Accelerated learning playbook

Yourlearning&development
PLAYBOOK

Index
ACTIVITY 1: A story of success
ACTIVITY 2: Simply my role
ACTIVITY 3: Principles of accelerated learning
ACTIVITY 4: Toolkit for change
ACTIVITY 5: Let’s get SAVI
ACTIVITY 6: The Learning Cycle
ACTIVITY 7: Learning needs analysis
ACTIVITY 8: If you ask the right questions
ACTIVITY 9: In the zone
ACTIVITY 10: Evaluating ideas
ACTIVITY 11: Keeping it real
ACTIVITY 12: Getting stakeholder commitment
ACTIVITY 13:Creativity
ACTIVITY 14: Speed design
ACTIVITY 15: Helping learning sink in
ACTIVITY 16: Building trust
ACTIVITY 17: Presenting with pizazz
ACTIVITY 18: Act as if
ACTIVITY 19: Your role model angel
ACTIVITY 20: Your behaviour barometer
ACTIVITY 21: Crafting a brilliant message
ACTIVITY 22: Rights replenisher
ACTIVITY 23: Think, feel, do
ACTIVITY 24: What a difference a yet makes
ACTIVITY 25: Your communication network
ACTIVITY 26: Goal setting 101
ACTIVITY 27: What does your personal brand say
about you?
ACTIVITY 28: Determination
ACTIVITY 29: Improving team meetings
ACTIVITY 30: Who’s in charge of you?

Youhaveprobably
experiencedaccelerated
learninginactionandwillbe
familiarwithmanyofthe
keyconcepts.
Using the challenges
We know you are busy. The challenges are not designed to add to your workload
but can be incorporated into what you do each day. The activities fall into two
categories. The first is about the learning role and applying a.l. into your work and
the second is about you and ideas to stretch yourself.
There are 30 activities to choose from - just select a single activity that tickles your
fancy at the start of the week.
If you are a deliverer then read to familiarise yourself with the tasks at the beginning
of the week, try out the ideas each day and then set aside a few minutes to reflect
and make some notes.
If you are a designer then complete the task using real projects that you are working
on at the moment.
We have developed these activities especially for you as you strive to improve. If you
follow these challenges you will become a better L&D practitioner, have wider
influence and help you and those around you enjoy the stimulus of work much more.
So give them a go and notice what a difference you are able to make.
Each challenge is a single tactic. They are designed to help you focus on tangible
actions that can make a difference to you and those around you – enjoy your
potential!
Action Planning
You will find a simple action plan on the following few pages.
This has been designed to help you quickly record what you have done so that you
can start to see patterns that will help you build on your successes.
Life at work is so busy that we move quickly from one activity to the next without
really giving it much thought. By jotting a few notes you will instantly see where you
having successes.
Remember too that we don’t always see immediate improvements as a result of an
action – improvements can often take time to filter through into visible difference
so this way you will be able to track back to the root cause of any improvements.
This analysis will help you identify where it is worth spending your time and effort.
You will probably already be applying some of the ideas and evaluating the successes
you are having.
For some of you, the changes will be happening naturally and you’ll be feeling
comfortable and excited. You may want to try out everything at once. For others, this
new approach might be very different from what you have done before – a really big
step out of your comfort zone. You are sure it works but need to introduce ideas
slowly.
The purpose of this 12 week guide is to help you make changes, where ever you are
at right now. If you want to charge ahead then it will encourage you to focus on ideas
week by week allowing you to fully integrate them into your thinking.
If you like to take things one step at a time then the challenges will help you build up
your news skills at a manageable pace.
If you follow the challenges you will become a better deliverer or designer of learning
experiences. And that means the learning experiences of the people you work with
will become more fun and much more effective.
So give them a go and notice what a difference you are able to make.

Actionreview
WhatIdid WhatIlearned Whatwastheoutcome HowdidImeasureit?WEEK
121 for each member of training group to
review progress
Individuals were more confident that they
were doing the right thing. They were able
to signal concerns and we worked out
options I could see people learn in a
focused way – there was a buzz I was able
to share the successes that individuals had
had – I was surprised by how much had
been achieved!!!!
Take time to listen
Ask more questions – I was still a bit
directive
Find ways of sharing successes – it does
make people feel good.
Progress against KLPs
We identified how much learning time we
had saved. The individual motivation and
commitment to change.
Measurement of time they saved and
improvement of accuracy during skill
practice.
Example
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3

Actionreview
Week 4
MONTH 1 REVIEW
1. What was your biggest success? What was the impact?
2. What do you still need to work on?
3. What are your 3 priorities for the coming month?
1.
2.
3.

Actionreview WhatIdid WhatIlearned Whatwastheoutcome HowdidImeasureit?WEEK
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7

Actionreview
Week 8
MONTH 2 REVIEW
1. What was your biggest success? What was the impact?
2. What do you still need to work on?
3. What are your 3 priorities for the coming month?
1.
2.
3.

Actionreview
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11

Actionreview WhatIdid WhatIlearned Whatwastheoutcome HowdidImeasureit?WEEK
Week 12
CONCLUSIONS
Take 15 minutes to reflect on your action plans and comments to build on your learning and answer the following
questions:
1. What actions did you take that had the most impact?
2. How will you build on that to continue progress?

3. What was the impact of your actions on:
Organisational performance
(put in the figures)
Customer Loyalty Continuous improvement
4. If you were training a new L&D person what advice would you give them?
5. What are your 3 commitments to continue your success over the coming months?
1.
2.
3.
Staff satisfaction (be specific about your groups
compared to previous workshops)

“Youhavebrainsinyourhead.
Youhavefeetinyourshoes.
Youcansteeryourselfanydirectionyouchoose.
You’reonyourown,andyouknowwhatyouknow.
Andyouaretheonewho’lldecidewhereyou’llgo.
Ohtheplacesyou’llgo!”
DrSeuss

Activity1: Story of success
THE DOOR
A captain of industry was looking for a wise and able manager with the skills and audacity to
take over the business when he retired. He assembled his best managers from within the organisa-
tion and hired recruitment consultants to gather the best of the best who might serve his purpose.
On a particular day the managers assembled in the great hall of a mighty palace that had been
hired for the day.
The captain of industry addressed the hand picked managers. He said “I have a problem and I
want to know who amongst you has the wherewithal to solve it. What you see behind me is the
largest, heaviest and mightiest door in the whole kingdom. Who amongst you has the ability,
without assistance, to open it?”
Some of the managers just shook their heads. It was too big a problem. Others
examined the door more closely and discussed aspects of mass and leverage and recalled theories
on problem solving they had learned in business school and admitted it seemed an impossible task.
When the wisest and most respected had admitted defeat the others capitulated too.
Only one manager approached the door and gave it a thorough close up examination.
He tapped it, assessed its width and depth, noticed the nature and lubrication of the hinges. He
checked it thoroughly with his eyes and hands. He prodded here and poked there. Finally he made
his decision. He breathed deeply, centred himself and pulled gently at the door.
It opened effortlessly.
The others had made the assumption that the door had been locked or jammed. Infact it had been
left ever so slightly ajar and the carpentry and design were so excellent, only the slightest touch was
needed to open it.
The captain of industry had its successor. He addressed the assembled managers. “Success in life
depends on certain key things. They are these we have just seen demonstrated. First rely on your
senses to understand the reality of what is going on around you. Second, do not make false
assumptions. Third be willing to make tough decisions. Fourth, have the courage to act
with boldness and conviction. Fifth put your powers into action. And finally do not
be afraid to make mistakes
• How does this story relate to you in your role?
• What can you do to start applying these lessons?

This challenge will help you to consider your own ability to take a complex idea and break it
down into a simple course of action.
Simplifying ideas for effective communication is no easy thing. We all think because we
understand something in our own heads, it will be clear to those around us. Getting
something to happen in any kind of organisation is hard. If you can’t explain the subject
and get support it’s impossible to make progress.
Sometimes job titles do not convey the essence of your work. This is an opportunity to think
about what you really need to do.
ACTION
Using the space on this page write a description of your current job and then take it to 2
people who don;t know what you do to guess your current role and its focus.
1. In a sentence sum up what the purpose of your role is (if it helps, try to think of it as a
slogan as if you were advertising your job on t.v.)
2. Add an image that describes your role (for those who are more visual)
Further points of reference
http://www.valuebasedmanagement.net/methods_covey_seven_habits.html
“Change activist – Make big things happen fast” - Carmel McConnell
Activity2:Simply my role
TIP
Many people, when asked about
their job just share their job title.
But to someone who isn’t in the
know this doesn’t mean anything.
Thinking about the difference to you
make or the value you add leads to
a much better focus and...
conversation!

