Training with style

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Abstract

A trainer's personal style can add to the effectiveness of interactive training. Mosaica's newsletter, Training Briefs, identifies behaviors that typically enhance participant involvement in training sessions and increases training success.

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Issue

Enhancing successful training sessions can be a matter of addressing the small details that create big results.

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Action

Steps to take to make training more successful include:

  • Use interactive methods and tools to engage participants.

  • Use feedback to improve your training style.

  • Project self-confidence, not arrogance.

  • Be responsive to participants' needs.

  • Reveal life experiences that participants can relate to.

  • Be aware of body language and signals — project enthusiasm and energy.

  • Engage participants as actively as possible — for instance, ask plenty of questions and make eye contact when speaking collectively to the group.

  • Demonstrate cultural competence and sensitivity.

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Context

Mosaica: The Center for Nonprofit Development and Pluralism, provides organizational assessments, strategic and resource development planning, fundraising capacity building, restructuring support, and assistance in financial management and oversight. Other services include board development, program design and delivery, personnel and systems management, volunteer activities, community involvement and community building, community organizing and advocacy, program evaluation, and coalition building.

The goal of Mosaica is to bring together individuals with diverse voices and experience to create an organization with a set of common values. Mosaica was established out of a commitment to social justice and a belief that within the United States and throughout the world, societies that strive for democracy, human rights, peace, individual opportunity, and pluralism must be built and maintained from the bottom up—community by community, group by group—with the active involvement of nonprofit organizations and a strong independent sector. Mosaica helps strengthen nonprofits so they can provide high quality services and advocacy in a sustainable, well-run fashion that supports communities.

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Citation

Mosaica's Training Briefs. Washington, D.C.: Corporation for National and Community Service, no. 5, (December 1997.)

Training Briefs were produced by Mosaica under Cooperative Agreement #98CADC009 with the Corporation for National and Community Service during July of 1997 through October of 1999.

 

 

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Posted On

August 28, 2001

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For More Information

EnCorps
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory
101 SW Main Street
Portland, OR 97204
Phone: (877) 250-1615

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Resources

See Starting Strong: A Guide to Pre-Service Training for more information and an activity on "small group brainstorming."

Source Documents

Related Practices

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Related sites

Starting Strong: A Guide to Pre-Service Training

Topic Areas

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