goa in India, I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry. I don't like spicy food at all."
"We booked an excursion to a water park but no-one told us we had to bring our swimming costumes and towels."

This training game and many other training resources and course materials can be found at Trainer Bubble.

Self-Study Workbooks

2009-03-17T14:43:00.003Z

We've been working hard to add Self Study Workbooks to our growing portfolio. In the fast paced work environments we encounter today, these workbooks provide the perfect opportunity to develop and build on skills that might otherwise be neglected.

The workbooks provide clarity and insight to the specific topic, whilst including activities, questions and practical tasks. So far we've added four of these workbooks to the Trainer Bubble website (Business E-mails, Leadership, Report Writing, Time Management) and we are working on providing a complete range. So visit Trainer Bubble to find out more.

...and more on airline service

2009-03-09T12:01:00.002Z

Following on from the Ryanair post last week. Here's an interesting new promotional clip I've spotted...

Low cost, or, customer service?

2009-03-06T11:31:00.003Z

So, Ryanair seem to have upset a lot of people again with their plans to charge people £1 to use the toilet on one of their flights. It begs the question, what is more important, low cost or customer service?

Ryanair would no doubt argue that the fact they charge people for heavier luggage, eating and now possibly going to the toilet, means that they can keep their low cost flights at the smallest costs possible and if people really want more than to be flown to their destination, they will have to pay for it. In a lot of ways, this is reasonable, after all you know what you are getting when you sign up and if you expect first class service, then you'll have to pay for it (with another airline).

I heard a story of a Ryanair staff member who was rude to a customer and upon complaint was told that if you wanted great service, which I guess included being treated politely, you should pay for it. The trouble as I see it is that people want both. They want to pay a cheap price for things, but when they don't get exceptional service as well (this includes the 'extras' mentioned above), they are not happy. Is this reasonable? Well, to a certain degree it has to be. After all, without customers, no company will succeed and they can always vote with their feet.

What you cannot deny though, is that Ryanair is a very successful airline. So, are they right or wrong in their approach? Well, to be honest I'm undecided. I could argue that people who book Ryanair know what they are going to get, but then in the same breath, I put my customer care hat on and say that all companies should work towards providing exceptional customer service.

Whatever my thoughts are, the ultimate truth is that the success of the company will provide the answer. Because, I suspect, people will still book flights with Ryanair and continue to complain about them...after all, we all enjoy a moan don't we?

I think the following image provides a perfect example of this...

Managing Negativity at Work

2009-02-18T09:40:00.003Z

Unfortunately, negativity is a natural part of wokring in a business environment. There is often discontent in some form or another and a good leader recognises this. By developing an inclusive approach to leadership and involving your team in decision making processes it is possible that the likelihood of negativity arising is minimised, but you should be prepared to deal with it when it does appear as even the most effective leader will run into negativity at some point in their career. The big problem is that negativity can be contagious and once it rears its head, can be very difficult to manage.

Sometimes negativity will arise as a result of company processes or changes required to make an organisation more effective. It can also arise over time for what appears to be no obvious reason.

An organisation that is in the grip of negativity will display an increase in the amount of complaining, a focus on why things cannot be done, a ‘what’s in it for me’ attitude and a view that things will never get better.

When negativity arises, it can sap your energy as a leader and potentially pull you into its grasp. A great leader will use simple techniques to manage negativity in the workplace and ensures their own attitude remains positive and focused.

The following suggestions will help you to overcome negativity when it arises:

Acknowledge negativity

Negativity will not go away if you ignore it, in fact it will most likely get worse. If it is not acknowledged, you will lose credibility as a leader. Discuss the negative feelings with those concerned, show that you care and ask for suggestions on how you might overcome the issue.

Identify the positives in all situations

It is easy to be dismissive and ignore the input from our team members. Celebrate the small victories and where suggestions will not work, try and identify the elements that you can work on. Positive actions are often a result of lots of little actions rather than one big one.

Give positive recognition often

This is something that is often overlooked and leaders can fall into the trap of considering the efforts of their team as ‘part of their role’. Everybody likes to be recognised for their success, so be prepared to acknowledge it at every opportunity.

Avoid colluding on negativity

This can be hard! We all like to have a moan about things. However, by remaining upbeat and positive, we put out the flames of negativity before they start.

Focus on issues, not personalities

When you are addressing negativity head on, you should remove the focus from the person and instead look at the issue at hand. Otherwise you risk undermining that person and might escalate the negativity.

Understand their feelings

Put yourself in the shoes of the person who feels negative. This does not mean for you to become negative too, but for you to understand how they might feel in this situation and resolve it accordingly.

Express your ideas and feelings

Don’t be scared to let people know how you feel and provide an insight into what you are thinking. Most negative issues can be resolved when everyone is open and honest about their feelings.

Be willing to compromise

As long as the new position is fair, you lose nothing by moving your stance slightly on an issue to ensure all parties are happy. Just because you are the leader, it does not mean that you cannot modify your position.

It’s not unusual for organisations to go through periods of negativity. How long that negativity progresses is often down to you as a leader. By displaying the correct attitudes and behaviours, you are likely to managing negativity and stop it from becoming an inherent problem. With an open and honest approach to the workplace, you might even remove the likelihood of negativity arising in the first place.

This article is taken from an excerpt in the training course materials, 'Great Leadership', which are available to buy from our website - Trainer Bubble training course materials. Visit today for this and many other great training courses.

Twitter as a Learning Tool?

2009-02-10T10:43:00.004Z

I've recently started using Twitter to communicate and keep in touch with people in the world of training and it occurred to me that this simple little tool could be a great way to stimulate learning & development in the eyes of a whole new generation.

For those that don't know, Twitter is a social networking tool that allows you to keep in touch with different people as well as letting them know what you are up to at any time. The process is simple and you just have to add in a bit of text to a text box and it is posted for your 'followers' to see. It is really easy to use and if you want to place a link to a website or some other information, you simply add this into the text box.

This application could be a great way of sharing information and gathering feedback before and after training events, as well as being a way to keep in touch with those that are interested for as long as you want to keep on posting. The possibilities for learning are endless.

The reason I think this is such a useful idea is that more and more I notice that learners like to get information in short snippets, rather than spending a great amount of time researching and developing ideas. Twitter is a great way to do this. What is also good is that this tool is already being used by hundreds of thousands of people, it wouldn't be a great leap to get them to buy in to the concept of learning in this way.

So, why not consider how you might use this application for future learning and development. A few ideas are:

1) Post pre-course learning information
2) Evaluation - Check people's views before and after training events
3) Add snippets of learning information that learners can follow
4) Re-cap key points from a learning session
5) Ask for others feedback, feelings and thoughts on learning

These are just a few ideas off the top of my head. Have a look for yourself and see how this might work for you. You can also follow Trainer Bubble on Twitter, just look us up!

Great Leadership Skills - Self Awareness

2009-02-03T14:02:00.003Z

A great leader has a strong sense of self and will identify with both their strengths and their weaknesses. It means recognising what you are good at and acknowledging that there is still a lot for you to learn. It also means being prepared to state when you do not know the answer and addressing the mistakes you might make.

This can often go against our in-grained beliefs, often we are determined to demonstrate that we know and can do everything. However, just because we don’t recognise our weaknesses, it doesn’t mean they don’t exist. If you try and hide things, it will mean that others might question your abilities, which in turn will undermine your efforts as a great leader.

When you develop a strong sense of self you will model behaviour that demonstrates that it’s alright to admit to not knowing all the answers, to make mistakes and to ask for help. All characteristics that, when adopted by the staff, will help an organisation to develop and grow.

On an individual level, by having self-awareness, you will be able to identify where the support of your team is required and utilise their expertise to ensure effectiveness.

There are many ways that you can develop your self-awareness. A few things you can start to focus on are...

- Be true to your strengths
- Solicit feedback
- Ask good questions and listen to the response
- Commit to lifelong learning

This article is an excerpt from the brand new training course materials from Trainer Bubble called, 'Great Leadership Skills'. You can view these materials and many others at - Trainer Bubble Training Course Materials.

Trainer Bubble Adverts

2009-01-16T14:44:00.007Z

We recently designed some adverts to promote Trainer Bubble and our training course materials and thought we'd share the designs with you. The idea was to show our fun side. We hope you like them...

We call this picture, 'When you've got to go!'. Of course we don't provide these type of training course materials, but perhaps we should...

This ad we call 'Shot stopper'. Originally one of our course designers turned down the idea of this image as it showed the worng colour football top! The MD won out though as his team play in blue (you need to hunt down the address on our website for a clue to that one!)

Advertising is a funny old business and along with training can be one of the things that people cut back on during the leaner times. As with training, I think this is a mistake and these are the times when a company needs to stand out more than ever.

