Want to Become a Trainer? Here's How to Start Your Journey and Overcome Common Challenges

Hi folks,

I had answered Amit's query on this and am putting this under Training ^ Development section.

In my adventures across the corporate world and currently as a Trainer – Creativity & Innovation was a result of my cross chequered career which I consciously chose– started off as a Senior Sales Officer with a FMCG selling food to retailers & institution, then as Executive Assistant to MD & Finally as HR –Head in a span of 10 years – thus have come to this way into Training…

I came across many wide eyed youngsters who would watch my 'performance' in awe and later come and ask me how they could be trainers too. As any trainer would tell you, its very difficult to explain to your participants how you reached the spot where you are - not the least so if you have to do that in the 10 minute break between two sessions. Still, I always tried my best to give them a whirlwind tour of my career path. Since am not sure that I did a very good job of that, I thought it would be pertinent in this post to answer some frequently asked questions I have come across- like you have asked as fresher and others who are reading this article.

So whether you are a fresh professional who suddenly discovered that the mission of your life is to transform and motivate people, or a you are a much experienced manager who felt that it's high that time they passed on the wisdom of your life to others, I hope some of these tips will help you in your journey. Since I am based in India, some of the points are India specific, but I hope it'll help anybody. So here goes:

I want to be a trainer - where do I start?

Good question. The first thing you need to identify is - how much do you like people? if you hate people – my friend - this field is not for you. This does not mean that in order to be a great trainer, one needs to be in love with people - but if you are the sort - in whom people elicit the deepest disgust - then I think you should choose some other profession. Honestly speaking, I have come across some trainers who don't really like people - and many of them are good trainers - but they could never be inspiring, motivating coaches because their dislike of people would get through to their participants. So, the long and short of it is - if you like people - then you have the very first qualification need to be a trainer.

Have you seen the Movie of Tom Cruise – Jerry Maguire …if not see the movie to understand yourself well about yourself & life!!

What about stage fright?

The next question is do you like them when they are sitting around in a group and watching you stand in the spot light trying your best not to make a fool of yourself? if the answer is a no - then read no further. Being a trainer requires a lot of courage.

Did you know that studies have proven that fear of public speaking is the number one fear that people have in the world? And if you want to tackle that fear everyday of your life - what you need in the handful of courage. In order to find out whether your knees don't knock together when you are on stage - take the opportunity to give a presentation to your senior management - if you are a working person.

In your case – I suggest take some topic of your interests and give a training session to your batchmates – its an excellent way to start off..

Remember everyone has some amount of fear of public speaking. The point is can you bear the anxiety that it generates or does it debilitate you so much that you are unable to perform on stage. If its the latter, then perhaps you need to work on that first before you take the plunge.

Do I need some specific qualifications?

Frankly, there is no particular academic qualification needed to be a good trainer. I have personally come across trainers who used to be engineers in their past life, and also former doctors, army personnel, software nerds, house managers, creative and advertising professionals, actors, teachers and people from all kinds of professional and academic backgrounds. What you do need is the following key competencies of Trainer and assess yourself honestly-

Good communication skills (A Must)

A great personal presence,

An attractive voice (but this is not essential),

Good language and grammar and

Extremely knowledgeable over the subject you want to implement training programs for.

Can I be a freelancer right away or should I look for a job?

Wanting to start freelance? Not a good idea. Being a free lance trainer is very tough if you are a fresher. One - no good company will touch a fresh training professional with a barge pole even if you give them free training. The reason - most training programs are arranged by the HR professionals of the client organization. Arranging great training programs is part of their KPAs (Key Performance Areas) Why would they ruin their appraisals by giving you a chance to hone your skills on their staff?

So, your best bet is to start applying to a training organization for a job as trainee professional. As a fresher be focused and accordingly structure your CV well to highlight your key competencies & areas of expertise and more importantly the areas you would like to work on. Am sure the organizations are looking for a bright, young enthusiastic people who are willing to learn for their organizations.

The benefit you get is that you can practice your skills by tagging along with a senior trainer who will coach and guide you. Later you start getting a chance to conduct some simple modules on your own. These modules would probably have been tested again and again by various trainers in the organization and all you would be doing is replicating them. So the chances of you making a mistake would be very low. The confidence you get out of your early successes will go a long way in helping you when you are standing there as a single trainer doing a completely new module for the first time.

The other thing you could do is to find a free lance trainer and get an apprentice job with them. Of course you mustn't expect to get as many chances to be doing modules on your own when you work for a free lancer because free lancers are far more cautious about their clients then larger training organizations. One slip up and the freelancer loses her/his client, but the larger training organizations have much more space to experiment simply because they can soothen the ruffled feathers of a client who had to bear the brunt of your learning by promising to send a better trainer next time. The freelancer doesn't have the luxury of doing this. However the benefit of working as an apprentice with a freelancer is that you get to work on a larger range of training areas than if you work as a trainee in a large training organization. As a trainee you would probably be put on the drill of doing the same module again and again for different clients - thats how large training organizations work. But freelancers usually have a range of areas where they implement training programmes.

