Creative Training Techniques - The Bob Pike Group

Talking at people is boring, while getting discussions going is more fun and fosters better learning. But how you get that discussion going is crucial. Becky outlines four points that you need to keep in mind when engaging your class.

What time zone is it? The answer could dictate just how you do a presentation.  Becky talks about what humor, analogies and metaphors do and don't work across cultures.  Suggested reading "When Cultures Collide" by Richard Lewis available here.

Spending too much time on the road? Wouldn't you rather be at home? Becky has some hints on how you can get management buy-in to moving some of your courses from being taught on the road to being taught online.

What do you do when your class is made up of executives and millionaires who are all more senior than you? How do you lead a group of leaders so they become learners? Becky has some common-sense ideas that will help you manage any group of learners — no matter who they are.

What does the blood in your feet have to do with paying attention in class? Everything! If you get that blood to the brain, you're more alert. Becky has some quick energizers to wake up your classroom.

Being a facilitator can be fun or difficult depending upon the purpose. Brainstorming: fun! Conflict resolution: tense! Becky has the secret to dealing with either kind of facilitation.

Is your class bored stiff with your presentation? Perhaps it's your attitude! Becky has a pre-class ritual that will add more zing to your lesson.

Your client will want objectives for just about any class you do. Becky tells us writing objectives can be easy as ABCD and can be done in a minute.

You can't use a game to learn when you're dealing with CEOs, right? Wrong! CEOs are kids, too! Becky tells us how to overcome the favorite excuses people use to avoid participant-centered learning.

Students are more motivated to learn when they're having fun. Here's how you can get every person in the room involved and engaged. Fun can force critical thinking to happen.

There's a time and a place for active learning. Becky has the nine easy steps to make it happen today in your classroom.

Becky has four easy-to-execute ideas that you can use to make your PowerPoint presentations more interactive. She mentions a game resource that you can find here: www.tinyurl.com/6NN4DDE

Friends don't let friends create PowerPoint puke — it can ruin any presentation. How do you avoid making your PowerPoint presentation a poster child for "don't"? Becky comes to your rescue in the first of two podcasts about perfecting your PowerPoint presentations.

Does your class spend too much time checking Facebook and Twitter instead of paying attention to what's happening in the room? Becky has four ideas for how you can turn that potential social media distraction into a classroom attraction.

Have you inherited a training program that needs some zing, but you don't have time to completely redo it? Becky Pluth has a quick and easy plan to transform an old program into something new and engaging.

Becky Pluth has some best practices you should follow to make your next webinar a successful one.

Becky Pluth explains how your students can divide and conquer a huge amount of material using a technique called "teach backs."

Want to turn your presentation into a webinar? The last thing you want to do is take that PowerPoint and put it online. What's the first thing you should do? Becky Pluth has the answer in today's podcast.

Learners only recall a small portion of what you present. So how do you make that portion bigger? Becky Pluth has several tips to make the learning stick.

What do you do when your audience isn't that into you? The secret is not impressing your audience, but letting your audience come to its own "aha" moment. How do you make that happen? Becky Pluth says it's all about making your presentation about the audience.

How do you add value to training? Becky Pluth says the answer is to serve and believe in what you're doing.

Some classroom sessions can be chaotic. How do you reduce the chaos, yet keep the fun and the learning? Becky says the answer is simple.