Of course there are many ways to advertise, and any business should be careful before they splash out on a big campaign that will provide little or no return. Another thing to be wary of is how equipped you are to cope with the success of a campaign. I recently heard a story of a company that spent thousands on the ad campaign for a telephone based service and tried to save money by not recruiting enough staff to cover the phones...certainly a backwards step!

So, by all means, keep spending money...but spend it wisely.

p.s. you don't get much wiser than a Trainer Bubble training course!

http://www.trainerbubble.com/

Trainer Bubble mentioned in Training Zone

2009-01-12T14:21:00.003Z

Trainer Bubble was extremely pleased to recently be mentioned in the Training Zone 'Quality and Cost Free Training Materials' article. The piece on Trainer Bubble was as follows...

"Trainer Bubble A virtual treasure-chest of training materials, management documents, models and tools for all your business development needs. Some great icebreakers, energisers, training games, team building and PowerPoint games, quotes, puzzles and quizzes."

It's good to be spotted for all the hard work and dedication the training team put into this section.

Motivational Speech from an unlikely source

2009-01-04T15:24:00.003Z

I'm always on the lookout for motivational clips and speeches or little snippets that I can use in training courses and for presentations. I was a little surprised at how good the motivational element of this clip is considering the source (although I am a closet Rocky fan...who isn't really?)

The Grandfather - An Inspirational Story

2008-12-10T12:23:00.005Z

The Grandfather

Author Unknown

A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year-old grandson. The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered. The family ate together at the table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth.

The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. "We must do something about Grandfather," said the son. "I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor." So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner. There Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner.

Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl. When the family glanced in Grandfather's direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone.

Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food.The four-year-old watched it all in silence.

One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor.He asked the child sweetly, "What are you making?" Just as sweetly, the boy responded, "Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up." The four-year-old smiled and went back to work.

The words so struck the parents that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done. That evening the husband took Grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table.

For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason, neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled.

Children are remarkably perceptive. Their eyes observe, their ears listen, and their minds process the messages they absorb. If they see us patiently providing a happy home atmosphere for family members, they will imitate that attitude for the rest of their lives. The wise parent realises that every day the building blocks are being laid for the child's future. Let's be wise builders.

Business Interview with Andrew Wood - 3

2008-12-05T11:12:00.002Z

The final part of the interview with Andrew Wood, the MD of Trainer Bubble...

If you had an unlimited budget, how would you change?

There is a lot going on in the serious gaming market, where customers will play business simulations in order to develop their skills. I see this being a real interesting area in the future and I think the demographic of learners coming through will demand this. I'd also like to market overseas in a more substantial way, as we get a lot of new business from this area and could expand here.

What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with?

It was a shock to me how much of a money pit marketing can be. I don't remember who it was that said, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted. I only wish I knew which half." They were right.

What has been your biggest challenge?

It has to be in the early days of the website, when I felt that my programmers did not have the same sense of urgency about my website as I did. It was frustrating to have to wait a few days for a couple of lines of text to be changed. Eventually I decided I'd have to learn how to programme and edit the website myself. I became self taught, which was a major uphill struggle to begin with. I can now design, edit and pretty much do all the basics. I also learnt a lot about search engine optimisation as I knew this was the cheapest form of advertising, it certainly beat paying for an seo company!

How has running your website differed from your expectations?

It's a lot more work than I thought it would be. I didn't realise how much time and effort I'd need to put into the website from inception to now. The idea of, 'If you build it they will come.' is not a sound one!

How long have you run the site already, and how long will you continue to keep it up if you don't enjoy big gains in traffic, income or popularity?

The site has been running for three years now and we are enjoying continual success. I don't see the need to stop as long as we can diversify into new areas and keep offering customers what they want.

Business Interview with Andrew Wood - 2

2008-11-26T23:53:00.005Z

More from the interview with Andrew Wood, the MD of Trainer Bubble...

What is your eventual goal?

We hope to continue building on our offering and eventually expand into other areas. I am currently in talks with many different training related groups about offering something just that little bit different. I'm hopeful we'll have some serious gaming and e-learning products ready for 2009.

How does your investment of time balance against your success?

Because our materials are downloadable, most of the work is put in at the design and development stage and for the rest of the time we kick back and relax...I wish! We are continually working to improve things and spend a lot of time marketing and promoting the website. Of course the development time is continual and we are always striving to make each product better than the last. It is all really hard work, but we are very successful and it's definitely worth it.

If you had an unlimited budget, how would you change?

There is a lot going on in the serious gaming market, where customers will play business simulations in order to develop their skills. I see this being a real interesting area in the future and I think the demographic of learners coming through will demand this. I'd also like to market overseas in a more substantial way, as we get a lot of new business from this area and could expand here.

What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with?

It was a shock to me how much of a money pit marketing can be. I don't remember who it was that said, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted. I only wish I knew which half." They were right.

Business Interview with Andrew Wood

2008-11-20T20:06:00.004Z

The Managing Director of Trainer Bubble, Andrew Wood was recently interviewed for an article in a local paper regarding his experiences with the Trainer Bubble website and his general thoughts on training. We thought it would be interesting for our customers to view the article and Andrew's views on the website and training, so we will display section of the article bit by bit over the coming weeks. Here's the first instalment...

Please give us a short summary of the website.

Trainer Bubble provides accredited training resources and course materials that trainers and leaders can download and use to run their own training sessions. When you purchase from our website, you receive a complete training pack of trainer’s notes and slides etc. ready to run your own training course. We also have a rapidly growing free section, where you will find training games, exercises, icebreakers and many other useful training tools.

What inspired you to launch the website?

We wanted to make training accessible to all and felt that a method of delivering training resources instantly to trainers and leaders was something that would really benefit our customers. We were also keen to develop a free collection of all the useful training games, icebreakers and tools that we have used in the past.

How did you come up with the name for Trainer Bubble?

The name came from a conversation/debate I had with a participant on one of my courses many years ago in which he said to me, "It's alright for you *bleeping* trainers, you all live in a bubble!' This statement always stuck with me and reminded me to remain objective and link learning to business needs. When I set up the business I decided to pay homage to the guy (whose name I sadly forget) and create a 'bubble' for trainers, hence, Trainer Bubble.

What makes Trainer Bubble different to other websites of the same type?

We were the first business of this specific nature to set up in the UK and since then we have been able to grow our offering beyond that of anyone else. We also have full accreditation for our training materials from ITOL, which really sets us apart. We are also proud that our free section is becoming one of the largest on the web.

Learning From Horse Trainers

2008-11-04T09:49:00.003Z

Every now and then it pays to be reminded of basic principles and I got a reminder of this from an unexpected source a couple of days ago. I found myself reading an article giving tips in horse training techniques. The article caught my eye because some of the tips could equally apply to the way in which we train people.

I am not for one moment suggesting that horses and people are the same but that we can sometimes learn from the way in which other professionals work.

There were six main ideas that I liked because they reminded me of the importance of treating participants in the right way in the training room. I thought that I would share these with you whilst at the same time giving my take on how these techniques might also apply to people.

1. Warm the horse up both physically and mentally before starting.

Anyone used to training people will be aware of the importance of icebreakers and energisers. It seems that trying to go straight into a difficult training session without an initial warm up is not productive for humans or for horses.

2. Plan your training sessions carefully.

This is common sense whether training people or animals. It is also important to have a back-up plan in case your approach does not work on the day. We all have off days and we all learn in different ways, so we need a plan that caters for this.

3. Give simple cues.

Keeping cues and instructions simple makes perfect sense. We own a dog and I know from training him that confusing or difficult instructions do not work. The same applies to people. The simpler the instructions and information we supply the easier it is for them to learn.

4. Use positive and negative reinforcement during training

Feedback is important and it needs to be well balanced. If all of our feedback is negative we cannot be surprised if the people we are training lose heart. At the same time feedback that is 100% positive is no use unless justified.

5. Recognise when the horse is trying to make a correct response and give small rewards.

I’m not suggesting that we give a lump of sugar to people when they are doing well. But well placed words of encouragement can be their own reward (e.g. Well done. You’ve almost got it). Anyone who is used to training others will be well aware of this.

6. Know the lesson you are trying to teach and be persistent with that lesson.

This comes back to knowing the purpose of your training and making sure that everything you do is aimed at meeting that purpose. If both trainer and trainee are clear about lesson objectives and are persistent in meeting those objectives then success can almost be assured.

Of course, horses are not people. However, consistently applying these simple ideas must surely apply to training in just about any context.

This article was written by Karl Halliwell who is one of the course designers for Trainer Bubble training resources. Visit Trainer Bubble today to find out more about our Train the Trainer course materials.

Marketing Strategy

2008-10-27T10:21:00.001Z

I recently came across this simple guide to marketing that sums things up for me...

