A Learner's Attitude Makes the Difference

I have been a trainer for over 15 years. These last two weeks I changed my role twice. I was a learner in the first week, and a faciliatator in the second week.

As I simulated my role as a trainer, I realized that I had a lot more to learn, my experiences notwithstanding.

The feedback from my coaches showed me that I could add to my skills and get better. "Keep to the script!" my coach had said. "Aaah! I know how to do this better", I said to myself. I did my best in my simulation, and though I managed, I left out some key lessons that my co-facilitators were depending on.

So what lessons have I learned from this experience? I learned that doing "business as usual" can be very costly. For me, I had made it difficult for my learners to learn follow-up lessons and my co-facilitators to faciliate well because I thought I knew a better way of delivering the session I was responsible for. Those who depended on me would have had a hard time and missed out on some knowledge and learning because I had left out key lesson content.

I also learned that having a learner's attitude opens me up to new and creative ways of facilitation.

One other lesson remains seared into my heart, and it comes from a statement my coach, Cynthia de Windt said, "A student must repeat the master's stroke a thousand times before he can create something new."