Let me share my experience as how I became the Trainer of Creativity & Innovation-

Last year I had attended the one week workshop on Creativity in HR at IIM- Ahmedabad which gave me a deep insight on creativity. Did a lot of research and developed a module which was tested & checked as I conducted a couple of sessions in the company where I worked. I felt really great and took a sabbatical to pursue this dream passion of mine….first I sent the proposals & met the Directors of B-Schools of Pune & Mumbai about this workshop. Since nobody does the same so they have been skeptical of the same but I held on to my passion and was persistent in my efforts. Also kept on updating myself on this issue by meeting creative people – analyzing their style and researching as well to make the content/module more relevant and crisper than before. I wouldn't say that am successful yet but have set myself on the journey…

Lastly I would say its all about passion you have for life..do you love life?...when do you feel alive and believe me even while sleeping I keep thinking and dreaming about my sessions as well..

I hope I have answered some of the key questions in your mind, but if you have any more questions which I have not been able to touch, do write to me on and I'll address them in my next post.

So best of luck to all you would be trainers, I hope these tips helped out a bit in the first step of your journey. Remember me when you get there!

Cheerio

Rajat Joshi

Hi Mr. Rajat,

I read through your posting, and it was of great help because I always thought to be a trainer, you have to be specialized in that field. I am very happy that you have come forward to share in this forum, which would definitely help freshers and emerging professionals like me to take up training as a part of their career. You are really doing wonders.

Have a great day,

Nalini

Dear Rajat,

Hi, I am a new forum member and have read some of your valuable contributions. Whatever I read, I will surely keep in mind as I am a budding trainer. I have a background in clinical psychology, and for the last 4 years, I have been working as a freelance trainer, mostly conducting outbound training programs. Now, I need to design a classroom program for a company on motivational leadership and communication.

I am planning to do a small activity which I have already designed, but I don't have sufficient material for the presentation or slides. Please help me. I shall be thankful to you.

Regards,
Anupama

Hi Anupama,
Welcome to Citehr!!
I apologize for late reply as am visiting this site after a long time as I was travelling..
Your background is excellent esp being a Clinical psychologist and to top that you have been conducting outbound training programs!!..keep it up..
Regarding motivational leadership & communication training prog….am not very clear about your requirement…even I don't have info on motivation leadership ..but you can get a lot information from Google and of course you should read up the material/books..if possible meeting leaders who use this style.This style is one of many roles leaders take like fear, knowledge,etc…see if you can explore something on inspirational style of leadership..there was an article on leadership styles in Harvard Businees Review some time..if you can chk it out.
Hope this helps..
Regards,
Rajat

Hi Monisha,

The communication skills generally cover both areas, but more emphasis is given on the process especially the barriers. One good way is to have a game of Chinese whispers. It's common to all industries as you are handling or dealing with PEOPLE.

Regards,
Rajat

Hello Rajat,

The information you have shared with the forum members has indeed been very helpful. As a matter of fact, this has been one of my areas of interest. I want to be a trainer, and the guidelines you provided have been a great insight. Personally, I needed some guidelines.

Currently, I am working as a recruitment executive in a consultancy in Mumbai. I would like to go into training as I love to be around people, and I like it when people listen to what I speak with interest. Kindly let me know what areas I can develop my skills in, as I am into IT recruitment and am unable to move ahead. Also, I want to pursue a degree in psychology.

Please help.

Have a lovely weekend.

Dear Rajat,

Thank you for the reply. I value your suggestion but looking for material from Google is very painful, as sometimes it gives sites that are not related or of any use. I end up wasting my time. Also, most of these sites are paid sites. :( Can you please suggest some sites that are especially for trainers or psychologists?

Thank you and regards,
Anupama

Hi Deepti,
Am extremely sorry for late response..
Start with read the topics/issues you are interested or passionate about..something you are confident about.
To start with recruitment – start benchmarking the practices you follow with the standard & international practices & read up all the available material in your field. Prepare the presentation on this topic esp new trends & practices and present the same to your superior officers/colleagues in the company…this would give you confidence as small steps lead you to your goals.
Also would recommend that you join the this e-group
[Login to view]
Join the ISTD – trainer's forum.
Hope this helps…
Cheerio
Rajat

Hi Rajat,

Frankly speaking, I am having a lot of stage fear, and I always try to ignore speaking in front of the audience. Many times I got the opportunity to give the presentation in my company, but I always ignored giving the presentation.

With this mail, I request you to give me some guidelines to overcome my stage fear so that I can face the audience. Being an HR person, I also feel very odd, and numerous times I wonder why I could not make it? Why am I so afraid to face the people, whether in a meeting, a group discussion, or some social gathering.

Please advise.

Regards,
NELLY_BAVA

Hi Nelly,

"Frankly speaking, I am having a lot of stage fear, and I always try to ignore speaking in front of the audience. Many times I got the opportunity to give the presentation in my company, but I always ignored giving the presentation.

With this mail, I request you to give me some guidelines to overcome my stage fear and face the audience. Being an HR person, I also feel very odd and many times I think, why I could not make it? Why am I so afraid to face the people, whether in a meeting or in a group discussion or some social gathering?