You see a gorgeous girl at a party. You go up to her and say, "I'm fantastic in bed". That's Direct Marketing.

You're at a party with a bunch of friends and see a gorgeous girl. One of your friends goes up to her and pointing at you says, "He's fantastic in bed". That's Advertising.

You see a gorgeous girl at a party. You go up to her and get her telephone number. The next day you call and say, "Hi, I'm fantastic in bed". That's Telemarketing.

You're at a party and see a gorgeous girl. You get up and straighten your tie, you walk up to her and pour her a drink. You open the door for her, pick up her bag after she drops it, offer her a ride, and then say, "By the way, I'm fantastic in bed". That's Public Relations.

You're at a party and see a gorgeous girl. She walks up to you and says, "I hear you're fantastic in bed". That's Brand Recognition.

Complaints Are Good For Business

2008-10-21T14:15:00.003Z

We may not like handling complaints, particularly if we have a customer screaming at us like a demented banshee. However, there is a certain satisfaction in being able to remain calm and professional and being able to turn around a bad situation.

Successful organisations encourage unhappy customers to complain and make sure that their people are trained to handle complaints well. This is because they know that complaints are good for their business.

There has been a lot of research into this subject and it all points to the fact that most unhappy customers do not bother to complain. This may seem to be a good thing as it leads to a quiet life. However, the problem is that these people simply take their business elsewhere. In fact, as many as 95% of complaining customers take this approach. This means that only about 1 in 20 bother to complain. Can we really afford to lose the other 19?

This would be a pity because most of the problems that make people unhappy can be resolved easily. Yet you are never given the chance to put the situation right. It is also a shame because good complaint handling leads to customer loyalty. Research suggests that most customers whose complaints are dealt with quickly and well become loyal customers returning again and again.

Complaints are also important because they may be the only way you can ever find out that there is a problem with your products and services and the general health of the business. Only by becoming aware of these problems it is then possible to put them right for the future and consequently to improve the business.

This all suggests that rather than discouraging people from complaining we should be publicising our complaints procedures. We also need to have a system for recording all complaints so that we can quickly spot any trends that need attention. It is also vital that we don’t neglect staff training. After all, we do need to make sure that the complaints we receive are handled well. We don’t want to make a bad situation even worse.

This article was written by Karl Halliwell who is one of the course designers for Trainer Bubble training resources. Visit Trainer Bubble today to find out more about our complaint handling course materials.

Time for Business to SWOT up?

2008-10-15T17:41:00.003Z

This is a very worrying time for business. The banking crisis and the certainty of recession mean that there are very hard times ahead. Inevitably, some businesses will not survive. Even well run and stable businesses are likely to find it tough and will need to be flexible to thrive.

Business plans that were carefully crafted only a few months ago will need to be re-visited. In a world that is changing so quickly do those plans still hold good? The threats that business faces today are very different from those being faced only a few weeks ago. At the same time there will be new opportunities although they may be a lot harder to spot. The big question is whether your business is well placed to cope with the new threats and take advantage of new opportunities.

One approach that may serve business well is to conduct A SWOT analysis. Whilst this will not in itself provide the answers we need it is an important tool to help take proper stock of the situation. Only by recognising new threats and opportunities and how well placed we are to cope with both can we even begin to plan for the future. It may also help us to spot the actions that need to be taken in the short term.

Strengths

Now is the time to remind yourself of the strengths of your business and to consider which of these strengths will help you now. These will vary from business to business and it is worth considering some of the following areas:

Skills, knowledge, motivation and loyalty of the workforce.
Flexibility of the business. How well can it cope with change?
Financial strength of the business
The relationship with your business partners
The reliability of your business partners
Your spread of customers
Your spread of products.
Your control of expenses
How well managed is the business?
Your systems and efficiencies
How good is your risk management and contingency planning?

Weaknesses

What are the known weaknesses in your businesses? Again it is worth considering all of the points listed under strengths. For example, relying heavily on just a few customers may be a real problem. Do your employees have the knowledge and skills to cope with the changes you may have to make? If not, there may be a training need to be addressed. Of course, now is not the time for expensive training solutions but are there some priority needs that could be addressed with low cost solutions?

Opportunities

In these gloomy times it may be hard to think of too many business opportunities but they do exist if we look hard enough. Let’s take the example of the supermarkets. With money amongst shoppers getting tighter they have recognised that there is more of a market for their own label bargain products and have adapted their businesses accordingly.

It’s also worth remembering that your competitors will be struggling too. Some may go out of business and this presents potential opportunities if you can ride out the storm.

What other potential opportunities can you think of? Don’t just look for the obvious. For example, employees who have been resistant to change in the past may have a different attitude now. With the job market likely to become more challenging the opportunity to acquire new skills associated with change may seem a lot more attractive.

Threats

Of course, there are many threats at the moment. Will the bank manager continue to support the business? Will your competitors try to undercut you in a cut throat battle for your business?

What about your business partners? Will they be struggling too? If, so what might the threat be to your business?

What other potential threats can you think of? Again, it is important to look beyond the obvious threats.

We are not suggesting that a SWOT analysis will solve everything. It is merely a tool to help us to fully understand our situation and is one of many approaches that can be adopted at all levels of an organisation to start planning your way through the next few months. It may also help you identify some quick solutions that might even make a difference straight away.

By Karl Halliwell a Trainer Bubble author.

Make the Most of Your Budget During the Credit Crunch

2008-10-08T09:57:00.002Z

Value for money has never been more important...

You can't turn on the tv, read the paper or view the internet at the moment without being told how difficult times are financially right now. Our experience in dealing with large organisations tells us that even though companies might not be ready to throw in the towel just yet, there has been a noticeable downturn in the outputs of most L&D departments.

Many are doing nothing and learning and development has simply been placed on hold, while others are cutting budgets and streamlining or even cancelling any development plans. What you can be sure of is that development is just as important as ever and standing still is not the best way forward. That's why we believe that our low-cost, yet highly effective training resources have become more valueable than ever.

So, rather than let the wave of fear challenge your learning interventions,take control again by visiting Trainer Bubble.

Structuring a Difficult Message - Communication Skills

2008-10-01T14:25:00.003Z

When news is communicated, it helps if there is a structure to the various elements of the news. If we structure the communication in a logical manner, we will ensure that people clearly receive the message and that there is less likelihood of misunderstanding or ‘Chinese whispers’. The order of giving the news is:

Context – What you are going to be talking about
The headline - The heading of the subject matter
The detail – The detail
The reason for the news – What’s caused it
The rationale – What led to the reason, the background behind it
The consequences – What this actually means to the individuals, what will happen
Alternative actions – What, if any, other actions can be taken

For example:

Context:

I want to talk to you about the office.

The headline:

The office is closing.

The detail:

The office is closing and merging with the office ten miles away.

The reason for the news:

It will save money by operating out of one office rather than two.

The rationale:

We’ve looked at how the loss of business is affecting us and there are a number of sites around the country where the operation can be combined.
This will save costs by reducing the number of sites we have to maintain.

The consequences:

You will need to consider any additional travelling time and distance. You will need to consider how this will affect your home life. You need to consider whether or not you want to stay with the company.

Alternative actions:

As well as staff being offered the opportunity of moving to the other office, which is being enlarged, there will be options to move to other offices if more convenient. There is also a voluntary redundancy option.

This article was adapted from the training materials for the 'Communicating Difficult Messages' workbook, which forms part of the training materials by Trainer Bubble. Visit our website to view this great resource www.trainerbubble.com

When Anger turns to Rage - The Difference

2008-09-28T08:34:00.003Z

Phone Rage is on the increase in the world of business. So what's the difference between anger and rage?

“Anger is only a natural reaction; one of the mind's ways of reacting to things that it perceives to be wrong. While anger can sometimes lead people to do shocking things, it can also be an instinct to show people that something isn't right.”

Anger is a feeling that we all encounter from time to time, and frequently we experience it as a response to frustration, hurt, disappointment, and threats (real or imagined). It is often related to a perceived loss of control over factors affecting our integrity—our beliefs and how we feel about ourselves. In some cases, the anger has to do with the inability of others to meet our own unrealistic expectations.

The rational expression of anger in response to these concerns can offer several benefits. Most important is the mobilising of inner resources needed to overcome fear. When we feel angry, we have some confidence in responding to the danger or threat.

Fear leads to flight; anger sustains fight. While rational anger can be constructive in feeling competent to confront a threatening situation, we may react to the threat with more anger than is warranted. However, anger in itself is not necessarily a problem and can often be managed to resolution.

Rage is the accumulation of unexpressed anger and perceived disrespectful transactions that finally flow to the surface. When we become enraged, usually there is the belief that someone is deliberately attempting to incite us to become angry. Within this ego-bruised state, we are convinced that trying to be reasonable will prove to be ineffective, and therefore we will need to “even the score” or methodically disarm the offending party. It is when this rage surfaces that we become difficult to deal with.

“Sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.” ~ Author Unknown

It is important to make the differentiation between ‘rage’ and ‘anger’ as we might often encounter anger from a caller when they are dissatisfied, but when this anger becomes vehement, aggressive or even personally abusive we can consider it rage. Often, badly handled anger will turn to rage as the customer becomes more out of control.

This article is an excerpt from the Trainer Bubble training materials on 'Dealing with Phone Rage', which can be purchased from our website at www.trainerbubble.com

The Future of the English Language

2008-09-19T14:35:00.002Z

A little bit of a spelling test for everyone today...

Call Centre Training - Listen to calls

2008-09-08T09:32:00.006Z

We are often asked if we can provide recorded telephone calls for training purposes. Our customers like to listen in to telephone calls and then review them in the training session, which can be a fantastic way of reviewing customer perceptions and our own attitudes to calls.

We have always preferred not to provide such calls as we feel it is unfair to 'label' an organisation by one specific phone call to one individual. We encourage our customers to record their own calls if this is something they want to pursue.

It is actually very easy to record telephone calls and all you need is a standard recording device (tape recorder or even a microphone attached to your pc) and a speaker phone. You then make a basic call to a company requesting a brochure or enquiring about their service.

Of course, we always do what we can to help our customers and so we will soon be developing a set of 'fake' telephone calls, recorded by Trainer Bubble team members, which will be added to our free section at Trainer Bubble.

In the meantime, we have found a set of calls that were made to banks by thisismoney.co.uk the link is here. These should assist those customers that need help quickly.

We hope this helps.

Social Proof - Influence through people power

2008-09-01T15:31:00.005Z

The following video has a humorous edge. However, I think it provides a really interesting insight into the workings of the human mind and how we are influenced by 'social proof' i.e. when others do something, I must do it too.

This concept is discussed in our training material, 'The Power of Influence' Visit us at Trainer Bubble to find out more...everybody else already has!

Customer Service - Low cost airlines

2008-08-26T09:46:00.002Z

This clip about low cost airlines is brilliant. Is there much difference to your own experience?

10 Green Tips for the Eco-Trainer

2008-08-18T21:18:00.002Z

Most people accept these days that we have a responsibility towards our environment. Many businesses are also taking their responsibility to the environment very seriously and many more are waking up to the need to do this.

Quite apart from anything else a demonstration of corporate social responsibility is good for public relations. There is also the fact that a ‘greener’ approach can save costs.

As trainers, we have a part to play in minimising our effect on the environment. This is partly through the message we give out during the training we deliver but also through our own behaviour.

Over the last year the training team I work for have been taking a number of steps to reduce our environmental footprint. Perhaps this has only had a minimal effect on the environment but if everyone was to think in the same way then the overall impact could be significant.

However, one effect that has been very clear for us to see is a reduction in our expenses. For example, our stationery bill seems to have halved and we are also sure that we are doing our bit to contain our energy costs. We also feel pretty good about ourselves.

Here are our top ten tips for reducing our environmental impact. They are not in any particular order but all contribute a little to a greener approach. We are sure you have plenty of tips of your own. Why not share them with us?

1. Instead of giving all participants paper copies of course hand outs deliver them by e-mail or publish them on your intranet.
2. Where paper hand outs, workbooks or instructions are absolutely necessary print them on both sides of the paper. Also, consider printing two pages on a single page.
3. Instead of handing out individual paper instructions for syndicate exercises display the instructions on a flip chart or PowerPoint slide. Alternatively, laminate the instructions and use them on future courses.
4. Recycle paper when you have finished with it.
5. Where it is not necessary to keep work for any time why not use a whiteboard instead of using flipchart paper? If you have to use flipchart paper why not use both sides of the paper?
6. Don’t forget turn off the lights and any electrical equipment when you have finished in the training room. Don’t leave electrical equipment on stand-by.
7. Buy green and/or recycled products when obtaining materials for training.
8. Review the paperwork you produce for your courses. Do you need it all or can this be reduced.
9. Deliver course joining instructions by e-mail instead of sending paper copies.
10. Arrange for course participants to complete course happy sheets instead of a paper version.

This article was written by Wolfgang Halliwell who is a learning designer for the Trainer Bubble team. Visit www.trainerbubble.com to purchase his work.

Communicating Difficult Messages - What People Want

2008-08-07T18:28:00.006Z

Suppose you have a difficult subject to get over to your team; e.g. you are a manager and you need to cut hours and that means some job roles will go, this will also increase the workload on the remaining members of the team. You anticipate some resistance to this but you know it is the right thing to do as some of the work is light and there is not enough work to go around.

What people want is to feel that they have been heard and understood. What they don’t want is to sense that you are indifferent or even hostile to their feelings.

Suppose you encounter strong resistance from a member of the team during the communication. What you don’t want to do is resist your “opponent” by arguing. This will only help to add scale to the point of view, but by acknowledging from the start that the concerns are valid and showing empathy for the situation you should help to engage them and help them to recognise that their concerns are not being ignored or discounted.

So, much of communicating tough topics is about unwanted change.

There are 5 things that people want when unwanted tough topics are communicated:

They want to talk about their fears - Let them have their say. People need to express their concerns, they need to react and articulate their feelings. Your role, as leader, is to listen and respect their views even if you think their comments are illogical and unfair.
They want you to acknowledge that their concerns are valid - Never dismiss the feelings of others. Their feelings are very personal to them and by dismissing them an immediate barrier will be formed which it is very difficult to break down.
They want a role in deciding the aftermath - Allow people to work out for themselves how to adapt to the situation and allow them to have input where possible.
They want to hold on to the familiar - Keep as much of the familiar as possible. People will naturally want to hang on to what they know.
They want a good reason for their sacrifice - Explain the decisions be they yours or the business. It helps if they can see something good from the decision so emphasise the benefits as much as possible.

This article is adapted from the trainers notes of the Trainer Bubble training material, 'Communicating Difficult Messages', which is available from http://www.trainerbubble.com/

Everything is linked...

2008-07-30T08:46:00.002Z

A fantastic movie that develops the interconnectedness of things...

Report Writing - Getting Started

2008-07-22T10:38:00.002Z

For many people the hardest part in writing a report is getting started.

Have you ever struggled to find the right words?

Or do you start writing but find that you don’t get very far because you are unhappy with what you have written?

Do you then find yourself re-writing your opening?

It is all too easy to get bogged down and to make little or no progress. This is sometimes known as writer’s block.

Instead of aiming for perfection the key to writing a lengthy piece such as a report is to get on and write it. Don’t try to edit it as you go along. It is usually far better to write the whole piece and then to go back and edit it later. Try this approach:

Work through the major points you intend to cover one at a time.
Start writing and write everything you have planned to cover on each of these points.
Avoid looking for better or more impressive words.
Avoid stopping and evaluating your work while you are still writing. Do this only when you have finished.
Keep going until you have finished your first draft.

If you have already produced a report outline as recommended you will find it is much easier to write the report itself.

Visit Trainer Bubble, where you will find our training course materials including trainers notes for Report Writing. www.trainerbubble.com

Training the key to profits!

2008-07-10T11:52:00.004Z

The head of the company that owns PC World and Currys has said that poorly trained staff are a large factor in the current failings of these businesses and that improving service levels is going to present major difficulties for the future. "It will take some time. It will require years of training. It's an investment, but we think we can make a major difference over time," said John Browett, chief executive of DSGi.

As someone who runs a training organisation I have to say I'm surprised that this point even needs mentioning. Of course poorly trained staff will have a detrimetal affect on a business and I don't just mean sales training, customer care is just as much an important factor. As the internet has provided the customer with more choice than ever, it has become even more vital that staff are able to get the basics right and only training can achieve this.

In my opinion, well trained staff are the key to retail environments, where the ability to increase profits on products is being diminished by the ability to choose from such a variety of different sources. In fact, I'd go as far as to say it is possibly the only differing factor that high street retail chains can now offer over cheaper internet offerings.

Why it has taken a huge downturn in sales for anyone to realise this is beyond me. Anyone that goes shopping will notice that the staff lack knowledge, motivation and the ability to show interest in a customers needs and a positive respect for the company they are representing as well as its products.

I have to have a little respect for John Browett though, at least he realises the importance of training to his future profitability. The recent talk of concerns over recession and a dip in high street spending worries me. At a time when organisations should be investing in training, I can only see things going one way.

The head of any large organisation that is looking to reduce spending whilst improving the skill levels of their staff would do well to refer to our website www.trainerbubble.com, where they will find affordable training resources that get results.

