<div class="text-justify">

It has been really hard to keep all the balls in the air of late, as there are just so many things going on that take time away from everything else. I think that this is showing in my inability to engage and even get to sit down and write the last month or two. I am putting in as many hours as possible when possible on the house, as we are still hoping to at least move to the top floor before Christmas, but we are struggling to get workers here consistently. 

The last couple days I have been painting the stairway and today, I looked into painting above the stairs on the high-side. It is old wood paneling and this is just the base coat, but it takes three layers at least to remove the green and, it has to be done with a brush, not a roller. This means getting "up close and personal" and did I mention, *I really dislike heights* - let alone at the top of a ladder sitting on a rickety wooden frame made to make a platform for the base to stand on.

They say that it is bad luck to walk under a ladder - in my opinion, it is bad luck to have to be at the top of one and even worse luck to fall from up there. I asked my wife to get ready to call an ambulance, but she just walked away. She is obviously content with the meager life insurance I have.

I am not looking forward to all the times I have to get back up there, but it has to be done. Luckily, it is up so high that most people won't notice if the job is a little shoddy, but I will try yo make sure that the topcoat is done well. We are going with while and this is only base, but we will have to match the walls to the ceiling eventually, as they are a pure white and the base white is slightly creamy. Matching whites is very difficult. 

![IMG20201115WA0000.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/tarazkp/G43UhiSZ-IMG-20201115-WA0000.jpg)

While a harrowing experience considering my fear of heights, I did manage to get the first coat of the wall done and will likely get back up there again for the second a bit later in the evening. Last night I worked until 3 am, but can't repeat that tonight as I have an early client session tomorrow morning to deliver. Well, early for me, as most participants are located in China, so they will have a nice easy afternoon session. 

It is a coaching session, which means that I will be giving them training on how best to deliver training to their end users, rather than me delivering directly to them. This is common for the large companies, as they have their own internal training departments as they have so many types of training needs through the organization. The company I am delivering to tomorrow is a Finnish company, but it operates globally and therefore is accustomed to having multiple languages in play, which makes English their corporate language. 

It is not always easy though, as there can be a vast difference in language skills between locations and individuals, which makes it a challenge to deliver at the best of times, let alone remotely online. With direct contact it is possible to read the cues of the group and enable participants to take part, but a lot of this is lost online, even with the usage of the various collaboration tools available. 

Autumn and early winter are the busiest delivery times at my company and due to a few internal and external conditions, not only are we busier because we can deliver remotely, but I have been taking on extra sessions to cover a little for some colleagues, who are busy with other things. Plus, clients tend to think that remote sessions can be planned on a shorter time frame than face to face, which makes things harder again - especially since the sales team are going to say yes. It makes for busy times. 

Training isn't the core of the business as it is a software company running a SaaS model. But, a core to SaaS is being able to attract new customers, but more importantly, *retain* customers long term, which means keeping them satisfied. It is in this area that the training team really has an influence, as training can build the understanding that gets users engaged with the product, so that they can use the features, get the business advantages and feel the personal benefits - which keeps them using the system as they recognize the value it brings to their organization. 

F - Features
A - Advantages
B - Benefits

This is part of the training approach I use when delivering, as it gives a clear path for users to connect with the product, as well as take what they learn forward through their organization. Since I don't actually get to see most users directly, it is all about the distribution of information through the points of contact I have - and when I get to see maybe 20 people out of an organization of 20,000 - clarity of messaging is important. 

I generally do this in a similar way to what I do on Hive, through stories and analogies - as when people have to engage their imagination to build their view, they are far more likely to remember it going forward and *repeat it* in a similar way later. If you imagine back in school how hard it might be to learn something like History, but how easy it is to recall scenes from movies on the same topic. Once there is the emotional investment in the story, the connection is far stronger and easier to recall.

This might be weird, but I spend time developing stories in my head as I am doing things like driving. What I mean is that I run ideas and build a narrative to whatever I am focusing on, even though I am not writing it down or even going to tell it to anyone at all. I have done this for entire posts from start to finish that never saw the light of day or, got developed along a completely different path later. I find this "running commentary" beneficial for my understanding, as I don't have a good memory for most things, so building the scene in my imagination helps - not only that, it gives me time to consider what I am building. 

I think that this last bit of time to build is an important factor in my training approach also - as generally, I will cycle through *lecture, demo, practical* in a loop for each key point of the FABs I want to target. While lecturing I mention the points, while demoing I add examples and point out the advantages and benefits, paying close attention to weigh the personal benefits more heavily than the organizational advantages. Personal attachment is a vital key in both memory and engagement. 

Okay, while not a comprehensive guide to my training styles (they change depending on audience of course), I think it is important for anyone who does have to deliver in front of people, including those who are trying to sell an idea or product, to consider their own approach and reflect to see if what is currently being done, is the best way to do it. I have been training for over 20 years now and I have had to learn a lot over that time as I am not what would be called a "natural trainer", it has all taken a lot of work, review and adjustment. 

Every day, I hope that I can improve my approach just a little bit more though - so I keep my eyes open and my imagination running. We each have the greatest simulator available to us, we should use it more. 

*Now it is unfortunately time to get back up that ladder....*

Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]




</div>