Like you, even I had immense fear in my early stages of my career, but I realized that I would be the loser and miss the opportunities.

Want a simple solution... JUST DO IT... if you fail, it doesn't matter but you tried... that's an important step... have the ability to face the fear of failure... which is a learning experience... have the ability to face the snigger and laughs of your audience...

Allow me to share this article to guide you...

Cheers,

Rajat

How To Conquer Public Speaking Fear

By Morton C. Orman, M.D.

Public speaking is a common source of stress for everyone. Many of us would like to avoid this problem entirely, but this is hard to do. Whether we work alone or with large numbers of people, eventually we will need to speak in public to get certain tasks accomplished. And if we want to be leaders or achieve anything meaningful in our lives, we will often need to speak to groups, large and small, to be successful.

The truth about public speaking, however, is IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE STRESSFUL! If you correctly understand the hidden causes of public speaking stress, and if you keep just a few key principles in mind, speaking in public will soon become an invigorating and satisfying experience for you.

Key Principles

Principle #1--Speaking in Public is NOT Inherently Stressful

Most of us believe parts of life are inherently stressful. In fact, most of us have been taught to believe that life as a whole is very stressful!

To deal with any type of stress effectively, you first must understand that life itself, including public speaking, is NOT inherently stressful. Thousands of human beings have learned to speak in front of groups with little or no stress at all. Many of these people were initially terrified to speak in public. Their knees would shake, their voices would tremble, their thoughts would become jumbled... you know the rest. Yet they learned to eliminate their fear of public speaking completely.

You are no more or less human than they are. If they can conquer the fear of public speaking, so can you! It just takes the right guiding principles, the right understanding, and the right plan of action to make this goal a reality.

Believe me, it's not difficult. I'm a good example of someone who conquered the fear of public speaking. And while I didn't do it overnight, it wasn't difficult. All it took was approaching the problem in the right way.

Principle #2--You Don't have to be Brilliant or Perfect to Succeed

Many of us have observed public speakers and thought to ourselves "Wow, I could never be that smart, calm, witty, entertaining, polished... or whatever." Well, I've got news for you-- you don't have to be brilliant, witty, or perfect to succeed. That is not what public speaking is all about. I know it may look that way, but it's not. You can be average. You can be below average. You can make mistakes, get tongue-tied, or forget whole segments of your talk. You can even tell no jokes at all and still be successful.

It all depends on how you, and your audience, define "success." Believe me, your audience doesn't expect perfection. I used to think most audiences did, but I was wrong! Before I discovered this, I used to put incredible pressure on myself to deliver a perfect performance. I worked for days to prepare a talk. I stayed up nights worrying about making mistakes. I spent hours and hours rehearsing what I was going to say. And you know what? All this did was make me even more anxious! The more perfect I tried to be, the worse I did! It was all very disheartening (not to mention unnecessary).

The essence of public speaking is this: give your audience something of value. That's all there is to it. If people in your audience walk away with something (anything) of value, they will consider you a success. If they walk away feeling better about themselves, feeling better about some job they have to do, they will consider you a success. If they walk away feeling happy or entertained, they will consider their time with you worthwhile.

Even if you pass out, get tongue-tied, or say something stupid during your talk... they won't care! As long as they get something of value, they will be thankful.

They don't even need to feel good to consider you a success. If you criticize people, or if you stir them up to ultimately benefit them, they might still appreciate you, even though you didn't make them feel good at the time.

Principle #3--All You Need is Two or Three Main Points

You don't have to deliver mountains of facts or details to give your audience what they truly want. Many studies have shown that people remember very few of the facts or information speakers convey. While you may choose to include lots of facts and information, you only need to make two or three main points to have your talk be successful. You can even have your whole talk be about only one key point, if you wish.

When I first began speaking in public during medical school (kicking, screaming, and quivering all the way), I wasn't aware of this simple principle. I wrongly believed that my audience wanted encyclopedic knowledge from me, which of course I didn't have. So I tried to research my topic thoroughly and deliver as much worldly wisdom as possible.

Boy was that exhausting! It was also boring for my audience to suffer through.

Later, when I began giving public seminars on how to cope with stress, I spent hours each week typing a twenty-page script to read from, so I wouldn't forget any important tidbit.

As time went on, I gradually learned that this degree of complexity wasn't needed. As a result, the length of my discussion notes gradually declined. My twenty-page typed manuscript gave way to a five-page detailed outline. Then, I replaced my outline with ten or fifteen index cards. Eventually, I could conduct a full two-hour seminar with only one 3X5 index card (containing my two or three key points) to support me!

As long as I focused on these two or three key points, I was able to speak at length about them by naturally drawing upon my past experiences and knowledge.

Remember, all your audience wants from you is to walk away with one or two key points that will make a difference to them. If you structure your talks to deliver this result, you can avoid lots of complexity that isn't really needed. This also should make your job as a speaker much easier, and more fun too!

Principle #4--You also Need a Purpose That is Right for the Task

This principle is very important... so please listen up. One big mistake people make when they speak in public is they have the wrong purpose in mind. Often, they have no specific purpose in mind, but the one that is operating within them unconsciously causes a whole lot of unnecessary stress and anxiety.