How Our Body Responds to Stress

2008-07-03T13:10:00.005Z

Once we are put under stress our body immediately begins to react and there are certain specific things you will be able to notice in your body. Over time, these stress elements can build up and often cause inherent health problems with our bodies. Once we are stressed, our body immediately begins to react.

Humans have innately developed a “fight or flight” response to stressful or threatening situations over the years. Several things happen under stress: On occasion, these responses can be good, but most of the time, it is merely an overreaction to a situation that causes this stress and it can eventually harm your physical health.

Resulting symptoms could be...

Blood flow to brain and muscles increase/Concentration heightens – Tension headache, migraines, anxiety, moods

Your heart rate increases – Chest pains, raised blood pressure

Breathing becomes more rapid – Clammy, sweaty feelings.

Digestion pauses to allow for more energy – Heartburn, indigestion, ulcers

Muscle tension increases – Aches, pains, muscle spasms

Other than the physical functions carried on by our body, stress can damage our bodies in other ways. When we are under stress, we often tend to abuse our body. This can include poor lifestyle choices such as eating fatty and greasy foods, drinking too much caffeine or alcohol, or even abusing prescription or illegal drugs. All these can have a secondary affect on the body caused by stress

This article is an excerpt from the workbook in the training material, 'Stress Management', which is available from our website at http://www.trainerbubble.com/

Just the ticket?

2008-06-24T09:47:00.005Z

I'm not sure how or even whether you could use this in a training environment, but it really made me chuckle...

Perhaps there is something here about miscommunication or thinking you are in the right when you're not? Maybe it's just a fun icebreaker to start the day.

By the way, I should point out that the story is false...

Achieving Sales on the Telephone - Closing a Sale

2008-06-20T13:30:00.003Z

Although you will close the sale at the end of the call it is important to realise that a close is not just about a commitment to purchase, but also commitment of interest. A good salesperson will display the intention to close throughout a call, so that it does not come as a surprise to the customer at the end.

Once you have reached a point where you have summarised the agreed customer needs, related the product advantages (benefits) to these needs you are ready to ask your closing question.

There are many different questions and methods that you can use to close a sale. However, there are three golden rules you should consider. These are…

• Present the close in the form of a question

• Once you’ve asked your question be silent and wait for an answer

• If you don’t ask, you will never know if they would have purchased

Remember, both you and the person you are talking to know that your role is about closing sales. You will not ruin a good relationship by trying to close. Be confident about closing, but do not let this over-run into high-pressure tactics or rudeness. Part of your responsibility is to leave the door open for future sales.

Examples of closing questions

The Direct Close

This requires a yes/no answer. ‘Would you like to go ahead and purchase then?’ You may get a ‘no’ response, if this is the case, ask the customer why, you may have more objections to overcome.

The Alternative Close

Give the customer a choice. ‘Would you like this product, or the other?’

The Secondary Close

Ask the customer a question, which by answering means they will purchase. ‘Would you like to purchase this? Where should I send it to?’

This article is an excerpt from the workbook of the Trainer Bubble training material, 'Achieving Sales on the Telephone'. You can purchase this training course by visiting our website at www.trainerbubble.com

Preparing to be Assertive

2008-06-02T11:52:00.003Z

We often find that we have time to prepare for most situations where we have to be at our most assertive. This is very useful, but don’t fall into the trap of spending this time having negative feelings about the interaction. Instead, prepare yourself and ensure that you are clear about the approach you are going to take. Some tips are…

Be prepared – clarify what you want to say and how you will say it
Try to choose the place and time to meet and have a clear idea of what you want
Challenge any negative thoughts you might have – instead of thinking ‘I’ll never be able to do it’, try ‘I’ll have a go at this and see how I get on’.
Learn to think assertively – avoid words like should, ought, must. Replace these with could, want to, can.

It can also be useful to ‘script’ your side of the conversation in preparation for a difficult interaction. Of course you don’t have to physically write down the conversation and scripting can take place in your head. However, you may feel the process of writing it down will initially help to relax you. One simple process to follow is…

EXPLANATION - Briefly explain the situation as you see it – be as objective as you can

FEELINGS - Acknowledge your own feelings and take ownership – show empathy

NEEDS - Outline clearly what you want out of the situation – provide an opportunity for solution

CONSEQUENCES - Outline the consequences of the other person complying – or of not complying!

An example could be…

EXPLANATION – ‘I would like to talk over a problem with you. Recently you have been asking me for reports only a day before you need them. This has meant that I have had to work late into the night to get them completed.’

FEELINGS – ‘I am beginning to get tired and frustrated with this process, and although I can appreciate how important these reports are to you…’

NEEDS – ‘…If there is any way you could request the reports earlier.’

CONSEQUENCES – ‘I’d be really grateful.’

This is an excerpt from the workbook in the training material for 'Assertiveness in Action', which you can purchase from our website at www.trainerbubble.com

Emotional Intelligence - Methods of Improving Self-Management

2008-05-28T09:04:00.002Z

Self-management is attained by being aware of your emotions and habitual responses and understanding them to the degree that you have some control over them. Over time you will increase your ability to pick up on the information being provided to you and further increase your ability to self-manage. The following suggestions might also help.

Choose your attitude

Remember, you always have the choice to act in any way you want to. You are not controlled by your emotions and if you take time out to consider what the rational way of acting is in any given situation, you will become more focused on the positive aspects of your interactions.

Anchor your positive feelings

Think of the periods when you were really in control. Harness those positive feelings and emotions and recall them in times when you feel less positive. This will help you to overcome bad feelings.

Challenge negative ‘self-talk’

Every time you hear your negative ‘inner voice’ telling you that you can’t achieve something or that you will fail, challenge it, ask yourself why you can’t achieve it or why you will fail.

Have a positive mental attitude

When you have a positive mental attitude, you look at how things can be done rather than why they can't be done. You believe that "where there's a will, there's a way." You look at possibilities and opportunities rather than obstacles and problems. This mindset is important for success in any endeavour.

Live life with an abundance mentality

People with an abundance mentality believe there are enough resources available to accomplish their goals. They also believe that their success doesn't mean failure for others. On the contrary, the more successful they are, the more others are affected in a positive way. They can be happy when friends and associates prosper. They can enter every business transaction with a "win/win" attitude.

This is an excerpt from the training manual of our training course material on 'Emotional Intelligence', which you can purchase from our website at www.trainerbubble.com

Customer Care - Some Facts

2008-05-06T14:26:00.005Z

If we can retain 5 percent more of our customers we increase profit by 100%
It costs 5 times more money to get new customers as it does to keep them
The average customer that has a bad experience tells 9 other people
The average customer that has a good experience tells 3 other people
If a complaint is resolved 70% of customers will do more business.
Resolve it quickly and this increases to 90%

Visit Trainer Bubble today and download our training resources on customer care to develop effective teams who focus on customers and their needs.

Accredited Training - Trainer Bubble & ITOL

2008-04-26T07:09:00.003Z

You may have noticed that things have gone a little quiet on the blog front over the last few weeks. Well, rest assured, we have not been sitting on our hands. In fact, we've been working extremely hard to provide added value to our www.trainerbubble.com website.

We are now extremely pleased to announce that we have established accreditation for our training materials from the Institute of Training and Occupational Learning (ITOL). This not only ensures that our customers know they are getting value for money, but also demonstrates our own personal commitment to excellence in training design.

What does it mean for our customers?

We are still finalising the details of this exciting opportunity. However, having accredited training means that our customers can market the training as such to their participants, which of course will provide added credibility to the training they deliver. It is also an opportunity to highlight the courses credentials in any marketing literature they provide.

Another benefit is the fact that we will be developing certificates in partnership with ITOL. This means that by becoming a member of ITOL, customers can order certificates from Trainer Bubble and provide them to participants at the end of their accredited training session.

We will provide more details of this great opportunity soon. In the meantime, you can find out more about ITOL here.

More conflict! - The Five Methods of Managing Conflict

2008-04-18T10:44:00.002Z

There are five typical methods that people resort to when managing conflict. These were identified by two leading academics, Kenneth Thomas and Ralph Kilmann and are defined as follows.

Avoiding – This approach is so called when people ignore the conflict or withdraw from it. It may well be the best course of action when the conflict is trivial or when the potential disruption outweighs intervention. As this approach rarely resolves anything, we can determine it as a lose-lose situation.

Accommodating – This approach is used in order to maintain harmonious relations, where you place another’s needs above your own. You accommodate when the issue is not all that important to you or you are ‘building markers’ for a later issue. As you allow the other party to get what they want, we can determine this as a lose-win situation.

Forcing – This approach is so called when you use your formal authority to resolve the dispute. The method may be used when you need a quick resolution and it works well when unpopular actions must be taken on important issues or when commitment by others is not critical. We can determine this as a win–lose situation.