Activity3: The principles of Accelerated Learning
Make it SAVI
We help learners to learn through moving and doing (somatic), listening and talking (auditory) and seeing and
picturing (visual) – often at the same time! This caters for individual preferences as well as making stronger
memories. To turn these memories into real learning you need to add reflection and problem solving
(Intellectual) - so people can and will do something as a result.
In the learning zone
People learn more and remember more when they are in a good physical, mental and emotional state. We
can help them do this by keeping them mentally challenged, physically active and encouraging an emotional
connection to what they are learning.
The learning cycle
Help learners to maximise the learning potential of any session through:
• Preparation – where learners explore what they will learn, what’s in it for them and build excitement and
curiosity.
• Presentation – where new information is uncovered in a stimulating, active way
• Practice – so learners develop comfort and confidence with their new skills
• Performance – to make sure learners can apply what they have learnt and receive feedback which will help
them to continue to develop
Promote discovery
People learn more when they discover it for themselves rather than being spoon fed answers. And when they
have found their own answers they are more likely to put them into practice.
Mirrors real life
People need to be able to relate what they’ve learnt to their own life, work and experience. Otherwise they
might learn some great new information or new skills but not know how to use them in the real world.
Set up, stand back, pull together
Great facilitators of this style of learning make sure learners are clear about the purpose and output,and then
get out of the way whilst they learn. Facilitators then need to step in again to help learners make sense of
what they have discovered so they can take action as a result.
Layering learning
We learn through repetition. The more often we encounter new information and practice new skills the better
we get. It works best to start simple and build the complexity.
Three ways of learning (Content, process, reaction)
Not all learning in real life happens through ‘reading the manual’. Instead we often just plunge in and learn in
the process. Our own responses to situations also provide us with learning opportunities if we stop to think
about them. We can replicate this in the training room by presenting information, creating experiences and
helping people learn from their own reactions.
ACTION
‘Self awareness is the first step to change.’
1. Read through the principles again to familiarise yourself with them. Now
choose a section of a course you have recently designed, perhaps a half
day.
2. Read through the trainer’s notes and find examples of things that
support the principles and examples of things that don’t.
3. Using the table on the next page make a note of your findings and the
things you could do differently
The section below gives you a few examples:
Accelerated Learning is so much more than a series of creative techniques. We need to
ensure that the methods we use are based upon what we know about how people learn.
That way we will make learning easier and more enjoyable and, as a consequence, quicker
and longer lasting.
The following principles are based on research from the last 25 years:
Promote
discovery
Activities that support/
don’t support
Ideas for improvement
Too long trainer presentation
– moving on to the next topic
without much chance to
practice or think about how it
fits in to the bigger picture.
Do an activity to find out
what they already know –
then some input to fill in the
gaps and an activity to allow
them to explore and practice.

PRINCIPLE
KEEP IT
SAVI
LEARNING
THROUGH CPR
GET INTO THE
LEARNING ZONE
APPLY THE 4 PS
LEARNING CYCLE
PROMOTE
DISCOVERY
MIRROR
REAL LIFE
SET UP, STAND
BACK & PULL
TOGETHER
LAYER
LEARNING
ACTIVITIESTHATSUPPORT/DON'T
SUPPORT
IDEASFORIMPROVEMENT

Strengths
Opportunities
6
Activity4: Toolkit for change
Continued business success comes from the ability to con-
stantly reinvent as the environment we work in
changes. Being an effective catalyst for change is an essen-
tial skill for leaders working in any modern
organisation.
This challenge will encourage you to think about opportunities you may have to develop your
skill set when it comes to actively driving change.
So what are the essential tools/skill-set required to be effective at driving change?
Below is a list of 7 commonly identified essential tools for successful change activists
1. Clarity of objective – ability to think of the wider context, make and act of decisions quickly,
clear thinking and intellectual confidence.
2. Motivation and motivational leadership – dedication and perseverance and progressive
leadership skills.
3. Trust and care (Emotional intelligence) – relationship building, using trust and emotional
intelligence, confident to take risks and at time be unpopular.
4. Inclusive ways of working – recognition of diversity, respect for all contributors, the ability
to create/belong to an effective team.
5. Communication – being motivational communicators, great listeners to the world, the
organisation, others and to self.
6. Sense of self-esteem – Clarity on career/life objectives, personal centeredness and
self-esteem.
7. Physical stamina – the ability to keep going in uncertainty and to display drive.
ACTION
Take 10-15 mins to review the list above and reflect on your own strengths and opportuni-
ties for development as a Change Catalyst. Identify any actions you could take to develop
these skills.
Further references
http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadchg.html
“Who moved my cheese” – Spencer Johnson

Activity5: Let’s get SAVI
ACTION
‘”If your body don’t move, your brain don’t groove’”
1. Choose any workshop that you currently run. If it is longer than a day choose a day. Ask a
colleague to choose an hour in the working day. E.g.2-3pm. Next look at the trainers notes
for this section and check how SAVI it is – are people doing, seeing talking and thinking in
this time slot? If not make at least one change.
2. Choose an activity that you currently include in your course. Rewrite the activity in three
different ways to cater for S, A and V and ensuring that I is covered in each.
3. Design an activity that meets all the elements of SAVI in one go. Talk it through with one of
your deliverers and ask for their feedback on how it went.
“Learning doesn’t automatically improve by having people stand up and move around.
But combining physical movement with intellectual activity and the use of all the
senses can have a profound effect on learning”
David Meier
You can achieve this by making your learning SAVI.
1. Somatic: Learning by moving and doing.
2. Auditory: Learning by talking and hearing.
3. Visual: Learning by observing and picturing.
4. Intellectual: Learning by problem solving and reflecting.
So how can you make your learning more SAVI?
Here are some ideas:
• Think about how you can incorporate the elements of SAVI into every short section of your
course – so you don’t only do something physical, for example, at 2:00pm but all through the
day.
• Give people the choice of how they want to complete an activity e.g. by drawing a diagram or
completing a case study for example.
• See how may elements of SAVI you can incorporate into each activity e.g. the learners create a
collage(V) which involves moving around and cutting and sticking(S) while they talk about the
images they are choosing(A) and discuss how they relate to the job they do(I).
SUPER SAVI IDEAS

Activity6:The Learning Cycle ACTION
‘Now, moving on we’re going to talk about…..’
Do your designs ever just launch into a topic and get straight down to the content?
If we apply the theory of natural learning you can see why your learners will sometimes seem
unimpressed if you haven’t sufficiently aroused their interest. And then at the other end of the
process, people need to be able to start the process of thinking how they will use the new skills and
knowledge back in the workplace.
Build up a mind map with ideas on using the 4 p’s for a particular topic then create another mind
map for a topic of your own.
We learn things best when we follow a simple sequence. Say for example you were
learning to Salsa dance at Salsa club.
• First your interest is aroused in learning to dance – perhaps because a friend does it or
you want to meet new people.
• Then you encounter the new skills needed through a short introductory session with a
tutor.
• Next you begin to integrate our new skills and knowledge through practicing.
• Finally you apply your new skills by getting out on the dance floor and dancing.
All works well and you repeat the steps as you build up your skills with more complex
steps and become a more competent dancer. But if any of those steps is missing then
the learning becomes less effective. Work through the example above and see what
would happen.
We can use this model of natural learning to structure our training:
You can apply this principle to the whole programme you are running but also to the
various topics you are covering throughout the day.
4 Ps
Preparation
Performance Practice
Presentation

