More than 120 trainers from around the globe attended The Bob Pike Group's twenty-first annual Creative Training Techniques conference in Minneapolis last week as Minnesota showed off with fall colors and mild temperatures.
With Ben Cockram and Neen James providing the keynote talks on Wednesday and Thursday mornings respectively, the general sessions focused on viewing people with dignity and making people more important than technology.
Cockram, who was born with cerebral palsy, talked about "Second Impressions" and how everyone has a disability. The key to overcoming that is to identify your weakness and then surround yourself with others whose strengths complement your weaknesses.
Cockram also talked about blind spots people encounter and how important it is to see a person or an issue from all angles, even when it's uncomfortable. "Be honest about what you see; be prepared to make changes that would increase the health of your organization," he said, and then make those changes slowly and purposefully.
Neen James, author of Folding Time, talked about why we should better manage our time and then gave specific examples on how to do just that. One of her opening examples was about some New York City restaurants that will take 15 percent off your check if you hand your cell phone to the maitre d' as you walk in to dine. "They're paying you to pay attention," James said. She then tied that into the corporate world and our personal lives. "We've made technology more important than people. As leaders, we need to put people first."
James then shared about her five-year-old neighbor Donovan who was telling her a story but didn't feel like he was getting her full attent
ion. He placed his hands on both her cheeks, turned her face to his and said, "Listen with your eyes."
James suggested managing our time better and with priorities in place to ensure that we do listen with our eyes and that our calendars reflect what matter to us. One of those tools was simply the word "no." "'No' is a complete sentence," James said. It is "one of the most productive words to add to our language palate. We say 'no' so you can say 'yes' to what matters."
She also suggested writing down at night on a sticky note three things that needed to be done the following day and were non-negotiable. "Your day is like a road trip" and when packing the luggage, you've got to take care of the large luggage first, she said.
After a whirlwind three days of learning, laughing and competing, Team Black came away the victors. Each participant had been placed on a team with a Bob Pike Group training faculty member as its coach. This year, for the second year in a row, Doug McCallum's team was victorious in its quest to network, participate during concurrent sessions and try out new-to-them forms of social media as a way to earn points and prizes.
Out of this contest came some great, soundbite takeaways we'd like to share with you.
Clear your cache before facilitating or attending a webinar. ~Judy Bonnstetter
It's our job to find clever ways thru the clutter—find ways to make people understand that they matter. ~Neen James
Recommended resources from Scott Enebo: Slideology, Presentation
Zen, and John Medina's Brain Rules.
Action planning: be specific. Pick a situation and what specific item you will implement. Then you're more likely to follow through. ~ Priscilla Shumway
Windowpane alternate: give them the word and allow learners to create their own drawing. ~Jason Ash
Truth: writing in a handout in training helps with retention. ~Janice Horne
Never look down on someone unless you are helping them get up. ~Ben Cockram