Compromising – This approach requires each party to give up something of value and is common in dealing with interpersonal situations. It works best when there is parity in personal power, when it is desirable to achieve a temporary solution to a complex issue, or when time is critical. As both parties have to give up something in these scenarios when can determine it as a lose-lose situation.

Collaborating – This is a problem-solving approach to conflict. Each party/side re-evaluates their position on issues and work together to form a joint view or solution. It works well when time pressures are minimal and the issue is too important to compromise. As both parties get something out of this approach we can determine it as a win-win solution.

This is an excerpt from the workbook of the Trainer Bubble training materials, 'Conflict Handling'. Visit www.trainerbubble.com today to find out more.

Methods of Improving Motivation

2008-03-27T10:42:00.005Z

Motivation is the ability to use your deepest emotions to move and guide you towards your goals. This ability enables you to take the initiative and persevere in the face of obstacles and setbacks. The following suggestions might also help.

Focus on what you want – If you’re finding it difficult to motivate yourself, perhaps you are not doing what you want to do. Consider what you enjoy and work towards that.

Also, if you focus on the negative aspect of what you don’t want and spend your time moving away from the bad, you may find that you do not feel happy with where you end up. The ‘away from’ motivator is useful to start with, but it is directionless and you should choose a ‘toward’ motivator at the earliest opportunity.

Set a date for your goal – This is crucial. Without a set date of achievement your goal is left hanging and becomes a vague notional wish. Set a date, and if you don’t quite make it, re-assess.

Make the goal compelling – If your goal is not attractive, then you are less likely to work towards in a positive way.

Set milestones – If the goal seems overwhelming, break it down into milestones. This will help you to achieve it by making it seem less daunting.

If it’s not a fun goal, focus on the end result – When your goal seems more of chore, but it simply has to be done, target the end result rather than the drudgery of the task. This way you can focus on the positive feeling of achieving the goal rather than the pain of the task itself.

This is a short excerpt from the Trainers Notes in the Trainer Bubble Training Material, 'Emotional Intelligence at Work'. Visit Trainer Bubble today to buy this great resource.

Why conflict can be difficult to resolve

2008-03-18T15:49:00.003Z

The main reason that conflicts are so difficult to resolve is that they are predominantly influenced by emotions. When emotions like anger and resentment are felt it is often difficult for people to behave rationally. The likelihood of the person understanding the others point of view diminishes as their own strong emotions take over.

Emotions play a role in how people make sense of their relationships, concept of power, and social status. People constantly evaluate situations and events to work out if they are personally relevant. These understandings and appraisals are infused with various emotions and feelings. So, emotion not only serves a side effect of conflict, but also frames the way in which parties understand and define their dispute.

Secondly, within the context of relationships, emotions typically express people's agendas, desires, and goals. When people perceive that they have incompatible goals or that others are interfering with their desires and pursuits, this elicits emotions and leads to conflict.

Imagine an iceberg, a small percentage is above the iceberg and visible, while a large part is below the water line and obscured from view. The small part represents our behaviour; we can see and hear it.

Just below the surface is our emotions – we can neither see nor hear them, but we can often guess how we and others are feeling by observing the behaviours. For example; when someone is smiling, we can guess they are happy, when they frown we guess they are sad etc.

If we go deeper down the iceberg we get to a place that represents the things that are most important to us: our needs and interests. These are the things that drive our emotions and in turn cause us to act and react the way we do when in conflict.

When dealing with conflict it is tempting to overlook the emotional aspect and often we are told to treat things only from an objective point of view. This is dangerous and usually leads to failure. Our aim should be to identify that emotions play a part and look for methods of addressing the emotive issues. Only then can we overcome the substantive needs of those involved.

This article is an excerpt from the training materials for trainers called 'Conflict Handling', which are available from our website at Trainer Bubble. Visit us today and buy this fantastic resource.

Jill Bolte Taylor: My stroke of insight - Inspirational, Must see!

2008-03-14T09:50:00.004Z

And now, when you're ready, take 18 minutes to watch this astonishing talk from Harvard-trained brain scientist Jill Bolte Taylor. It drew a huge standing ovation in the first session of the conference and, by general consensus, counts as one of the most memorable TED talks of all time.

TED TALKS - Jill Bolte Taylor

Neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor had an opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: One morning, she realized she was having a massive stroke. As it happened -- as she felt her brain functions slip away one by one, speech, movement, understanding -- she studied and remembered every moment. This is a powerful story about how our brains define us and connect us to the world and to one another.

Are you 'self' or 'other' centred?

2008-03-05T08:50:00.002Z

What to do: Using the first finger of your dominant hand, trace out the capital letter ‘Q’ on your forehead.

Analysis: This fun test provides some insight into whether you are ‘self’ or ‘other’ centered. These two types of people have a very different way of seeing the world, and one type is no better or worse than the other.

There are two ways of completing this exercise. Some people draw the tail of the ‘Q’ on the right hand side of their forehead whilst others draw it on the left.

Self-centered people tend to draw the letter Q in a way in which it can be read by themselves. They tend to come across as being the 'same person' in different situations, and their behaviour is guided more by their own values than the needs of others. They pride themselves on being straight with people, and expect others to be honest with them. Because of this, they are not especially good at lying, but are better at detecting lies in others.

People who are other-centered tend to draw the letter Q in a way in which it can be seen by someone facing them. They tend to be concerned with how other people see them. They are happy being the center of attention, can easily adapt their behaviour to suit the situation in which they find themselves, and are skilled at influencing the way in which others see them. Because of this they are often good at lying, but not so good at detecting lies.

This test and others like it are available on Richard Wiseman's fantastic website 'Quirkology', which you can visit at http://www.quirkology.com

What Makes a Great Trainer?

2008-02-29T09:54:00.002Z

I recently overheard a conversation between a trainer and one of their participants, who was asking how the trainer had got into the role. I was a little shocked when the participant said, “It just surprises me a little as you’re not particularly dynamic are you?” Putting aside that individual’s perception of the trainer, the comment begged the question, ‘What makes a great trainer?’

It is often said that training is a role that people ‘fall into’, it’s rare that a person sets out to become a trainer as a career choice (this author, it seems, being the exception that proves the rule!) When asked, a lot of trainers will say that they where one day thrust into the position, loved it, and have not looked back since. Others enter the role later in their career when they make the choice to become a consultant or are asked to deliver due to their experience. There are of course many other variables, but this seems to cover the main.

So if it’s knowledge of a subject that throws people into the job of trainer, is it knowledge that makes you good at training? The simple answer to this question has to be a resounding ‘no’. My Religious Studies teacher at school certainly had a lot of knowledge on the topic and it’s not just my failing the exams that tells me he wasn’t the best trainer in the world.

Of course, if you have no knowledge at all of a topic, then you really shouldn’t be training others. However, it’s possible to facilitate a training session on which you are not the subject matter expert. In fact, I’d argue that a ‘great’ trainer is one that can facilitate training on a topic where the participants are the experts.

Knowledge, for me, is not the answer.

Let’s go back to the participants comment I overheard; does a great trainer have to be dynamic? I guess first we should ask what ‘dynamic’ means. My trusty Oxford English Dictionary tells me that dynamic means active and energetic. Now, if a participant wants me to come racing into a room, waving a flag, whilst singing, ‘Oh Susanna!’, then I’m afraid I am not a great trainer. I have certainly seen trainers that would model the active and energetic principles and a lot of them were great trainers. However, I’ve also seen a lot of trainers that don’t encapsulate this style and they have often exceeded my expectations.

Maybe the participant was a little confused about the term dynamic and what they actually meant was enthusiastic and engaging. This I could put a little more belief in. I certainly think you have to be passionate about the subject you are training in and if you don’t engage and enthuse the learners, you will struggle to get your point across. This is training 101 and every trainer should aim to come across in this way. However, I don’t think that being engaging and enthusiastic will do it alone. There has to be a ‘point’ to the training in order for people to learn something, no matter how engaging you are.

Dynamism, in whatever form, for me, is not the answer.

I often receive feedback from training courses where participants say, ‘...it was fun’ or ‘I enjoyed myself’. So, does a great trainer have to make people laugh, be funny or encourage others to have fun? Again, I think this is something that is certainly important to training. People tend to learn more effectively when they have fun and enjoy the experience. However, laughing alone does not a good course make. I have attended many a session where I had great fun and enjoyed the experience, but due to the fact that the trainer did not relate the fun to any learning point, the value was lost. In fact, I’d argue that this is where a lot of trainers fail. They will get repeat business and heavy praise for their ‘event’, but the learner has been let down by the pure and simple fact that they have learnt nothing.

Fun, for me, is not the answer.

Often the best learning I have ever achieved is through the fact that I have been challenged in my thinking. I have been taken out of my comfort zone and truly made to work for the knowledge. This learning has been embedded into my core and helped me to grow and develop. So, is a great trainer someone that challenges his participants?