Activity7: Learning Needs Analysis
Often, departments demand a workshop on x topic and we respond. We move
swiftly into HOW we will fulfil these requests.
However, the planning of the WHY is a crucial part of success. My training mentor told me early on
in my career to always seek out the answer to why – it will give you so much information.
So let’s ask a WHY questions
Why conduct a learning needs analysis? Fill in the blanks to find out the reasons
Why conduct a learning needs analysis?
A learning needs analysis will help:
1. Learn what the manager wants to _ _ _, f _ _ _ and _ _ _ r that is different
2. Establish the key m _ _ _ _ _ _ _ of success in key stakeholder’s views
3. Appreciate how the learning will _ _ _ _ _ _ _ the organisation
4. Identify what skills and k_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ the _ _ ar _ _ _ _ already have
5. Highlight skills/knowledge/competencies that need _ e _ _ _ o _ _ _ _
6. Identify clearly what learners wish to a _ _ _ _v e
7. Outline and define e _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and goals
8. Establish n _ _ _ and demand for the course you have in mind
9. Determine what can r _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ lly be achieved given the available resources
10. Identify any o _ _ _ _ _ _ _ or difficulties which may arise
11. Increase the sense of ownership and involvement of the learners
12. Provide information about your learner group - know your _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
13. Determine what is the most appropriate _ _ l _ _ _ _ _ format - class based, online or a mix of
these and other formats
14. Develop a _ _d_ _ _ and cost benefit analysis
15. Establish when is the most suitable t_ _ _ _ to deliver the programme and over what time frame
16. Ascertain the most suitable e_ _l_ _ _ _ _ _ mechanisms
17. Outline what r_ _ _ _ _ _ can be expected and if/how these can be measured
ANSWERS:
1.See,feelandhear
2.measures
3.benefit
4.knowledge,learners
5.developing
6.achieve
7.expectations
8.need
9.realistically
10.obstacles
12.audience
13.solution
14.budget
15.time
16.evaluation
17.results
ACTION
Now you agree that it is important open up your minds as a team and consider all the
ways you can get the information you need from the right people in a way that
encourages their involvement and commitment to the process.
• Take 5 minutes out as a team and brainstorm al the ways, formally and informally
Quantitatively and qualitatively that you can get the information you need. Jot down
your thoughts here.
• Then decide what you will do for your next project to ensure you really are spot on in
your analysis to help you get the best results possible

As effective learning designers we need to be superb at asking questions to ensure that when we complete a tna we have a full picture of what needs
to be completed. There are many reasons for asking questions and to simplify things we can divide these into three main groups:
“Intelligence is more about having asking
the right questions than having the right answers”Activity8: If you ask the right questions...
ACTION
Now you can combine the different reasons for asking questions with the
different types of open questions (who, what, when, where, how, why,
tell me, explain, describe).
Head questions: logical, thinking questions often
used to ﬁnd out what people know or their opinions on
something.E.g.’ What methods of communication do
you use at work?’
Heart questions: feeling questions often used to
gauge people’s reactions or ﬁnd out how new
information sits with them.
Action questions: questions which explore what people
did in the past or what they will do with their new skills and
knowledge.
2. Keep the grid with you all week and strike off each question as you ask it. How long does it take you to complete a
row or column? And what about a full house?
1. Fill the grid with 27 different questions that you could use in your workshops – either with the group as a whole, with a
smaller activity group or an individual.
HEAD
WHO
WHAT
WHEN
WHERE
HOW
WHY
TELL ME...
EXPLAIN....
DESCRIBE...
HEART ACTION

6
Activity9:In the zone
Ever been in a situation where you really want
to listen to what a speaker is saying but you
just can’t focus?
You look at the rest of the audience and you notice a sea of glazed
expressions with a few stifled yawns? You bet the speaker has noticed
it too but they just plough on looking increasingly uncomfortable.
“Education is not filling a bucket but lighting a fire”
WB Yeats
If we agree with this quote then we need to stop giving stop ‘ﬁlling
buckets’ and do something else instead to keep people engaged in the
learning process.
When we get up and do something active we increase circulation to the
brain, then both sides of the brain start talking to each other and we
become alert and able to learn more effectively.
ACTION
1. Chat to some L&D professionals who facilitate (or, if that’s you as
well, think about it yourself). Ask them to identify a session where
they have experienced those glazed looks.
2. Now, just suppose you are writing this session for a group that
couldn’t sit still for more then 20 minutes at a time. And after any
more than 20 minutes of activity they would need to do something
physically active but still with valuable learning.
3. Create a cartoon strip for this session. Each box represents a 20
minute section of a 3 hr sessions and alternates between active and
passive physical activity. If cartoons aren’t your thing then use
words/symbols to describe what you will do.

Activity10: Evaluating ideas
If you are going to make changes in anything you do, you need to
know that the change has been worthwhile and produced positive
results.
So how will you evaluate the difference you are making with your new style of facilitation?
There are two types of measures you can look at:
Qualitative measures: hard facts and figures e.g. stats produced by your learners when they
start the job
Qualitative measures: less tangible yet still relevant measures e.g. attitude of your learners when
they go back to work.
And based on Kirkpatrick’s evaluation framework there are 4 levels of measurement you need to
take into consideration:
1. Reaction: how do learners feel about their experience?
2. Learning: how well was the information absorbed by learners?
3. Behaviour: how much did the learning influence the behaviour of learners?
4. Results: how much impact did the learning have on the organisation?
ACTION
Your team task is to evaluate the impact the new style has on:
• The learners
• You
• The organisation
1. Agree a set of measures, both qualitative and quantitative that will demonstrate the
effectiveness of your solutions for the three categories of people above. Share these with your
manager and gain agreement to try them out.
2. Next use the measures to complete an evaluation now and then again for a new course you
have designed.
3. Create a SAVI presentation to share the results with your manager’s manager.
4. As a team, critique the process you used to work together as a group. Note down three things
you did well and three things that will make you more effective next time you work together.
EVALUATION IDEAS

Activity11: Keeping it real
If you are going to make changes in anything you do, you need to
Imagine you were given a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle to complete without
being able to see the picture on the box. All but the really determined
would probably give up before starting. If you see the big picture first
then it’s much easier to work out how all the pieces fit together.
Sometimes when designing learning we jump straight in and ask: ‘What skills and knowledge do
people need to do this job?’ and miss the ‘big picture’ question
• ‘What’s the purpose of the job they are doing?
So we end up with a series of pieces without the whole picture to work towards.
Starting with the 'big picture’ lets the learners recognise the value in what they are going to learn and helps
them to piece together all the different elements and make connections between them.
Making connections is really important for learning too. In the real world we rarely perform one task in
isolation. For example a customer service agent on the phone will talk and interact with the customer while
working a system and using their product knowledge. Yet often these things will be broken down into nice
neat modules of a course.
So when designing courses we can follow the same principle:
1. Start with the big picture
This could involve any of the following depending on the topic:
• Why is what we are learning so important to the business?
• How does our business fit in with the industry sector?
• What’s the purpose of my job?
• What will my new job be like
• What will I spend most of my time doing?
2. Decide on the pieces and how they will fit together
Think about the following:
• The smaller the pieces the longer it will take to piece together. Remember the brain is used to handling
lots of complex information at once so don’t make your sections of content too small.
• Keep encouraging learners to connect the pieces – they will usually have to do this in the job.
• Help the learners fit the pieces into the big picture by reviewing and referring back. Ask the question
‘How will knowing this help you do your job?’
ACTION
1. Write down an audience for your learning and then think of a topic that they might need to
learn.
2. Ask some ‘Big picture’ questions and jot down your thoughts in a mind map. E.g. Why would
learning this be important?
3. Design a short activity that would allow the learners to experience the big picture.
4. Only now think of the topics you may want to introduce to develop the skills and knowledge
needed.

Activity12: Gaining stakeholder
commitment
By now you are familiar with the 4 P’s of the accelerated learning cycle.
Draw it quickly here (without checking back if you can) as a reminder for this activity.
With all the theory, tools and techniques you are applying already you are now producing some
great learning events that will help people through a natural learning process. The deliverers
working along side you will be making sure they follow the principle of the 4 P’s in their work too.
But if we really want training to be as effective as it can possibly be, then we need to enlist the
help of the rest of the business. They can really impact on the success of the preparation and
performance phases – and as we know the most robust and effective training will come when all
phases are strong.
“Satisfied customers are not enough. What we want is Raving Fans” Ken Blanchard
If the key stake holders are your customers how do you turn them into raving fans? We’re talking
about people who sing your praises constantly, who are more than willing to do whatever they
can to help you be successful. Who encourage you to take risks and support you if they don’t
work completely first time?
Raving Fans don’t just arrive on your doorstep with offers of help. They need to be won over. So
what are you and your team doing to earn the support and respect of the rest of the business?
ACTION (Can be done on your own – more fun in a group)
1. Write a list of your key stake holders in the organisation (your customers)
2. Now think about all the things you need them to do to ensure your training has maximum impact.
3. Speak to someone in your Marketing department. What tools and techniques do they use to influence
customers to buy products and use services?
4. Imagine you are the marketing department for your team. Develop a campaign to get the rest of the
organisation raving about what you do.
Your notes

Tipsforimproving
stakeholdercommitment
Talk their language
Operational people may be more
interested in results – so talk
facts and figures rather than
more ‘touchy feely’ things.
Leverage intrigue
If anyone pokes there head around
the door of the training room, invite
them in, talk about what you are
doing and the impact it will have on
the business.
Publicise best practice
Advertise the results that can be
achieved when managers take
an active role in the learning
process and reward those who do
a good job.
Get your learners out into
the organisation
Run treasure hunts and fact
finding missions where your
learners go out and talk to
people at their jobs.
Create a buzz
Make your learner preparation
exciting and enticing and the
whole business will be talking
about what you are doing.
Get out into the
organisation
Leave the Learning and Devel-
opment department and
wander around the business.
Talk to people who have been on
courses, informally coach their
managers into being more
involved by selling the benefits.
Identify your champions
There will be people who already
love what you do. Cultivate
relationships with them and
they will help you to spread the
word.