This is a prime example of what I call a "hidden cause" of public speaking stress. When I first started speaking in public, I thought my purpose was to get everyone in the audience to approve of me. I mistakenly thought that this was what good public speakers try to do. I wasn't consciously aware of this purpose, nor how foolish it was, but it was there nonetheless.

Because of this hidden purpose, I felt I needed to be absolutely perfect and brilliant to win my audience's unanimous approval. If just one person in the audience disapproved... my goose was cooked! If one person left early, if anyone fell asleep, or if someone looked uninterested in what I was saying... I was defeated!

This was very anxiety-producing.

Later, after I became aware of this stress-producing purpose, I was able to look at it honestly and realize how foolish it was. How many public speakers get 100% approval from their audiences? The answer is zero!

The truth about public speaking is no matter how good a job you do... someone is going to disapprove of either you or your argument. That is just human nature. In a large group of people, there will always be a diversity of opinions, judgements, and reactions. Some will be positive, others will be negative.

There is no rhyme or reason to it. If you do a lousy job, some people will sympathize with you and feel for you, while others will critique you harshly. If you do a fantastic job, someone will resent your ability and might disapprove of you on that basis alone. Some people will leave early because of an emergency. Some will fall asleep because they were up all night taking care of a sick child. Therefore, it's foolish and unrealistic to attempt to get everyone in your audience to think well of you.

More importantly, it's the wrong type of purpose to adopt in the first place.

Remember, the essence of public speaking is to give your audience something of value. The operative word here is GIVE not GET! The purpose of public speaking is not for you to get something (approval, fame, respect, sales, clients, etc.) from your audience. It is to give something useful to your audience.

Yes, if you do this well, you'll gain notoriety, respect, sales, and new clients. But this

Hi Rajat,

Thank you for your valued suggestions and, most importantly, the way to overcome stage fear and stress. With this morale booster article, certainly, I am charged and now will seek an opportunity to give a presentation.

Furthermore, I assure you that I will try to take care of all the important hints you had given me to overcome stage fear.

Once again, heartfelt thanks for your valuable support.

Regards,
Nelly Bava

Dear Rajat,

I feel I almost have all the key competencies you mentioned for a trainer, and training is an area that really fascinates me. A bit about myself: I am an MBA in HR and am working with a leading financial services company as an HR Executive. I look forward to pursuing a diploma in training and development. Would it add value to me if I want to be a trainer? I would like to work as a freelancer and see BPOs as a great opportunity for fresh trainers.

What do you suggest? Would a Diploma in Training and Development give me a launch pad to be a trainer? Being in HR, I also want to experience and be involved in the entire gamut of HR and HR processes, which includes training and development as well. I need your guidance on this. Please suggest the way forward.

I really appreciate your contribution with this article; it will surely serve as a guideline for many aspiring trainers like me.

Thank you.

Regards,
Bhushan Tripathi

Dear Rajat,

Great insight - I can see your commitment to the subject. The question is: as a profession, has it been financially rewarding?

Thanks,

Regards,

S.D. Lahkar

Dear Bhushan,

Am extremely sorry for reverting to your query late..

Definetly agree that having the Dip. in TD would help..

Would not recommend that you start freelancing right away as my experience.. not many corporates would give you the opportunity unless you have some prior experience or a proven track record. Therefore it would make sense if you do freelancing in your free time with Colleges & B-Schools..first…

Don't worry you have a long way to go..enjoy the journey..

Thanks Marwaha.. :D

Regarding Training methods..it has been discussed here ..please use the search tool on the top left .

Dear Alok,

Thanks for your warm compliments .

Still have a long way to go..there is an endless possibilities n things to be learnt.

Dear Sanjib,

Hmm..more than financially rewarding it has been a great learning experience for me to understand the subject and morever great when the participants call up to say that my workshop has helped them personally & professionally ..provides a great sense of satisfaction and happiness which can't measured monetarily.

As someone rightly said do the work you love n passionate about..money would follow.. :)

Regards,

Rajat Joshi

Hi Rajat,

I don't know you personally, but I don't want to lose this opportunity to thank you for your classic and effective articles and helpful material that you have been sharing with the forum members. I am very much inspired by your views on training & development and appreciate your communication process as well. In fact, let me tell you that I joined this forum after reading one of the articles posted by you that made me think very positively about citeHR, so I registered immediately. I had been thinking of writing to you for a long time after joining, but I was not sure how you would react to it.

After looking at the replies that you share with people, I really see that you are definitely a successful trainer and an effective leader too.

Introducing myself, I am Himanshu Dhaga, 28 years old now. I have been working as a training manager with various organizations (educational, finance, consumer goods, and currently automobiles) for the last 7 years. It has been a pleasure to see people like you devoting time and energy to add value to forums like citeHR.

I thank you for that and keep up the good work.

Regards and appreciation,

Himanshu Dhaga

Thanks, Mr. Rajat, for your wonderful contribution. It was really very informative. As a fresher, we do not have much knowledge about how to proceed to achieve our goals. Such information is really very helpful for us.