Whilst being challenged is valuable and important, it can become demoralising when this is the only form of teaching. We need to be encouraged and enjoy the experience because being tested constantly can become tedious and dull.

Challenging, for me, is not the answer.

I could go on. There are of course many elements to consider when we think about training and delivery and all of them play a part in some way. No one thing will make you a great trainer, although one thing may make you a bad trainer!

I think what we’ve learnt is that a great trainer is the sum of their parts. They need to be knowledgeable, engaging, funny, challenging and a host of other things. They also need to know when the right time to be each is. So whether you’re in this role by design or default, remember one thing...it’s not bloody easy!

Great words, great man

2008-02-19T09:05:00.000Z

Effective Customer - A Few Simple Facts

2008-02-12T17:28:00.000Z

Effective customer care is critical to the success of any business. Without positive relationships with our customers no business can survive in today’s competitive marketplace. Just consider the amount of customers you have had up until now, imagine what things would be like if they all disappeared overnight!

Customer care has changed immensely over the years. Our customers have become less tolerant and more demanding. It is a huge challenge for us to meet these demands. However, the answers are within us all.

We all know that customers who are happy with the service we provide are more likely to purchase again and recommend us to others. You may even know that customers that are very impressed with our service rather than just satisfied are willing to pay higher prices for our products. What you may not know is…

• If we can retain 5 percent more of our customers we increase profit by 100%

• It costs 5 times more money to get new customers as it does to keep them

• The average customer that has a bad experience tells 9 other people

• The average customer that has a good experience tells 3 other people

• If a complaint is resolved 70% of customers will do more business. Resolve it quickly and this increases to 90%

This short excerpt is taken from the Trainer Bubble training course material on Effective Customer Care. You can download this training resource at our website - Trainer Bubble

People Watchers - BBC2. Well worth a watch.

2008-02-01T16:15:00.000Z

There is a new programme called 'People Watchers' on BBC2 during the day, which is hosted by Richard Wiseman amongst others. They set about testing psychological experiments on people and the results are really interesting.

One such experiment was carried out in a shopping arcade. The 'People Watcher' had set up a stall where you could win a moped by guessing how many ping pong balls were in a bowl.

They asked people to guess how many balls they thought were in the bowl. When the person made a guess. The tester went to enter their figure on a flipchart, but in doing so revealed lots of previously entered figures which were hugely over inflated. They made no reference to the other figures, but gave the person a last chance to alter their own answer. The person being asked would then alter their figure to be closer to the other figures.

What does this tell us? People tend to form opinions based on others. It's a herd mentality!

How can we use it? Set sales targets high, people will follow…I'm sure you can think of more!

If, like me, you are too busy in the day to catch this. Simply catch up with it on the BBC I-player.

Brain Training Games? Stick to the real thing…

2008-01-28T08:51:00.000Z

Before you rush out to buy that new Nintendo DS in order to develop your brainpower and increase your thinking age, you might want to consider whether the brain training games live up to the hype.

A recent study has shown that there is no real proof that the brain training games made popular recently by Nintendo and Dr. Kawashima really have any effect at all and those of us who spend hours staring into a tiny screen, forcing our hands into an arthritic state from clamping the pointer too hard could be wasting our time altogether.

Cognitive neuro-scientist at the University of Birmingham, Dr. Jason Braithwaite said; “There is no conclusive evidence showing that the continued use of these devices is linked to any measurable and general improvements in cognition. While practice at any task should lead to some form of improvement for that specific task, it is not clear that this improvement reflects anything other than a basic learned process for that specific task.”

This leads me to consider how we might be able to improve our brain power and increase our intelligence. For me it’s simple, stick to the same old principles that have helped us over the centuries. Hard work and determination combined with a drive to learn and absorb knowledge at every given opportunity.

Books for a long time have been my staple for learning. I might not always agree with the author, but this only serves to increase my thought process and hopefully help me to see things from an alternative perspective. I often encourage myself to read something that challenges my own thinking and wipes away some of the cobwebs of my mind.

Then of course we have the process of learning from training events, schooling and universities. A lot will say they struggle to learn in these environments. However, it is my belief that when carried out correctly and in keeping with learning needs of all participants, this form of learning cannot be beaten.

The trouble with these methods of learning? Well, they’re not much fun are they (although I’d challenge that point and encourage you to attend a training event that I put together). Latest developments in E-Learning and the more recent ‘serious gaming’ (a combination of business simulations and computer generated learning events) show an encouraging step towards something ‘sexy’ in the training world. However, it is still too early to say whether these methods will eclipse the tried and trusted methods of development. Better I say to incorporate them into a holistic approach to learning and continue to stretch the boundaries of thinking around making learning fun.

You might by now be thinking that I have strayed somewhat from my initial topic of ‘brain training’, surely I can tell the difference between increasing skills and knowledge and training your brain? Well, I’m afraid I can’t. Training your brain is about challenging your thinking, keeping your mind active and learning new ideas.

I suspect the true reason people have welcomed these games with open arms is that they are seen as ‘easy’ a ‘quick fix’, a bit like belts that exercise your stomach while you sit and eat cake or essays that you can download from the internet and hand in to your teacher. The trouble with this approach is that it simply doesn’t work. If you want success, you have to put in the time and effort.

Of course all of this is subjective. I don’t think there’s any harm in these games at all and if it encourages people to learn, then more is the better. I’m sure that brain training games do provide a much needed element of ‘thinking time’ and combined with the other methods mentioned above must surely encourage your brain to memorise and at least challenge thought patterns to some extent and if not? Well, where there’s no harm there’s no worry.

Anyway, I’m off for a few challenging rounds of bowling on the Nintendo Wii…Well, you’ve got to get out every now and then haven’t you?

Andrew is the Managing Director of Trainer Bubble, who provide business consultancy in areas such as leadership, coaching and effective business development. You can discover more about the wealth of services offered by Trainer Bubble's Consultancy here.

The Manager as Coach

2008-01-22T15:16:00.000Z

In my role as consultant, I am often asked whether all good managers are effective coaches and if so, does this lead to the opposite being true.

To answer these questions with any great authority, it is important to define what is required of a manager when performing the role of coach. In order to do this, it is best to examine all management activity of which there are three key areas: Managing, Leading and Coaching.

These three activities are complimentary and are required to help a good manager achieve their business objectives, by enabling a team to perform at their best. You could refer to these skills as the legs of a stool on which a good manager sits.

When leading; the manager creates and shares a vision of the future with their team and ensures that their activities are consistent with bringing about that change.

When managing; they deliver results to the organisation by controlling the work of the team and agreeing and monitoring such things as budgets, timescales and quality levels.

When coaching; they support team members in their learning, to enable them to develop the skills, knowledge and attitude necessary to successfully deliver their job responsibilities and goals.

It is important to note that these three elements overlap because some of the processes and skills that are used in one area are also used in another. There may be times when the manager needs to use coaching skills to help their team understand and take ownership of quality levels or times when management of budgets requires strong leadership and vision.

Problems arise when the manager is not clear about which approach is appropriate in a particular situation. For example, if a coaching approach is used when deadlines are tight or a crisis has arisen, precious time may be lost. If a management approach is used when a team member has made a mistake, the learning opportunity will be missed and the mistake may be repeated.

All this boils down to the simple fact that coaching is incredibly important to a manager’s role and to be truly effective, they should acquire this valuable skill. However, if they neglect the requirements of management and leadership, they will ultimately fail.

So, to answer the original questions; Are all good managers effective coaches? I suspect so. Does that make all effective coaches good managers? Not unless you can sit on a one legged stool!

This Article is adapted from our training course 'Coaching at Work', which is available from our website at Trainer Bubble.

We also provide business consultancy in areas such as leadership, coaching and effective business development. You can discover more about the wealth of services offered by Trainer Bubble at our website Trainer Bubble Services

Is Learning and Development Finally Coming Home?

2008-01-10T16:05:00.000Z

Recent developments in America suggest that learning and development could be resurrected from the dark, dusty recesses of human resources into a bright new future.

Ever since 1994 and the merger between the Institute of Training and Development and the Institute of Personnel Management to form what in 2000 became the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, there has been no argument about which area was the dominant one. Factors concerning the development of employee skills seemingly became secondary to the rising importance of Human Resource Management.

I was recently provided a glaring example of this by an acquaintance in a senior learning and development role at one of the largest organisations in the UK. With a sad, but knowing look in his eye he presented me with the yearly objectives for the HR department. Not one of them related to employee development in any way. When you consider that the company employ over five hundred people in roles that are directly related to learning this is truly amazing, although hardly isolated.