6
Activity13: Creativity
When designing a new programme you will probably
have a tendency to do one of two things:
or
What do you do as a learning designer?
Ultimately there is no right and wrong and the best designers will use a combina-
tion of both referencing and creativity in any new programme they develop.
But where is a good place to start? Many great designers start first of all with a
clean slate – that way they can create a clear and simple picture of what they need
and put no limits on their thinking. Once they have done that they may well pull in
many ideas that they have used before and know work.
Start from the other way around and you run the risk loosing sight of your original
objectives and can end up with an over complicated design.
So if you do like starting from what you know, step out of your comfort zone for a
short while. You will be able to use things you’ve done before. This way you will be
clear about why they work and where best to fit them into the programme.
Reference
Start with what
you’ve done
before or
researching ideas
and make some
enhancements.
Create
Start with a clean
slate and build
everything from
scratch.
ACTION
In his book ‘The Learning Revolution’, Gordon Dryden proposes that:
“An idea is a new combination of old elements”
And has a 12 step checklist for producing great ideas:
Each of these steps are outlined in full online by following the link:
http://www.thelearningweb.net/page011a.html#5
So why not give it a go?
Think of a section of a course, an activity or anything else at all that you want to come up with a
new idea about. Then give the 12 step process a go and see what you come up with.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Define your problem
Define your ideal solution and visualize it
Gather all the facts
Break the pattern
Go outside your own field
Try various combinations
Use all your senses
Switch off - let it simmer
Sleep on it
Use music or nature to relax
Eureka! It pops out
Recheck it

Activity14: Speed design
So, when designing you need to
• Remember the 8 principles
• Be SAVI
• Follow the 4 P’s
• Keep it real
• Be creative
• .....and all the rest….
If your feeling like there is so much to remember then just relax and remind
yourself of the model opposite.
You may well be at that stage of conscious competence and the more you use
the techniques the more they will become second nature with your designs.
What can be really useful in integrating these concepts is to have a framework
to follow which will enable you to design quickly.
Speed Design Principles
1. Establish outcomes
What do you want the learning to achieve? This can be through the content e.g.
sales skills and you can get an added gain through the process e.g. teamwork.
be clear about measurement - after all what get measured gets done!
2. Choose a theme
That can act as a metaphor for the content and will fit with the learners.
3. Brainstorm ideas
Think creation – using the theme can really help you to think out of the box here.
4. Plan the presentation and practice phase
What activities can I plan for the learners to help them discover and practice
during the workshop?
5. Plan the Preparation
How far can we bring the learners before the workshop?
6. Plan the performance and evaluation
How will you encourage the application of learning in the workshop? How will I
know it has been successful?
7. Sequence the learning
How can I make connection between the elements of the 4 phases?
8. Deliver
Make sure you have a mechanism for capturing the thoughts of the deliverer
9. Evaluate and enhance
Consider what your metrics were? How successful were you? What got in the
way? How did your audience respond? Then think about what improvements
you can make.
ACTION
Try out the framework on a workshop or small part of one that you are designing.
Ask a couple of other designers to spare short chunks of time to help you come up with ideas. Or invite
key stakeholders from the business to come in to build their enthusiasm and commitment to the
project as well as getting some valuable ideas.

Activity15: Helping learning sink in
The brain takes in information all of the time.
When it receives information that is new or different or that builds on
information it already holds, it sends it off to the limbic system where it is
processed for value and type of information. It is sent off for long term
storage.
Now imagine that the brain is a bit like a pot plant. The new information is
the water you give it. Give it no water? Doesn’t end up too healthy. Then
give it masses of water in one go. Can’t absorb it quickly enough so it
overflows and is lost. When you really need to do is water more slowly
and allow it sink in fully before topping up with some more. Just like the
brain. Too much information without time to review can mean valuable
information is lost.
ACTION
Complete the word search to identify some of the ways you can help
learners to consolidate new information. Add your own ideas to the list.
Then using the following link, create a puzzle to use on one of your
courses to reinforce learning.
http://www.puzzlemaker.com/
REVIEWING LEARNING
As a training team share your ‘package’ of ideas and ensure you include
these diverse review processes as a matter of course in your training
design
R S H Y C N E K L T M K W J D
H E D S O Q U I Z Z E S I M X
P G F I N S M Q E C W F K T A
O A S L C O P O Q W W B W Q N
E L Q S E V I T C E J B O E P
M L W C R C B T C I C C W Y S
S O E P T N T C S N E S C P Q
J C Q B R P E I T E R R A T Z
A A P Z E L U O O E U M L E D
B T H X V Q N Z P N D Q R V A
F K Q T I S P O Z N T I Y N U
B J M R E G R J I L V I K O A
X U I A W T F M A M E L M N P
Q R E J S M A V J M P S Y E L
S B O O Q Y C T Y K X V J T N
COLLAGES
CONCERT REVIEW
KLP
MIND MAPS
NEWS REPORTS
OBJECTIVES
POEMS
PUZZLES
QUESTIONS
QUIZZES
REFLECTION TIME
As a training team share your ‘package’ of ideas and ensure you include these diverse
review processes as a matter of course in your training design

Activity16: Building trust
Learning comes from doing the work itself (with feed-
back)
Remember this principle of Accelerated learning? If feedback is important
then where will the opportunities for feedback come from?
Once you complete your design who are the key stakeholders you can
solicit feedback from to ensure that your design successfully meets the
business needs?
ACTION
1. Think of 4 different groups of people who you would benefit from
getting feedback – write these in the table below
2. Now in the second column identify the top 3 things they will be most
concerned about in terms of whether a learning event meets their
needs or not
3. Then for a workshop you have recently written book to meet a cross
section from each group and spend 10 minutes asking them what
they thought using the great questions you developed in activity 7 to
help them explain how well the learning has met their needs
4. Then identify in the bottom box – if you were to redesign the
programme what changes would you make based on the feedback
and is there any information you gained that will help you in future
design of other learning?
Group Keyneeds Whatdidyoulearn?
Keylearningfornexttime

