L&D Beach Reads: 2022 Edition

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We’re smack in the midst of summer (here in the US, anyway) – a time when many folks take off from work and find relaxing spots. For some it’s the beach, for others it’s the mountains, still others it’s a screened in porch, listening to the rain. Wherever this summer may take you, if you’re looking for a few books to pack away, you actually won’t find them in this week’s podcast.

That’s because I may offer some thoughts on five new L&D books, only one of them is actually in print at the time of today’s podcast (the others will be released each month, beginning in September, that’s how new this list of book recommendations is!).

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What new skills can be mastered in a 60-minute webinar?

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The short answer: I can’t really think of any skill that can be mastered through a 60-minute webinar. I can, however, think of lots of skills that can be introduced and even developed over the course of a 60-minute session (in-person or virtual), but true mastery requires learning, being open to making mistakes as you try something new out, practicing, reflecting, practicing some more, getting feedback, acting on that feedback, continuing to practice… you see where I’m going.

Let’s put the idea of true mastery as the result of some sort of training intervention to the side. I want to share a recent experience I had with a client in which we introduced the idea of setting SMART goals into their mentoring program. It all began with a 60-minute webinar.

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What is “training” for?

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Recently I had a chance to sit down with a couple of the most creative people in the world of learning and development: Kassy LaBorie and Betty Dannewitz, to talk about training and to answer the question: If learning is supposed to be a process, not an event, then what is “training” (the event) even good for?

Listen to this week’s podcast for some answers from two very smart people who come from very different backgrounds… stay for the first ever edition of Train Like You Listen Trivia to find out who was crowned the first ever champion!

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A Crash Course for a Beginning Training Designer

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There are plenty of courses you can take, books to read, certificate or even master’s level programs to study, but sometimes people who are mapping out a training program just need something right now. They don’t have the time to read a book or the money to complete a course. Following is a list of quick reference resources (articles, podcasts), activity ideas and job aids for someone who just needs a crash course and some resources… now.

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L&D Team Book Club: “Map It” by Cathy Moore

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Does any of the following resonate with you?

A small training team. More to do than there are hours in the day. You do your best. You have a hunch there might even be better ways out there to do things, but you don’t really have time to step away and learn new things. “Good enough” is going to have to do, because it’s been working and there’s a lot more to get done. Even though “good enough” doesn’t feel quite right. You’ve always been a high achiever, and excellence is what you’ve always strived for. If only someone could give you permission to step away for a few moments each week and think about some better ways to do things.

My company, Endurance Learning, is a small but mighty (and very busy) team, putting together lots of training (mostly elearning) for a variety of organizations. And a lot of us were feeling this way.

We don’t have the time or the resources to send everyone to various conferences or workshops, but recently we came together for a team book club. It was a powerful learning experience – both for the content it introduced to us, and it was also powerful for the simple act of all of us going through a common learning experience, together.

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Instructional Design for Non-training Professionals

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Guy Wallace has been working in the field of training and instructional design since the 1970s. He’s seen a lot of fads come and go, and he’s also seen some models and research that has withstood the test of time.

We recently had an opportunity to talk about his experiences, especially as they relate to people who just want to help their employees grow and learn but who have jobs that don’t let them spend vast amounts of time on social media debating the merits of ADDIE vs. SAM nor do they have the time to read a bunch of scholarly articles about how learning happens.

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5 Training Activities to Engage Your Next Training Group

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A few weeks ago, my colleague Erin Clarke, led a session at the Washington Banker’s Association’s annual conference for HR and training professionals. The session focused on new and unique activities to engage learners. As part of the session, Erin distributed a handout with activity instructions for five of the activities she demonstrated, and that handout can be found here. Of course, effective training is more than just an engaging activity.

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Is it possible to learn from other people via social media?

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If you’ve ever jumped into the comments of a social media post, you have have found some not-so-nice comments. I’ve gotten the feeling that social media is often where people go to shout their thoughts and beliefs, but they rarely go there to understand others’ perspectives.

Lauren Hug, author of four books and someone who has spent the past few years really examining how people engage in the digital space, is a bit more optimistic. In today’s podcast, she shares her thoughts on how we can still learn from many other people via social media.

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Hybrid Learning: When to use it

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Raise your hand if you’ve felt more comfortable taking your mask off in public only to find that your immune system has grown super wimpy.

After 2+ years of masking and three jabs in the arm, I’ve been feeling more confident to go out in public without a mask. Of course, after 2+ years of pretty much avoiding all germs, it appears that even the most basic germs are ready to take me down. I’ve been knocked off my feet for the past few days, having tested negative for covid, but nonetheless, sapped of energy and just feeling crappy.

Of course, I’m not letting my 10+ year streak of blog posts come to an end just because of a little (super) cold. On the other hand, I don’t have a ton of energy or creativity, so today I’m going to steer you in the direction of a recent podcast series on hybrid learning hosted by copy and printing agency, Mimeo.

I had the opportunity to be interviewed on the second episode (Hybrid Learning: When To Use It). As part of this series, Mimeo also ran episodes featuring JD Dillon, Cindy Huggett, and Ann Rollins. If you’ve been exploring ways to combine a variety of training delivery methods in your organization, this series is definitely worth a listen!