Regards,
Bubbly

Hi Rajat,

Your post is very valuable, like a speck of light in darkness. I am very interested in joining this field but really lost on how I should go about it. I sent my unsolicited CV to corporate trainers showing interest to join as a trainee, but unfortunately, I received no response.

I was thinking of approaching schools and asking for a 1-hour session for a workshop on "Personality Development." What do you suggest? How should I go about this? Can you please suggest something?

Regards,
Neelam

Dear Rajat,

To add further, I am an MBA in HR. I did my summer project in BHEL, Bhopal in Training and Development. Currently, I am working with SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai, as a research assistant. I have no work experience in proper HR. It would be kind of you if you could please help me out with how I should proceed.

Regards, Neelam.

Hi Rajat,

Thank you very much for your response. It's really motivating. However, you know, I tried doing this in my hometown, i.e., Jabalpur (MP), and received a poor response there. Therefore, despite drafting letters for school principals, I haven't gathered the courage to move forward and submit them.

Anyways!!!!!!!!!!!

One more thing, please: How should I approach the schools? Should I do it via email, draft a letter, or seek an appointment to meet them personally, which would be more effective?

Once again, thanks a lot for all your support and guidance.

Hello Sir,

I understand that you are a very effective trainer, and more than that, a good counselor.

My ultimate aim is to become a trainer and motivator, maybe around 10-15 years from now. I am currently taking some classes on HR topics for government employees through the Institute of Management in Government (IMG). In the beginning, I was afraid that since I'm a youngster, I would be looked down upon by the "older" members of the trainees. In fact, I had to take classes even for those who were about to retire from service.

But then I understood that it is not the age that matters but your knowledge in the subject that matters and also your skills in presenting the same. This opportunity I get is part of my work.

Now, I would like to know from you the right age for becoming a freelance trainer.

Also, I would like to know which is better:

1) to focus on one or two main subjects, for example, Quality Circle or Service delivery improvement, or such very specific topics, or

2) to be able to train on various topics like Communication skills, leadership skills, motivation, personality development, marketing, sales, etc.

Which of the above options is good for a freelance trainer?

Similarly, I would also like to know about the methods of approaching companies for freelance training assignments.

Please reply, sir.

Thanking you,

CV

Hi Neelam,

Hey, don't give up...that's the tradegy with us -(HR Professionals) - we give up easily..don;t have the aggressiveness or smart thinking followed by Marketing professionals..that's why they are worth every booty they get. :D :D

All of the above!!..

First make your proposal with emphasis on " Value Proposition"

Send them by email or by courier

Follow up and follow up..

Neelam, let me be honest..even i went through this grind..had approached as many as 25 B-schools in Pune..but no luck.. :( ..can be pretty depressing esp when you have set your heart out..at this stage ..always remember even the great /successful people have struggled a lot for their vision ..for somethng they beleived in themselves..which i did..therefore my 54th call on a B-school gave me an opportunity at Sadhna Centre for Management (SCMLD - Pune)..my first workshop On Creativity taught me a lot and confidence..today if i lose my job or my company closes down i would be able to fend for myself.. :D

So, prepare yourself well and try..the whole world is open.. :)

To further add to my opinion am sharing an article on a perspective on life at the end of this..

Best of Luck on a wonderful Journey..

Cheers,

Rajat Joshi

Hi CV,

Please call me Rajat.. :)

How do you know that?.. :D ..thanks for your compliments..

Wow..am really impressed with your thought process..

You are right that its not age that counts but your knowledge and the passion one brings into the session..

I remember for the one of the class at B-school..the students were expecting that the old N experienced..matured with the profile of retired guy n were shocked n surprised when i walked into the class.. :D ..

Right age..is in your mind..as when you think you have the experience, knowledge n more importantly PASSION..

The topics depends on you as what you are really comfortable with..n how much efforts and notes one makes on the subject on latest trends n techniques..

For instance on lateral thinking - i update myself on new trends n techniques..and keep making changes in my ppt. to make it further innovative based on the feedback of the participants..you can refer these under Lateral thinking & Creativity column in Organizational Development..

Please refer my response to Neelam..

Best of Luck...

Rajat Joshi

ANOTHER WAY OF LOOKING AT LIFE.......

Author : Unknown

Day in and day out you will read articles that will help you get

better and better in the Game of LIfe.

Truly speaking life is not complicated as it appears or made to

appear.

Life really is like a movie - where you are the script writer, the

director, the actor, the critic. And like all movies it ends, with

you. What is important in life is not just the journey, but

the "quality" of it.

You must remember that you are not the only one in this "movie".

Everyone in this world is in a movie of their own. To make your movie

a success you have to link up with the other, as you can't succeed

alone. Every success story is a story of working together, each one

contributing his/her unique talent, skills and abilities. Do what you

know best and let others fill in the gaps.

Perseverance always pays. You can't fail if you don't quit. Find all

other ways to make a thing work.

As Winston Churchill said in Britain's darkest hour,

" Never, never, never ever give up ".