Low energy
You come across as uninvolved and uncommitted to your subject. Crank it up.
Unprepared and lack of practice
People spend too much time focusing on developing material and slides without
drafting and practice. Practice it out loud and ask for feedback.
Take yourself too seriously
Many people see presentations as formal and become stiff and rigid.
Be natural and authentic to be believable.
Whatever role you have you are likely to need to
present information at some point.
The thought of pubic speaking fills many people with dread so let’s reframe it.
The fear of public speaking is irrational. After all it doesn’t threaten life or limb
but there are 3 key reasons people fear. Let’s tackle each one before exploring
top tips for easy preparation.
Stage one - What, if anything concerns you about doing presentations? List
them here. If there’s nothing then brilliant rock on to stage two.
Here are the 3 key fears - do you relate to any of them?
"IT'S ALL ABOUT ME"
Many people tell me they shun the spotlight because they feel self-conscious.
They assume that when all eyes are upon them, they are being judged and
made subject to disapproval.
Reframe - If you think it's all about you, then you are approaching it from the
wrong end of things. It isn't all about you at all. It's all about your audience and
the message you give them. They aren't there to judge you. They are there to
get the message, and they really don't care who delivers it. They are there
because they want to be informed, taught, inspired or entertained. Stop thinking
about yourself and start thinking about them. Start thinking like someone who
has something worthwhile to say to people who want to hear it. When you start
focusing on the needs of the audience, and get your mind off yourself, your
nervousness will calm down.
"PAST DISASTERS RUIN PRESENT PERFORMANCE"
Maybe you’ve experienced a past humiliation or embarrassment - something
that occurred in front of others - often in childhood, but sometimes even in
adulthood. And that event, created a phobic response to the thought of being
the centre of attention.
Reframe - First, no one plans to fail and you cannot always control
circumstances. Second, you survived and therefore you have another
opportunity to meet the challenge. Third, that event is over and in the past. It
has already happened and therefore, that same exact event can never happen
again. So where you go from here is up to you. If you focus on what you did or
what happened to you that was horrible, it will make you lose sight of all the
times when you have excelled at something. Give yourself credit for having
learned something from experience, good and bad, and for the ability to use
that information to do better next time. Failure is no reason to quit.
Every failure we encounter gives us valuable information for future improvement. It is only when you
focus on your strengths and your achievements that you will have the courage to face the challenge.
"I CAN'T STAND THE THOUGHT OF MAKING A MISTAKE IN FRONT OF OTHERS"
Your fear of making mistakes is one side of a two-sided coin. The other side of that coin is a strong
desire to excel and make a good impression. However, nervousness and fear do not make a good
impression. One key to a polished presentation is to practice. Practice reduces mistakes. Another key
is to get feedback from others.
Reframe - To reconcile with the fear of making mistakes, it's best to accept the fact that mistakes
happen, even to the most skilled speakers. It's what you do with mistakes that matters to others, not
whether you make them. The more you cringe and fidget over a mistake, the more your audience
becomes aware of your discomfort. The way to recover from a mistake is to observe your mistake
dispassionately, take whatever corrective action is necessary, regain your composure, focus on what
to say next and go on. Leave the mistake behind and move forward through your material. Audiences
can be forgiving. Many listeners will admire the way you continue on so easily, or may even be
relieved to know you are human. The secret to superb speaking is to give yourself permission to make
mistakes and learn to recover from them quickly.
Stage two: Avoid common mistakes
Below are the most common mistakes that people make. Each time you prepare for a presentation
look at this list before you start.
Activity17: Presenting with pizzazz
Too small gestures.
Many people are afraid to use their space. This comes across as apologetic. Get
expansive.

Play it safe
When your presentation content is safe is it usually boring! Gain attention and take a
few risks.
Rushing
Rushing through material shows lack of poise and lack of preparation. Slow down to
build your gravitas and make information powerful.
Data intensive
Too much data can’t be remembered. Your research is essential to build your credibili-
ty but you don't need to share it all. Make your story human.
Don't show vulnerability
You wont be perfect. Show vulnerability to build credibility over what you do know.
Too much material
Too much information means you rush or take too much time. Inexcusable! Focus on
key
Have a think about these... do you suffer from any of them or are you worried about any?
LISTED BELOW ARE SOME GREAT RESOURCES TO
HELP YOU PREPARE YOURSELF AND YOUR MATERIALS.
JUST CLICK ON THE LINK
Articles
• 10 ways to improve your presentation skills
• 5 quick ways to structure a great presentation
• 10 ways to be a better presentation
• Great presentation checklist from great presenters
Videos
• 5 things great presenters know
• Giving presentations worth listening to
• Good presenters v. bad presenters
• And of course watch a few openers from great presenters at Ted.com
Slideshares
• Powerful presentation skills
• 5 presentation tips
• How to start your presentation

Activity18: Act as if
State underpins everything.
Our own state is impacted by our bodies (our physiology) and how we
think (our focus)
Reflect
Think of a situation where you need to be confident.
• What do you need to FOCUS on?
• What does your PHYSIOLOGY need to be like?
Quick Physical Challenge
1. Stand up and then on a count of 3 adopt a posture that says, I’m
confident and in control-have some fun with this) – How do you feel?
2. Now feel depressed and lethargic - Did your body posture change?
3. Now adopt your ‘confident and in control͛’ posture again and try feeling
depressed and lethargic WITHOUT changing your body posture!
Quite simply, our body and our mind are connected! We can change the
state we are in by simply noticing how our physiology is and changing
it.
In this example, Acting as if we were confident made a difference to
our focus.
ACTION
The next time you feel less confident, notice what your body is doing
and change it. You will be surprised at how quickly this can make a
positive difference.
Check out this quick message from Tony Robbins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gru7BLqiC0c
Your notes

Activity19: Your role model angel
Role Modelling isn’t new; we’ve been doing it all
through our lives unconsciously.
We actually learnt to walk and talk by Role Modelling and much of what we
think and do on a daily basis has come from Role Modelling.
So what actually is Role Modelling and how can being consciously aware
of its components help you in your
professional and personal lives?
Simply put, Role Modelling is copying, or ‘borrowing’ what someone else does
that makes a positive difference and using it in your own way in your
particular situation. It is extremely valuable as it gives you additional choices
in how you can think and act in order to get a winning result.
So how do we consciously Role Model?
It’s really easy.
• First think about the winning result you want.
• Then think of someone you admire and respect who has the level of
confidence that you want (this could be anyone from a friend, work
colleague through to somebody famous, or even a fictional character!)
• Then consider the questions in the table below
EXAMPLE: Role Modelling Think, Feel, Do
Winning Result I want: To come across as confident & relaxed so that
I encourage people to explore ideas more openly
Role Model: Michelle Obama
What do you think they believe to be true about their self?
I’m warm, empathetic, knowledgeable and strong
What might they be saying to their self?
I have an opportunity to influence a generation, to create more connec-
tions, to help others feel good about themselves and more confident,
How do they feel as a result?
Satisfied, excited, enthusiastic, grateful
What do they do? (Describe how they sit/stand/move? What is the
expression on their face?)
Do: Stands tall, leans in, gets involved, encourages others challenges
unfairness Face: Lots of smiles and genuine interest. Gives eye contact
Winning Result I want:
Role Model:
What do you think they believe to be true about their self?
What might they be saying to their self?
How do they feel as a result?
So now it’s your turn! Have some fun with this and share your thoughts and ideas with each
other. Then have a go at trying out what you’ve borrowed and see how you get on.
Thinking about your Role Model ...
• What would they think, feel and do in your situation?
• What strategies can you ‘borrow’ from them to help you increase your confidence and help
you get that winning result?
• What other people do you respect and admire?
• What do they think, feel, do? What other strategies can you ‘borrow’?

Activity20: Behaviour Barometer
Sometimes what we say and do gets us a great
outcome.
Other times, getting a great outcome feels like pushing water uphill! Most of us
have heard of the term “Behaviour Breeds Behaviour”, but what does it actually
mean? Let’s take a few moments to explore...
Reflect
Take the Behaviour Barometer challenge
1. In the columns below, circle the characteristics you identify in yourself (be
honest!)
Vague
Subservient
Inhibited
Self-pitying
Avoidance
Put self down
Waiting
Loser
Ineffectual
Cowardly
Victim
Powerless
“I don’t mind”
Demanding
Uncompromising
Arrogant
Blaming (directly)
Refuse to listen
Put others down
(to their face)
Pressurising
Hurtful
Pushy
Loud
Winner
Power over
Disempowering
Judgemental
Manipulative
Deceitful
Blaming (indirectly)
Half listen
Put others down
(behind their backs)
Reacting
Vengeful
Pressurising
Emotional blackmail
Martyr
Powerless
‘I don’t care’
Use I
Direct
Honest
Accept
responsibility
Listen attentively
Respect self &
others
Initiating
Forgiving
Effective
Spontaneous
Realist
Power within
Empowering
2. Look opposite to discover what these behaviours mean
3. Words in the first column describe Submissive behaviour – you often lose out and
whilst this avoids conflict, it can lead to simmering resentment building up. The
second column describes Aggressive behaviour – it may get you what you want in
the short term but beware because it will come back to haunt you. Remember the
words of Maya Angelou “People will never forget how you made them feel.”
The third is Passive Aggressive behaviour – a little more subtle than Aggressive
behaviour but has similar consequences long term. The fourth is Assertive behaviour
–
this is respecting the that we all have rights and is linked to win-win outcomes.
4. So, are you mainly one behaviour type, or are you a mixture? What is the
mix?
5. What behavioural characteristics are you pleased you have?
ACTION
• What behavioural characteristics have you identified that you would like to change?
• Choose one behavioural characteristic to change (maybe this is the one that will have
the biggest impact) and make a commitment to work on that everyday for the next
month.