Most HR Directors will argue that they’ve always had one eye on the learning needs of the workforce, but with all due respect to diversity laws, this is a two-eyed job. In the same way that sales is the only department of an organisation that generates revenue, learning and development is the only area where we can expect the process of developing our workforce to be the uppermost concern.

Learning and development is increasingly noted as the most important factor of HR. Driving up the skills of the workforce and ensuring that employees have the necessary skills to perform the role and, perhaps more importantly, the skills to progress throughout the business is becoming a no-brainer when compared to the often bureaucratic functions of HR, which serve to ensure the business is ‘ticking over’ and doesn’t get embroiled in any legal issues.

Another colleague of mine who owns a recruitment consultancy highlighted the importance of learning and development from the prospective employee’s point of view recently. Often before the subject of money is raised, the first concern of the individual is, ‘What development can I expect?’ and so it should be. In fact when discussing the value of development, there are two key viewpoints we should take into account.

The employee – understands more than ever the value of their own development. Often requires a business to fill the gaps in their education and provide hands on experience in a real environment. Realises that to succeed in the business world they must gather as many skills as possible.

The employer – understands the value of a continually skilled workforce. Knows that if the business is to succeed then it needs an educated and motivated team behind it. A team willing to challenge current thinking and hungry for success.

So, businesses that ignore the value of learning and development do so at their peril.

This isn’t a knew theory, but somehow we thought we could achieve it through an HR department that in all fairness cannot possibly be expected to manage the important role it has to play in overseeing the needs of the workforce and still rise to the vast challenge that development presents.

The good news is that in America there seems to be a turning tide. Many of the large organisations there are developing the role of Chief Learning Officer (CLO), whose role on the board of directors has been provided at the expense of the HR Director who may well have applied for the new position of Head of HR, which reports to, you guessed it, the CLO.

The CLO is skilled in all aspects of learning and development, with a key focus on; coaching, training, motivation and project management, which shows an obvious leaning towards the development of the workforce in order to drive the success of the business. In my mind this is the correct focus and ensures that the organisation is focused on continuous improvement rather than fighting fires.

Although the UK has yet to put in place many CLO’s (currently five in the FTSE 100), there is little doubt that we are likely to follow suit. After all, it was the US that brought HRM to us all those years ago!

Andrew Wood is the Managing Director of Trainer Bubble Ltd. who design and develop training resources and course materials for download from their website. Visit them at www.trainerbubble.com to access a wealth of resources including a large section of free material.

E-Mail Success - By Wolfgang Halliwell

2008-01-03T17:40:00.000Z

I returned to work today after a 2 week Christmas vacation and opened my inbox with some trepidation. After a similar break last year I had returned form holiday with over 400 e-mails awaiting my attention. It took me a couple of days to deal with these so I vowed there and then that this would never happen again.

One of my New Years resolutions at the beginning of 2007 was to take control of my e-mail inbox. Today would prove one way or the other whether the action I took worked.

I opened my inbox and found only 32 items awaiting me. Thirty minutes later and my inbox was empty. Complete success!

So, what did I do to achieve this? The good news is that this is not rocket science and a few simple steps have achieved this result. The action I took in 2007 included:

Always remembering to set my out of office message when I was away for more than a day.

Unsubscribing to newsletters and update services unless I really needed them.

Agreeing a few ground rules with colleagues about when and when not to use e-mail.

Using the telephone a lot more to avoid those unproductive games of e-mail tennis.

Delegating or redirecting some of my e-mail to other people when appropriate.

None of this took very long to do but the results have been really spectacular for me. If you suffer from an overfull inbox you might find some of the techniques I have listed are of some help.

Of course, there is also a need to manage your e-mail once you have got it, but that is the topic for another posting.

This article relates to our training course material, 'Managing E-Mails', which you can find on our website by clicking here.

Why bother with training?

2008-01-03T10:10:00.000Z

Motivational quotes

2007-12-17T17:30:00.000Z

Here's a list of motivational quotes a friend recently emailed over, which I thought I'd share...

Attitude....... Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.

Opportunity...... You always miss 100% of the shots you don't try for.

Change ......... Without change there can be no breakthrough, without breakthrough there can be no future.

Teamwork..... coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success.

Achievement ...... unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.

Self-Management - Living in the Gap

2007-12-07T23:53:00.000Z

We are consistently making decisions based on values. When they are challenged or we perceive them to be in danger, our emotions will step to their defence and this can sometimes make us become seemingly irrational, particularly in the eyes of others, who may not appreciate or even understand our value system.

Self-management is all about being able to think clearly and remain focused even when you are experiencing strong emotions. Human beings are great story makers and will fill gaps in knowledge by interpreting things according to our own emotions and beliefs.

When something happens we have the true event, the actual facts of the situation. We then take this information and interpret it via our values, beliefs and attitudes. Often this will alter the true event and amounts to, ‘What we made it mean.’

Think back. How many times have you misinterpreted a situation and allowed your emotions to provide conflicting information to the real event? This often occurs because we don’t take time to ‘keep our emotions in check’ and will respond or react immediately.

There is an alternative, which we call, ‘Living in the Gap’. This means taking the time to re-assess the situation and not jump to conclusions based on how we interpret things. This is a demonstration of self-management.

Hold your hand up in front of you now, imagine your left has written on it, 'What happened' and your right has 'What I made it mean', that bit between, is the gap. That's the moment when you have the chance to pause...and not act. The moment you usually miss because you're too hot under the collar to notice. The time when you should have stopped to think.

This method can make a huge difference to your life when used effectively. It can be as basic as not hitting 'enter' on that email that you are sending in response to a seemingly rude one from your boss, or stopping for a breath and a think before you hurl abuse at a colleague who’s said the wrong thing. There’s no difficult process to it and no rules, just a simple method of managing those emotions!

So, next time you feel your temperature rising...stop...and live in the gap.

This article is adapted from an excerpt in the Trainer Bubble training materials on 'Emotional Intelligence at Work'. Visit our site today to view it.

Effective Coaching - A Question of Questioning?

2007-11-26T10:16:00.000Z

Questioning is the critical component of all coaching, it is the principle that coaching is based upon and all good coaches realise that the key to unlocking an individuals potential is through a good use of questions.

In its simplest form coaching could exist on the following three questions:

What worked well?

What didn’t work so well?

What will you do differently next time?

In any given developmental scenario, these questions can be used as a fail-safe approach to questioning. The output responses are what will drive an individual on to better performance.

This process is extremely simple and will work in most impromptu coaching scenarios. We have a tendency to overcomplicate processes in business and this for me really demonstrates that often the simplest methods are those that work best. Of course there are times when your coaching will need to be more specific and focused on the individuals needs.

When coaching to develop people it is usually best to avoid starting a question with ‘why?’ The reason for this is that by using ‘why’ we are establishing something as fact. For instance; when I ask a question like, ‘Why do you think you are not good at selling?’ we are subconsciously telling that person that the idea of them not being able to sell is already established. This of course, will undermine their confidence in this area and will ensure that our work to help them meet an objective to start selling is going to be made all the harder.

An example of what you could say instead of ‘Why do you think you are not good at selling?’ might be, ‘What is it about selling that you find difficult?’ This could then easily be followed up by a positive question of, ‘When have you been successful at selling?’ This is positive re-enforcement and will help the coachee establish the positive elements of their experience.

You may feel that this approach is not as direct. However, you should consider what it is you are trying to achieve. If you want to let someone know that they are no good at something, sure, go for the direct approach, but if you want to develop them, use effective questions.

By using questions and encouraging the individual to come up with their own answers, we are instilling a strong sense of ownership. If we as coach provide the answers, then the coachee has no reason to take action as they might not see the value. If a coachee does not complete an action they set themselves then the responsibility for failure is theirs.

Of course, the flipside of this is that success for the coachee is so much sweeter when they realise that the positive result is down to them.

This is an excerpt from the 'Coaching at Work' training materials from Trainer Bubble. You can view the complete course materials at our website - Trainer Bubble.

What the Customer Actually Wanted?

2007-11-20T17:52:00.000Z

Consultants don't always get it right and this picture above may provide some insight into how problems occur...seem familiar?

Why English is a Pain to Learn

2007-11-13T11:33:00.000Z

The bandage was wound around the wound.

The farm was used to produce produce.

The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.

He could lead if he would get the lead out.

The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.

Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.

A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.

When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.

A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.

The insurance was invalid for the invalid.

There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.

They were too close to the door to close it.

The buck does funny things when the does are present.

To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.

The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

After a number of injections my jaw got number.

Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.

I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.

How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Visit Trainer Bubble for our new collection of training DVD's, CD-Roms and other training resources. Including; 'The Write Way', which well help your team write effective correspondence and documents.

Nodes - Bubble Game

2007-11-06T10:55:00.001Z

Another bubble related game - just for fun!