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Getting Ready to Attend a Training Course

This week, instead of being the trainer, I am attending a training course.

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This week, instead of being the trainer, I am attending a training course. The training is on the features of a new IT platform, which is going to change how my colleagues and I do a lot of our work. Getting ready to attend a training course is an important process that many people don’t consider.

Why Getting Ready to Attend a Training Course is Important  

It is important that I get the most out of my time with the trainer. She is an expert, and I need to ask as many questions as possible as she is only available during the course. I know I will kick myself later if I don’t get the most out of this dedicated training time. 

Steps When Getting Ready to Attend a Training Course

I thought you might like to hear about my preparations for attending the course to help you prepare for your next training course.

Address Fears – My first step is to address my fears. I am a confident person, so I don’t worry about asking stupid questions. I know every question is valuable because it is a definite need for an answer, demonstrating that I am focused and engaged. If you worry about asking questions during a course, don’t. Trainers take it as a sign you are interested, which is a compliment, and we know because you asked the question, your brain has taken ownership of the subject, so you will retain and use the information more than if you were passively listening during the course.

Remove Interruptions –  I am aware that my attention span appears to be getting shorter. It is so easy to become distracted, so I need to create a learning environment that removes interruptions:

  • Explaining to my husband that I am on a course and even though I will be at home, I am not available to look after our injured dog or accept deliveries. We make sure we have no planned deliveries, and he makes arrangements to look after our injured pet at his workplace.
  • My colleagues contact me via WhatsApp and email all the time, so I’m always checking my phone. Sometimes, I do this in other meetings and realise later that I have missed important remarks. It is my personal development task to stop this habit in 2025, and this course, which is so early in the year, is a great opportunity. I contact my colleagues to explain I am not contactable during the training but that i will check my messages and respond to enquiries during the lunch break and as soon as the course finishes.

Removing these interruptions helps me plan my time, as I know that I will want to reflect on what I am learning. This consolidation time is important; otherwise, learning will be lost. I block out time for emails but include specific times during lunch and after the course for thinking.

Consider How I Work Best – We all have preferences for how we learn, so I take a few minutes to think about the things that work for me:

  • I don’t like to hear things for the first time on a training course. I like to read ahead so I can understand the basics and use the course to ask the trainer things I couldn’t find from my own research. I make time to watch videos and read the User Guide before the course.
  • I like to know how the course is organised so I print out the list of topics we are going to cover.
  • I am a note taker, writing things down or drawing diagrams helps me remember things and helps me see how things connect whichever deepens my learning. I decided to get myself a new notebook just for notes about this IT platform so all my thoughts will be in one place.
  • I like visuals, so I print some diagrams from the user guide so I can add my notes to these.
  • I know I am very busy, and too often, I turn up to a meeting straight from another meeting. My head is full of what I have just been discussing, so during the first few minutes of the next meeting, I am not fully present as I am still thinking about what just happened. To be ready to focus from the start, I block 15 minutes in my schedule before the start of the course.
  • This will give me time to get a drink as even being 1% dehydrated can decrease brain function by 5% – that’s why I always have a drink before I drive to work in the morning to make sure my brain can process all the information about traffic and road conditions.

I will stop writing this blog now as it is time for me to get ready for my course. I hope you found this useful.

If you want to explore training options, book one of my courses or sign up for my newsletter to hear more.