Activity21: Crafting a brilliant message
We are communicating all the time, by what we do
and what we say (including what we say to
ourselves).
And we also communicate by what we don’t do and say!!
People are interpreting our actions (or lack of them) all the time. For this reason we
say that ‘No communication is neutral’ Sometimes we may have an important
message to get across; one that involves a bit more thinking ahead. And depending
on the level of importance we attach to such a message, our thoughts and feelings
may get in the way of us communicating clearly and with conviction.
ACTION
So think about something important you want to express and use these Magic 10 Steps
to help you prepare your thoughts for a brilliant message:
Who is the message for & what is their Communication Style? (e.g. are they
straight to the point? Are they serious, deliberate and detailed? Are they
humorous? Are they quiet and friendly?)
What’s your Outcome?
What is the single most important point you wish to make?
What objections might they raise?
What is the benefit for them? Or, what problems does it solve? (Think of the
situation from their perspective because they will be thinking ‘what’s in it for
me?’ or ‘where’s this going?’)
How might the subject best be introduced? (Tip: Focus on areas you both
agree on is sometimes a great lead in)
What supporting points (to your main point) do you need to make, in priority
order?
What tone or style will help get your message across & show you are on their
wavelength?
What body language will support getting your message across?
Bonus points to have up your sleeve! Think Win-Win. What are you prepared to
compromise on? What’s your bottom line?
2
3
4
5
6
7
9
10
8
1

A crucial element to being confident and assertive
means getting to grips with the rights we have as
individuals.
As we go through life, some of these rights can get eroded, distorted and
damaged. This in turn can knock our confidence in certain situations and throw
us off balance, leading us to be less effective.
Reflection
So now is the time to give our confidence levels an overhaul by replenishing our
rights.
Read the statements about “rights” and...
• Mark those that you allow yourself, but deny others with
• Mark those that you allow others, but deny yourself with
THE RIGHT TO YOUR OWN FEELINGS, NEEDS AND OPINIONS AND TO HAVE
THEM RESPECTED BY OTHERS
Everyone sees things differently and it is important to get away from the idea that
if one party is right, everyone else is wrong.
THE RIGHT TO CONSIDER YOUR OWN NEEDS
This does not mean you can absolve yourself from all responsibility to others;
rather that you should consider your needs and the extent to which they are met.
This will enable you to recognise when you are putting others’ needs before yours
and decide whether you wish to do something about it.
THE RIGHT TO ASK (NOT TO DEMAND)
A clear request is much fairer to the other person and yet it can feel blunt or
awkward to the “asker”. Resorting to hints, or very subtle comments can lead us
to feel frustrated when they are ignored.
THE RIGHT TO REFUSE
Taking your needs into consideration you may wish to refuse the request of
another. It is better for both parties to do so clearly and politely rather than to let
them think all is well and then find an excuse later. If you have
contractual obligations that limit your exercising this right, you do retain the right
to explain the difficulties it will cause and/or any problems you can foresee.
Although you may be overruled, at least you have ‘covered’ yourself.
THE RIGHT TO NOT UNDERSTAND
Everyone communicates differently and there is no shame in having to ask for
clarification.
THE RIGHT TO BE SUCCESSFUL
Success can be measured in many different ways. Whether you are successful in
a challenging job or at another level (e.g. losing weight, making a difficult phone
call) you should acknowledge your achievement and not play it down.
THE RIGHT TO MAKE A MISTAKE
Accept that no one is perfect. Mistakes are great learning opportunities. Some
experts believe that if you aren’t making mistakes then you aren’t trying hard
enough! One act of ineffective behaviour does not make us incompetent. It is
important to keep our mistakes in proportion and not to dwell on them,
compounding a negative self-image.
THE RIGHT TO CHANGE YOUR MIND
Circumstances change, more information becomes available or a snap decision
seems wrong with the passing of time. You should not have to defend your
decision to change your mind to anyone who thinks it a weakness.
THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE NOT TO ASSERT YOURSELF
There is no rule to say that you must assert yourself at all times. You are free
to choose to act non-assertively and not stand up for your rights. It is important
however that you have the confidence to assert yourself when you want to or you
will find that the little chips to your self-esteem can wear away altogether.
THE RIGHT TO BE YOUR OWN SELF
This involves choosing your own destiny; whom you marry (or not!), where you
live, work, hobbies and interests etc.
Turn over to find out more....
Activity22: Rights replenisher

Responsibilities with Rights
To prevent aggressive behaviour, it is vital to balance these rights with the
responsibility that goes with them. There are dual responsibilities in terms of
assertiveness:
TO RESPECT THE RIGHTS OF OTHERS
It is possible to become so concerned with your own rights that you lose sight of
the rights of others and act aggressively. The rights you take for yourself you
should give to others (to prevent aggression) and the rights you give to others
you should take for yourself (to prevent non-assertion).
TO ASSERT YOUR RIGHTS IN A REASONABLE AND RESPONSIBLE MANNER
It can be counter-productive to be rigid in defending your rights at all times and
you may choose not to assert yourself on various minor issues. The important
thing is that your non-assertion is a conscious decision rather than the inability to
assert yourself.
For Example: You have the right to make mistakes. This is balanced with the
responsibility to admit your mistakes (either to yourself or to others depending on
the situation), to correct them and to be clear about what went wrong so that
you do not repeat them. There is also the responsibility to allow others to make
mistakes without humiliating them].
Call to Action
Over the coming weeks, notice your confidence levels in operation. If you feel less
confident, ask yourself: Which right am I denying myself here? Then give yourself
the ‘gift’ of that right.
Your notes

Area of work I’m least confident in: .............................................................................
1. In the left hand column describe what you currently Think, Feel & Do in this
situation. Then...
2. In the right hand column describe what will be more helpful for you to Think, Feel
& Do so that you stand the best chance of getting a winning result
(Tip: Remember what you Think, Feel & Do in situations when you feel confident and
in control!)
What we think impacts our emotions and how we
feel.
This in turn affects our actions (in other words, what we do) and ultimately the
results we get! So putting it simply, how we think has a big part to play in the
results that we get.
Activity23: Think, feel, do
For example, as a local league badminton player I never looked
forward to playing mixed doubles, instead I preferred to play ladies
doubles or singles. I only played mixed doubles as a last resort if
there were no other ladies to play.
I used to think... how much I hated mixed doubles (‘hate’ is a very
strong word). I know I even used to say to myself: “I bet we’ll
lose!” This led me to feel...self conscious, fed up and not confident in
my game as I imagined us losing. So what I used to do was...go on
court with my head down, not stand in an alert pose (ready to get
the shots), not keep on my toes (ready to move quickly) And at
club nights I just avoided playing mixed games so I never really got
to practise and get better And then, as a result I would... miss easy
shots, make stupid errors, put my partner under pressure and
ultimately we didn’t win many matches. (Surprise, surprise!) And people
were reluctant to partner me. All this reinforced my belief that I was
a pants mixed doubles player.
And the vicious cycle continued until... ...
I changed my thinking (“We could win this. That’ll surprise the
opposition!!”), which affected how I felt( excited, cheeky, playful as I
imagined what it would be like to win)and this altered what I did (kept
on my toes so I moved quicker & I actually play with a smile of my
face ), so that now I get more winning results and keep practising so
that I can get better.
Current Think, Feel, Do Changed Think, Feel, Do
What do you think? What would be more helpful for you
to think?
Now imagine you are achieving a
winning result...Describe how you will
feel knowing you have done a great
job?
What will you be doing (describe how
will you be sitting/standing, what will
the expression on your face be like?
What will you be saying out loud?)
How do you feel?
What do you do? (how do you sit/
stand, what is the expression on your
face? What do you say out loud?)
Share your thoughts and ideas with each other and most importantly...try it out &
keep practising
YOU REALLY CAN CHANGE A RESULT BY STARTING
TO CHANGE THE WAY YOU THINK ABOUT IT!
So now think about an area of your work that you are least confident about and
use this to help you complete the small challenge opposite.