If you don't like where you are today, don't expect your tomorrow to

be any different, unless you have worked heart and soul for a change.

Change your attitude, your priorities, your activities, change from

being reactive to proactive, change from being reactive to creative.

You are the product of your thoughts. It is true that the "thoughts

are things". whatever you think about most of the time is what you

will create in your life.

Hint: If you want more than you think what you have now, don't "ever"

spend any energy to the thoughts of the lack.

You will receive what you give. If you want help try to be helpful.

If you want honest relationships, be truthful. If you want success,

help others get what they want. If you want love, be loving. the

corollary is you will always find what you are looking for.

Take time each day from the hectic routine, to center it on you -

even if it is a meager 45 – 60 minutes. Some people may also call it

meditation, but the idea is to check with your inner self if you are

on course to what you want. It is inventory taking on a daily basis.

That's why it is important to make "every" day the best as you can

make it to be, because it the "now" which is all what you have.

What the heck? Life is meant to be enjoyed, because none of us are

going to remain forever, why all these hassles you may say. I agree

with you entirely, yet, I might suggest that you look into whatever

is said here, to make your life a little more worthwhile.

Happiness Is An Inside Job

I am delighted when some people are finally disillusioned. Over the

course of thirty plus years of working, I have seen more than my

share of people who have acquired mountains of material possessions

but remain miserable, depressed, angry, unsatisfied, and sometimes,

desperate.

In many of those cases, their disillusion is a hopeful sign because

disillusion literally means then end of illusionment. If a person has

been living under the illusion that happiness would come from having

whatever they wanted, then the end of that illusion brings the

possibility that they might realize that happiness actually means

wanting what they already have; being free from the desire to

acquire.

Hunger is the body's signal to take in food. Thirst signals the need

to take in water. Fatigue is nature's way of telling us to take a

rest. The remedy for neglect of the body is often through the in-take

of something, so the solution lies in getting something from the

external world. On the other hand, there is a kind of unhappiness

that cannot be repaired by getting because it requires giving. There

is a kind of dissatisfaction, disappointment, and absence of joy that

is remedied by giving something out, doing something for others.

Happiness, the feeling of deep-down joy of life, and feeling really

good about yourself, comes not from acquiring, but by contributing.

Serenity comes from getting on good terms with one's imperfection,

accepting ones' limitations, and accepting what one cannot change.

Self-esteem, your true worth or value, is not measured by your

financial statement, job title, or trophies on a shelf. You are

precious because you are a creation of the highest order of

intelligence. If you forget the true source of your preciousness,

eventually you will experience an emptiness, a gnawing hunger. There

are not enough gold, jewels, cellular phones, sport-utility vehicles,

big-screen TVs, or anything material to nourish the soul. The spirit

can only be filled by giving, not by getting.

Happiness is an inside job that consists of

you becoming disillusioned that material acquisition is a measure of

your worth

you remembering who you really are (precious)

you finding your source

you laughing often

you serving with love

The ABC's of Happiness(unknown source)

Avoid negative sources, people, places, things and habits.

Believe in yourself.

Consider things from every angle.

Don't postpone joy!

Enjoy today. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a

gift,

that's why it's called the present.

Family and friends are hidden treasures.

Give up any anger you might have been hanging on to, but

Happiness is like perfume: you can't sprinkle it on others without

getting some on yourself.

Ignore those who try to discourage you.

Jolly + jovial + jestful = joyful!

Keep on learning. Learn something new each day.

Look for humor in everyday situations.

Make smiles happen.

Never lie, cheat, or steal. Always strike a fair deal.

Open your eyes, and see the beauty in all of nature.

Play. You don't stop playing because you grow old, you grow old

because you stop playing.

Quiet times give us balance.

Read, study and learn about something new every day.

Stop and smell the roses.

Take control of what you can; let God have the rest.

Understand others first, then seek to be understood.

Visualize happy memories.

Work at making others happy.

X-ercise your right to be unique.

Yearn for internal strengths

Zero in on laughter and go for it!

Hi Rajat,

I read your article on Training and Development. I can say I have just started my journey in this field. I conduct small workshops and communication classes but I need a mentor as everything I have done is based on my research and experience.

I would be really thankful if I could assist you in your training programs since you mentioned conducting them on weekends. You can also email me at punitapsc@yahoo.com. I am eagerly waiting for a positive response from your side.

Thanks,
Punita

Dear all,

Came across the e-mail on HR e-groups on the discussion of experts on becoming a trainer.

Best wishes,

Rajat Joshi

Hi Fellow Professionals,



Let me add some more points...



Becoming a effective Trainer means learning to draw on your abilities and skills to train those who need your help.



Here are some of the attributes of successful and effective trainers:



Good Communications Skills:

Use clear and concise language to instruct, direct and coach

Use your active listening skills to draw them out and fully understand them

Maintain eye contact



Cognitive Ability:

Must have cognitive ability to identify and use resources.



