Hardly any industry was spared by COVID-19. Our business
was affected too and back in March we saw all our leadership workshops,
presentations and roleplay sessions being postponed or cancelled.
Each of these cancellations and postponements was right
because health and human well-being always come first. Many training workshops
and coaching’s continued online and suddenly in the industry, the buzz words were "live virtual training’ and "remote online learning".
But the question arises as to whether people as social beings
want to and actually can learn new Leadership skills exclusively with digital
experiences – without the so valuable touchpoint "real-life".
Only when we share experiences with other people do we come
alive. Therefore, physical experiences will always be relevant. Even more: I
think that after this crisis people will have an even greater need for offline learning
experiences in the "real" world and the senses of all of us will
become more sensitive.
But some things will need to change.
Training, yes please – but unique
It started even before Corona: Training workshops and
Leadership Programs were, in my opinion often presented in much more outdated
formats. Instead of lecture-based sessions, new
formats are needed: Programs must engage the learners and push them out of
their comfort zone to help them overcome their biggest communication and leadership
challenges.
With so many online training possibilities at the moment, organizations
will start to consider whether the training program is worth leaving home.
Therefore Training Programs must offer more in the
future: It's no longer about compliance, but about experiencing real spectacle.
A workshop with 20 PowerPoint slides and a workbook to take home? Uninteresting.
But a powerful session that combines personal learning goals with confronting games and real-life
roleplay experiences? Exactly that is
what we want to experience again after the initial restrictions – no mindless
listening to boring content.
Training is most successful when it can be experienced
through different senses
Online learning and virtual training offer great benefits, but for me, it is not a one size fits all solution. Practising a face to face difficult
conversation with a roleplay actor is a completely different feeling than reading
the 4 steps of dealing with difficult conversations online.
Imagine this: You sit across the actor. Your heart beats fast. You forget the first step of dealing with difficult conversations once the conversation starts. Luckily you get to ‘pause’ the roleplay and start again. This time it goes better. The actor points out you constantly sigh during the conversation and use a lot of 'uncertainty language'. You never realised this, and you get to practice the difficult conversation again to see how those new insights affect the outcome. Every one of your senses is stimulated and you practice new skills in a real-life, safe to fail environment.
Quite different, right?
We would do well to take the Corona crisis as an opportunity
to finally upgrade face-to-face training.
Trainers, coaches, presenters, be creative and try out! Learners do not want to just watch from the outside. They want to be in the front seat and experience the learning. And please also keep in mind, when working with roleplay actors, make sure you undertake this endeavour with a professional.
I believe we will learn a lot from this pandemic, and there is one thing we should not forget:
The real learning experience that appeals to all the senses will continue to be decisive in the future.
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