What are the things you say you can’t do? Think about what is holding you back?
Is the feat real or so you just need support? Who can help you overcome your blockage?
Now add your yet and make it happen.
Consider these well used list of phrases:
• I can’t speak in front of people
• I’m not a runner
• I can’t cook
• I can’t speak French
• I’m no singer
• I’m not good at writing
And there are many more..
Reflect If we say these phrases (or phrases like these) often enough,
what do you think the impact will be?
It’s very easy to dismiss something that is challenging to us with an “I
can’t”, “I’m not...” or “I’m no...” phrase.
And it’s easier said than done for someone to remind you, :No such
thing as can’t!” and for this to automatically make a difference, because
we are human after all.
Now consider the impact of adding a simple 3 letter word: “I can’t speak
in front of people...yet”, “I’͛m not a runner...yet” “I can’t cook...yet” Much
more empowering right? Injects possibility?
ACTION
The next time you hear yourself say “I can’t...” Try adding…’yet’ to it and
notice how it feels. You may be pleasantly surprised with what may
transpire!
Activity24:What a difference a yet
makes!

Our communication network is the group of
people we communicate internally or externally
in our daily roles.
By looking at our current network we can begin to digest the strength of
our relationships and importance to us and our performance. Think about the
people you communicate with – there will be people you communicate
with daily (e.g. your manager or colleagues), weekly (e.g. colleagues in
other departments) and those you talk to more infrequently (e.g. external
customers).
ACTION
Step 1 - The first step in understanding our communication network is
exploring who is in it, so take the network opposite and in the relevant
circles fill in as many people you can think of that you communicate with
either daily, weekly or infrequently.
Step 2– Now for each relationship you can either:
• Score it from 1-5 based on how strong you feel that relationship is (1
being very weak, 5 being very strong) OR
• Draw a smiley face for very strong, indifferent face for neither strong
nor weak or a sad face for weak relationship.
Step 3 – The stronger our internal relationships are, the stronger
relationships we can build with our clients, making sure we are absolutely
enhancing the connection in every interaction. So our final step is to
consider the small actions we will take to strengthen each relationship.
Consider and jot down your ideas for the following:
• What small things can you do to turn your weaker relationships into
strong relationships?
• How can we ensure our strong relationships maintain their strength?
Activity25: Your communication
network
Me
Daily
Weekly
Infrequently

Give up on fixing others. The adage
“When you point one finger at
another person, four more are pointing
at you” is very true. You may be great
at seeing others’ flaws and missteps,
and you may be tempted to offer
unsolicited advice. Resist the urge.
Instead, focus on yourself and let
them make their own mistakes.
Watch your triggers. Who sets youoff? Perhaps it’s the co-workerwho dumps his work and problemsin your lap, which puts you in themartyr/rescuer role. Reflect on whythis “trigger” keeps popping up, andwhat role you’re playing in
Don’t unload. Do you unload your
problems, ideas, or experiences on
someone else without really looking
for an interaction? Next time, be
clear about what you want from the
other person. Advice? Direction? A
shoulder to cry on? Don’t vent
without a clearly identified goal.
Learn to wait – 24 hours or more. If
you tend to be an impulsive person
and respond right away when you
observe behaviour you don’t like, try
sitting with your thoughts before
you address it. If at the end of
that time you still want to address
it, you will be more calm and likely
more balanced in your approach.
Define success. It’s typical to set goals
in our business, career, or work
relationships. But what we forget to do is
to define what success looks like. Take
the time to paint the picture of what you
want. What kind of culture? What kind
of relationships? What do you want to be
known for in your workplace? Be clear
about where you are going.
Practice being the Interested Observer. One of the
best ways to improve your workplace relationships
is by watching others’ reactions to things you and
others say. Think of it as stepping out of the
theatre. We all tend to fall into rote responses.
Step back to watch what’s going on. You’ll
observe “helpful” people, “I feel sorry for myself”
people, and “giving” people, to name a few types.
Be sure to watch your own approaches and
reactions. Do you also react as a “type” instead as
an objective listener?
Be cautiously open. This one may
depend on your culture – learn what
is acceptable and what is not before
you reveal too much. But in order to
build relationships, it is give and take.
Give others the opportunity to
understand who you really are. Longer
term, this is how you create trust,
loyalty, and respect, and feel more
comfortable in your “work skin.”
Leave labels off. Think about the process
that goes on inside our heads. We look
out at reality, we filter it, and then we
label it. We don’t like staff members
who are “like that.” We see someone’s
walk and make a judgment about who
they are. We watch someone in a
meeting and judge their contribution.
Stop labelling. Turn your opinions into
factual observations wherever you can.
Let them finish. An easy way toimprove all your interactions is tosimply let the other person finish her
thought completely. This means not
interrupting, adding commentary, or
giving feedback until she is completely
through talking or asking. Try to refrain
from thinking about what you will say
next, too.
Learn the art of focus. When another
person is talking, focus completely on
what he is saying and how he is
saying it. Don’t let your mind
wander to your own judgments or
assessments. Use your energy to
really listen and seek understanding.
The best listeners are usually
considered to be really good
communicators overall.
Don’t assume they know what you mean.
We assume too much in communication. In
fact, in certain industries we love our jargon,
but we don’t always agree on what the
jargon means! Practice coming to every
interaction with the goal of learning about
the other person. Ask “why?” to get at
what’s underneath their comments. Don’t
guess – ask.
Tipsforimproving
relationships

Activity26: Goal setting 101
Barak Obama does it, so does Oprah Winfrey, Jack Canfield and Thomas
Edison. Even the BBC has a how to guide on their website.
It’s all around us, people talk about it – there are apps about so why is it
that people all around the globe are still getting sucked into their day to day
hustle and bustle and missing out on this miraculous opportunity to direct
their lives by setting motivating and clear goals?
There are many different ways to do it and I want to share my thoughts
about what works. As Oprah Winfrey puts it “ There is no lucky break
without preparation and goal setting is the place to start.
Goal setting is used by top-level athletes, successful business-people and
achievers in all fields. Setting goals gives you long-term vision and
short-term motivation. It focuses your resourcefulness and time so that
you can make the very most of your life. In essence by setting goals you
can high five yourself at each milestone and the pleasure of seeing
yourself make progress with spur you on.
Start by thinking about your long term aspiration.
• What do you want in your life in 5 or 10 years time?
Take a little time to mull this over. Be brave. Many people feel they shouldn't expect a life of abundance but why
not - be prepared to jot down anything that pops into your mind.
Think about...
1. BIG PICTURE (YOUR CONTEXT)
Take some time out to dream a little – and ponder what do you want your life to be like in 10 or 5 years time.
This provides overall clarity to help you define if your goals are on purpose or not for you. Some people like to write
it down, others do affirmations and yet others do a vision board. All are great if they work for you – as a visual
person I like a vision board. Think about the following areas of your life:
Career – What level do you want to reach in your career, or what do you want to achieve?
Financial – How much do you want to earn, by what stage? How is this related to your career goals?
Education – Is there any knowledge you want to acquire in particular? What information and skills will you need
to have in order to achieve other goals?
Family – Do you want to be a parent? If so, how are you going to be a good parent? How do you want to be seen
by a partner or by members of your extended family?
Creative – Do you want to achieve any creative goals?
Attitude – Is any part of your mindset holding you back? Is there any part of the way that you behave that upsets
you? (If so, set a goal to improve your behaviour or find a solution to the problem.)
Health & Fitness – Are there any fitness goals that you want to achieve, or do you want good health deep into old
age? What steps are you going to take to achieve this?
Pleasure – How do you want to enjoy yourself? (You should ensure that some of your life is for you!)
Public Service – Do you want to make the world a better place? If so, how?
2. FOCUS
Once you can see where you are heading it is easier to break this down into more manageable chunks.
As they say “If you want to eat an elephant do it one chunk at a time” so start to order your long term goals - what
will you have to do in year 1, year 2 etc. to help you move forward.
What do I need to do now?
You challenge now is to get really specific and break this down into a clear structure that works for you.
My friend, who is very methodical writes copious lists. She has a photograph of her vision at the opening of her
book and then the summary goals written alongside. From there, she builds her week by week goals because she
can see the progress as she goes and prefers it in linear format. Me on the other hand, I’m much more visual with
mind maps and lots of colour. Do whatever works for you; just do it,
DON'TMAKE
EXCUSES!
MAKE
CHANGES!
TonyGaskins