Solid understanding of the subject (COMPETENCY):

Comprehensive understanding of the subject or skills

Willingness to draw from your background as a bridge or foundation to teach

Willingness to grow and update your professional development



Experience:

It helps if you have done the job personally (and well would be good too)

Previous experience in training



Patience:

New people can make mistakes while they learn

It often takes a few tries to get it right (keep up encouragement)

Remember how it was for you when you started out?



Interest in being a trainer:

You need to ¡®truly¡¯ enjoy helping people

Seeing people grow and learn makes you feel good

Seeing others¡¯ success gives you a sense of pride and satisfaction



Genuine respect for other people:

People view you as being knowledgeable (you model it)

People view you as being trustful and trustworthy (you¡¯ve earned it)



Well developed sense of humour:

You see the humour in the situation (you express it)

You don¡¯t take yourself or life too seriously (you lighten it)



Having these attributes and skills won¡¯t guarantee your success as a trainer or coach; but they will give you a better chance to do the job effectively. The more a trainer you demonstrate these, the more the trainees will respond to leadership, and the more productive they will become.





Characteristics of Effective Trainer and List of Trainer Don¡¯t¡¯s



Characteristics of Effective Trainers

The Trainer "Do's"



Like people.



Good Listener



Genuine interest (create enthusiasm).



Ability to establish rapport ("I am like you").



Cover the material and make it fun.



Frustrated actor.



Being adaptable; flexible (design on your feet).



Creative.



Emotional Maturity.



Know your audience.



Know when group "gets it".



Admit when you don¡¯t know something.



Be prepared.



Acknowledge new information.



Involve audience.

Dont's



Lecture.



Hold yourself out as an expert.



Talk too quietly, monotone.



Using too much of jargons.



Focussing to certain trainees alone.



Biased



Assume that we all know acronyms.



Assume that everyone understands.



discredit the content (curriculum).



Violate the ground rules.



Don¡¯t respect the audience.





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Regards

RR. Venkataraman





-----Original Message-----

From: [Login to view] [mailto:rama.k.mishra@jpmorgan.com]

Sent: Thursday, March 17, 2005 10:10 AM

To: [Login to view]

Subject: [HRInnovators] Re: [HRCommunity] How to become a trainer - experience shared

Hi Subhas,

Very well said and I couln't agree with you more. And I'm sure all of us would agree to this and more.

I'll could add a just couple of points though only to supplement your excellent inputs.

1 Salesmanship: A Trainer need to be an excellent salesman to be able to convert the Learners from being passive attendees to active buyers of the Learning being imparted. Compare this to a Window shopping v/s a successful sale closure. The real success and the pleasure of training comes when your trainees wake up to the Value Proposition being sold by you, and become active learners.

2 Be a Show(wo)Man: Its a function of Impression, Impact and therefore Influence you create, a must for you to be able to engage the Audience over a long period of time. Your ability to keep the eyballs on you is the trick here. It is easy for the audience to float away, be sensitive to the audience, its needs, and response at all points in time and keep pulling them in. Some of the best trainers would actually win the Oscars.

3 Command Respect, do NOT Demand Respect: And this is a function of your knowledge, attitude & actions while in the session, remember each of the trainees probably knows it all (at least we all tend to think that way). Think a step ahead and be flexible to fine-tune your delivery while in session.

Regards,

RK

Rama Krishna



AVP - Learning & Development

JPMorgan Chase

( GDP: 695 4490 ( External: +91 22 5645 4490

( Fax: +91 22 5695 4360 ( Mobile: +91 98 2060 0155

* E-mail: [Login to view]



Subhas Biswas <subhas_biswas@yahoo.com>

03/15/2005 10:17 PM

Please respond to subhas_biswas



To: s_verlekar <s_verlekar@yahoo.co.in>

cc: [Login to view]

Subject: Re: [HRCommunity] How to become a trainer - experience shared

Dear Sheetal,

It is necessary to gain some qualification; study adult learning and handling of the participants.

The difficult part is to get a break and practice speaking to a group when you keep on thinking or

interacting with time clock ticking (read lunch approaching).

If you get carried away while talking, cannot manage time and have difficulty in keeping cool when

in trouble, this is not a profession for you.

Following habits do not go well with a trainer:

1. Smoking and drinking alcohol - although many use it extensively before, during break and after.

2. Absence of a sense of humour and wit.

3. Poor and slow Reading.

4. Interrupting people when listening.

Following are very useful:

1. Active listening.

2. Curiosity.

3. General knowledge.

4. Storytelling.

5. Respect for people of different learning abilities, gender and function.

One must attend a Train the Trainer program(minimum 5 days duration for behavioural training) to

practise the training skills. It is said for one hour training you should have ten hours of

practice, three hours of material and three sets of materials of short, appropriate and longer

sessions. Mark Twain required three week preparation for an impromptu lecture. So prepare,

practice and take feedback seriously.

You should be familiar with all training aids and be prepared to take the session when all

including power goes off.

You must also learn to extract a silent participant into the training while diplomatically shut

off a talker beyond certain point.

And lastly, training is not reading PPT slides or talking!!!!

It is a grossly unpaid or underpaid job. Very few can get the payments commensurate with the

efforts and experience (in India).

Wish you good luck.

