Most everyone I’ve ever talked to has been to both excellent training (hopefully ours!) and training that was, well, not so good. In a perfect world we could connect best training experiences with best application back in workplace. This would make equation easy – pick great training, insuring that people would apply what they have learned, and result would be a tremendous return on investment for those funds spent on training.

As a deliverer of training and as one who has helped hundreds of people become better trainers through train trainer programs, I wish equation were that easy.

Unfortunately, it isn’t. It takes more than good training to ensure a good return on money (and time) invested.

What organizations and individual leaders need to do then is look beyond training event alone to find ways to increase return on investment. They need to take some responsibility themselves.

Here are 6 ways to increase your return on this investment:

Align training investments with business needs. Some organizations use training as a perk for good performers. This approach of “training as a reward” can motivate some people (especially if training takes place in someplace desirable) but in big picture this usually isn’t best way to invest these dollars. Have a plan that ties skills that are needed to be developed to strategic plan for group. Make sure participant knows why skills being learned matter to group and organization at large. With this context, participant has chance to be more focused and will treat training as a serious business activity and not a vacation from work.

This article will outline several of things that get in our way and suggest ways to improve our ability to succeed in having our expertise used successfully by others.

Ignorance

Here is a fundamental truth - most of us don’t recognize how much we know. When we’ve done something for a long time, or read about an idea in 21 places, we assume everyone knows that information. This just isn’t true! Our familiarity and deep understanding gets in our way, because we assume others know what we believe to be obvious.

The first key to getting your expertise used is to proclaim it to yourself. Recognize that what you know is significant and valuable. Without this recognition you won’t know what to share if asked.

Attitude

Before you go too far down this “Man, I’m smart” mental path though, recognize that arrogance is next stumbling block. Certainly, we need to recognize our expertise. Of course we need to value what we know.

But none of this makes us better than other person. My advice? Lose any budding arrogance.

When we are arrogant about what we know, our advice is more about an opportunity to show what we know, than it is about genuinely helping others. When we are confident we can focus on other person’s needs. Be confident in what you know and always be willing to learn more.

Focus on being generous but helpful in your knowledge sharing. By remaining confident in your knowledge and keeping your focus on other person’s needs, you will have your attitude in right place.

Memory