Toptips
Whatever method you use to record your goals, follow this 5 point plan to
get them as sharp and empowering as possible.
You have probably heard of "SMART goals" already. But do you always
apply the rule?
The simple fact is that for goals to be powerful, they should be
designed to be SMART. There are many variations of what SMART stands
for, but the essence is this –
goals should be:
● Specific.
● Measurable.
● Attainable.
● Relevant.
● Time Bound.
1. SET SPECIFIC GOALS
Your goal must be clear and well defined. Vague or generalised goals are
unhelpful because they don't provide sufficient direction. Goals show you
the way, you need clear direction to travel so clarity is key.
2. SET MEASURABLE GOALS
Include precise amounts, dates, and so on in your goals so you can meas-
ure your degree of success. If your goal is simply defined as "To reduce
expenses" how will you know when you have been successful? Without a
way to measure your success you miss out on the celebration that comes
with knowing you have actually achieved something.
3. SET ATTAINABLE GOALS
Make sure that it's possible to achieve the goals you set. If you set a goal
that you have no hope of achieving, you will only demoralise you and zap
your confidence.
However, resist the urge to set goals that are too easy. By setting realistic
yet challenging goals, you hit the balance you need. These are the types of
goals that require you to "raise the bar" and they bring the greatest personal
satisfaction.
4. SET RELEVANT GOALS
Goals should be relevant to the direction you want your life and career to
take. By keeping goals aligned with this, you'll develop the focus you need
to get ahead and do what you want. Set widely scattered and inconsistent
goals, and you'll fritter your time – and your life – away.
5. SET TIME-BOUND GOALS
You goals must have a deadline. This gives you focus and helps you
prioritise.
Always frame goals in the positive - it’s
just more motivating e.g. “I will stop
smoking” although clear and direct it
makes your mind think about what you
are giving up. Instead, try framing it
positively and think about it as getting fit
and healthy, having whiter teeth, being
able to run a mile… whatever focuses your
mind positively on the gain you will have
as a result of quitting.
Get juiced when you
write them, build
emotion – it is emotion
that moves us.
How motivating for you
are they? If they arefilled with corporatespeak they wont be.
Think about how you
would describe your
goals to a friend or
colleague - would they
understand them?
Make an action plan so you can
see which goals you are focusing
on at a particular time - you can’t
do them all at once! This will help
you develop new habits that
support the new you!
Have your goals in obvious
places so you can look at
them frequently - your
wallet, your desk, your
desktop, your mirror so you
can look whilst cleaning
your teeth etc.

The way you look and the way you act shouts
volumes about who you are and what you stand
for.
But do you really know what others think about you?
As Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, once said: "Your brand is what people
say about you when you are not in the room". Most people, however, have not
managed their brands until now.
If you think about it there is so much that others take in and if you don’t ask
you will not know the impression that you leave with them. So to help you take
control of the Brand you portray take the first steps in understanding.
Action
Step one
1 - Think back to some of the key conversations you had last week. When you
reflect on these what 3 words do you think people would use to describe the
way you operated? Are these consistent with how you want people to describe
you
2 - Ask 3 of your colleagues what 3 words they would use to describe you at
work. Are these consistent with the way you want them to describe you?
Remember sometimes what they don’t say is just as important as what they
do say. Ask them, if necessary, to help you understand why they describe you
the way they do. If they are people you trust ask them what 3 words they
would like to use to describe you.
3 - Think about the way you look. Is your appearance consistent with the Brand
you want to project? For example, if you want to be seen as someone who has
attention to detail and can be trusted to see the small things that make a differ-
ence – is your appearance immaculate with little details/ accessories that
support you e.g. a notebook with dividers, structured clearly and simply refer-
enced. Or maybe you want to be seen as creative in which case does the grey
pinstriped suit support that, or not?
Step two
Use this information to guide you and identify your Personal Brand by doing the
following:
1 - Identify your spark
What are you great at? What are your talents? How can you use these to
better project who you are and what you stand for? By doing this you can focus
on what you are naturally good at and love doing.
2 - Identify what drives you
What are your values – what you believe is important. If being open and honest
is important to you, do you show this in everything you do? What about achieve-
ment – do you openly acknowledge your successes and help others celebrate
that with you or do you really hide your light under a bushel? Step
3 - Identify your purpose
Now it is time to identify your purpose.
• What is your direction in your professional life?
• What do you want to achieve?
Getting clear about this will enable you to build a very strong brand. This will
help you to discover what really inspires you.
4 - Identify your main archetype
This will help people to understand who you are and what you do within
seconds of meeting, reading or hearing about you. The twelve archetypes used
in personal branding are:
• The caregiver • The creator • The explorer
• The hero • The innocent • The jester
• The lover • The magician • The ordinary guy
• The outlaw • The ruler • The sage.
Once you identify your main archetype, your task is to evoke it through the way
you speak, write, dress and behave. If you evoke your main archetype
consistently, people will understand immediately how you work.
The more you get to know yourself, the more aware you will be of what people
are likely to say about you when you are not in the room. You will also attract
people who want what you do in the way that you do it.
For more information have a look at this
Activity27: What does your Personal
Brand say about you?

‘Genius is 1 per cent inspiration, 99 per cent perspiration’
Thomas Alva Edison (inventor of the lightbulb, blew up 30 laboratories by
accident en route to fame!!)
Be it Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Roosevelt or a more modern icon of determina-
tion like Lance Armstrong the 6 times! Tour de France cyclist, Kelly Holmes, James
Dyson, we all admire different people who we believe have shown incredible determi-
nation to win or overcome
adversity.
This challenge will help you to consider your own level of determination and persever-
ance in different situations and will ask you to think of techniques to help you keep on
going when the going gets tough.
ACTION
Take 10 minutes to reflect on the people who you most admire for determination –
this could be anyone i.e. someone close, a sports hero, professional person.
Ask yourself:
• Why do you admire them….?
• In what ways to you believe you are determined…? and show perseverance….?
• At work, how could you improve this important leadership quality in a way that will
build respect with your team and colleagues……..
Further points of reference
“Leadership and Self-deception: Getting Out of the Box” - Arbinger Institute
“Managing pressure at work” – Paul Stamp
Activity28: Determination

Meetings are one of the greatest devourers of time in many organisations.
Some organisations estimate this time to be as much as 75% of a manager’s
time is spent in meetings, only half of which are judged to be truly productive.
This challenge will ask you to think about all the different meetings you are involved
with either leading or participating in and will ask you to think of actions you could
take to improve meetings that are in your circle of influence.
Here are some examples of some alternative types of meetings that some compa-
nies have experimented with to promote creativity.
• Information only meetings – used for certain situations particularly to
communicate with large groups. Respects peoples time and people can still argue a
point informally outside the meeting
• Decision only meetings – meetings where the only responses allowed are
‘yes’ and ‘no’. People get more interested in the agenda before hand and more
discussion happened prior to the meeting.
• Stand up meetings – borrowed from the court of Queen Victoria, stand up
meetings cut down time dramatically and mean that people know to keep even
more on focus than normal.
• Decide at the beginning meetings – people decide either ‘yes’ or ‘no’ right
at the beginning and then only go back to points that are felt need to be explored
further. Again this approach keeps people focused and in the main people usually
feel good about the decisions that have been made.
• Rattle and roll meetings – this type of meeting assumes that of 10 items of
the agenda only a small number are substantial. Teams rattle through the smaller 8
items at pace and the settle down to focus time proportionately of the bigger issues.
ACTION
Take 10 minutes to reflect on these ideas and consider any actions you would like
take to improve your team meetings – remember to get the benefits you must get
buy-in from your team!
FURTHER POINTS OF REFERENCE
www.businessknowhow.com/manage/12winteam.htm
“Sticky Wisdom - How to start a creative revolution at work” What If!
“There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world.
There are those who, when presented with a glass that is exactly half full,
say ‘this glass is half full.’ And then there are those that say: ‘this glass is
half empty.’ The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass
and say: ‘what’s up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my
glass ? I don’t think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass.”
From The Truth by Terry Pratchett.
If we don’t take ownership in our lives, then someone else will. When things don’t
seem to be going our way, we have to be persistent, see the positive, or simply
perhaps look in the mirror.
ACTION
One very effective way to put this into fast practice is to write a letter to the single
person who will play the biggest part in your success in the future. The person that
owns your life – that’s right – YOU.
Write a letter to yourself about the future –what you want it to be like and what you
think you need to do to achieve your desire. Write it, post it using a second-class
stamp (so it will take longer) and then read it. What do you notice?
Activity29: Improving team meetings Activity30: Who’s in charge of you?

Genius Learning Ltd
1 Liverpool Rd North
Liverpool
L31 2HB
Tel: +44 (0)151 203 0002
www.inspireyourgenius.com
e:info@inspireyourgenius.com

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