This is my personal opinion generated from three decades of managing training, trainers and

trainess. I am still learning and get nervous in front of inncocent trainees.

Regards.

Subhas C Biswas

9820143690.

Hi Rajat,

This is Prashant. I am working as an engineer in Pune, but I have this query for my wife.

She has completed her MSc in Human Development from Mysore University and has good communication skills. She wants to become a Personality Development Trainer. What would you suggest for her? Should she go through any courses, or if she wants to start right away, how should she approach these training schools for this kind of job? Also, if you have any addresses of these training schools in Pune, that would be helpful.

Regards,
Prashant

Hi Rajat,

Your information is excellent. I have just come back from the UK after mostly conducting Retention Training for contact centers. Now, I wish to start my career in India as well. Could you please guide me on the common questions asked during trainer interviews for sales and marketing in banking products? I want to refresh my understanding based on the theories that may be asked during the interview.

Your earliest assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Jinal Smit Joshi

Hi Rajat,

Many thanks for your post. Just wanted to know about the topics you covered in "Creativity in HR" and how interesting it was. Hope you can circulate some topics covered under it and how far the management agrees to implement it.

Thanks a lot,
Sandeep Sable

Hi Bhawana,

Thanks...

Hi Sandeep,

Many thanks for your post. Just wanted to know about the topics you covered in "Creativity in HR" and how interesting it was.

It was mind-blowing and an eye-opener for me!

Hope you can circulate some topics covered under it and how far the management agrees to implement it.

It is difficult to cover them in one post, and I have shared the knowledge and topics in the Organization Development: lateral thinking - Theory and practices may assist you. Here is the link: <link no longer exists - removed>

Regards,
Rajat

Hi Rajat,

I am also a fresher wanting to take up training as a career. I read your article, and really, it's a fantastic one. I have been visiting this site for quite some time now, and the inputs you have given are really valuable. I have the qualities which you mentioned in your article that are necessary to become a trainer. However, I am not able to find a good institute in Hyderabad that can hire me and further mold me. I am a fresher and need a good institute. I hope you could help me out if you know one.

Hi Rajat,

Great work... Thank you for such a helpful update. I am new to cite HR, but I find it of great help since I have been here. Your posting on freelance HR answers several of my questions too, as I too have always dreamt of training and motivating folks since childhood. I have had exposure to different fields like Teaching, Event management, BPO, front office. I have assisted a trainer in her Personality Development Classes, and now I am into HR, finally between people working for people, which I always wanted to do. Can you suggest some organizations in and around Pune that would need trainee professionals? It is hard to find such organizations. I am a postgraduate. I am very ambitious and really want to be in the field...

What do I need to work upon? Where do we get details about the training sessions of a kind you had attended at IIM's? I am keen to be a part of such sessions which can help enhance my skills.

Also, can you tell me what all things I will have to take care of when I am in the process of becoming a freelancer? Do you need to specialize in a specific field of training? Also, guide me on anything you feel is important and left out.

Regards,
Ruhi
[Login to view]

Hi Ruhi,Am extremely sorry for reverting to your query late…Your query : are there any organizations in Pune require Trainee professionals : Frankly it is a tough situation now morever you don't have the credentials like MBA or from accredited training companies. Nevertheless you can pursue the training course – a correspondence course from ISTD which is a reputed one.Capitalise on your skills – since you are PG in English Lit…see if you can join the institute which focuses on teaching English language --- which may help you to get a break as Voice & Accent trainer with BPOs in Pune over a period of time.I had attended the training course on Creativity in Organizations at IIM – A which gave me inputs and of course one needs to have a passion to pursue the subjects after the course.Regards,Rajat

Hi Rajat,

Reading your thoughts and inputs from your life is wonderful. Yes, it's very important to be passionate about your life as a trainer. I have been working as a trainer for the last two years, and my experience as a trainer has been awesome to date. The journey has started, and I believe we are all co-passengers of life's destination. Keep posting.

Living to our utmost every moment can sharpen our life skills and contribute to others. Best wishes.

Rooma

I am insatiably hungry for life.

Hi Anika,

Am extremely sorry for late response..my apologies for the same.

Never think that your age is a limiting factor ! B'coz it is not true..

Would suggest that you revisit your premise of being a trainer and understand where you stand…fully well understand your predicament..identify the gaps and innovate where-ever possible !. Even today every time I give the presentation – I try to understand my students ala customers..ensure that there is something different every time I share the knowledge with them..because it has to be exciting for me first !.:-)

Am sending you the details of my contact to your message box..would endeavor to assist you as much as I can.

Cheers,

Rajat

Hello Rooma,

Am pleased to read your comments..indeed am delighted to know that you are enjoying the journey…

Please do share your thoughts and we would like to learn from you !

Regards,

Rajat

Mr. Rajat, can you help me to be a good Training Coordinator? Do you also have some good advice like what you mentioned above?

I have completed an MBA in HR and am currently working in a recruitment firm as an HR Recruiter. However, I am not enjoying my work and am very confused about my career. I want to change my profile to become a trainer. Please guide me on how to change my profession and become a very good trainer.

Regards,
Aarti Pandey