Sometimes an explanation isn't enough

If you have ever wondered how guided missiles work, the explanation at http://www.micom.net/oops/USAF%20Training.wav might help. Then again it might not.

There are plenty more at :
http://www.micom.net/oops/

I am not sure how many of the clips on this page are real. But I suspect enough of them are to make it worth a visit.

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How observant are you

If you were giving directions, would you notice if the person asking how to get there suddenly changed?

Not according to a study conducted in the visual cognition lab at the University of Illinois.

For a fascinating insight into what we don't notice, visit: http://viscog.beckman.uiuc.edu/djs_lab/demos.html

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This information is posted on the site:
All videos on this site are available solely so that individuals can view examples from our experiments. The videos are copyrighted and may not be downloaded, saved, copied, or used for any other purpose. Many of the videos on this website are available on a DVD presentation tool distributed by VisCog Productions, Inc. This Surprising Studies of Visual Awareness DVD is the only form in which any of these videos are distributed, and it may be used for teaching, presentations, workshops, etc.

To learn more (or to order), visit www.viscog.com. To view these videos, you will need a recent web browser with javascript active and a recent version of Apple's QuickTime software (you can download it here). Some of the videos are are contained in Java Applets. To view those videos, you will need to have a Java player installed on your computer and you will need to have Java active in your browser.

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I have collected a lot of jokes, anecdotes and models over more than twenty years, and I am putting them in the database and making it available for trainers.

To help me design the database, I would appreciate it if you could answer a few questions.I expect that it will take about ten minutes.

The survey is located at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=646932164136
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The Stroop Effect

If I was to type

DON'T READ THIS

you wouldn't, would you?

oops! you have!

If I was to ask you to name the colour these words are typed in, how would you go?

Table

Chair

Plate

Fork

how would you go?

Now how about naming the colours these words are typed in:

Blue

Red

Orange

Black

This is known as the Stroop Effect and strikes me as a good activity to show one of the barriers to the introduction of a Learning Organisation.

The effect was first noted in an article Studies of Interference in Serial Verbal Reactions published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology in 1935.

There's a great explanation at http://www.open2.net/childofourtime/2005/animalstroop.html Even though people can see advantages, they find it difficult to commit to a concept.
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Double loop learning

I was sitting at home one wintry night trying to get my mind around double loop learning.

The TV was on, but I was ignoring it. The radiant heaters were both working in synergy. But every time I got up to make a cup of coffee the fuse blew.

This went on for a few nights and I became a very good fuse changer.

My preoccupation with continuous improvement set in. I bought a spare fuse block and wired it in advance, so I didn't have to fumble around in the dark.

Then I made a capital investment and replaced all of the fuses with circuit breakers.

But still, every wintry night when I tried to make a cup of coffee the fuse blew.

With two heaters, a fridge, a freezer and the TV plugged into the same power circuit the fuse could be expected to blow every time I made a cup of coffee on a wintry night.

Then it occurred to me. the fridge, freezer, two heaters, TV and jug were on the same circuit. Another circuit hosted a bedside lamp and a clock radio.

I was solving the wrong problem.

With a couple of extension cords, I was able to plug the heaters into power points into the other circuit.

Of course most problems are the result of previous solutions.

Extension cords introduce a new hazard - tripping. So put a mat over the cord.

Mats are slip hazards of course. So tape them down with double sided tape underneath the mats.

The tape discoloured the polished wooden floor, so ….

Double loop learning means asking more questions every time a solution is found.

Single loop learning was about finding faster ways to change the fuse. Double loop learning is about finding the cause rather than the symptom.
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Learning Organizations

I am doing a masters degree in adult education at the moment.

I know what I do works in practice, but will it work in theory.

Perhaps there is nowhere that that is as important in Learning organizations.

I have been involved in a number of projects which could justifiably be described as learning organisations - not perfect, but on the way.

So the next few posts are about learning organizations.

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A creature of habit

In my seminars I encourage people to speak up, so I guess over time I have created a habit of asking for their input.

The extent to which I have adopted this style became evident yesterday when I was in someone else's program as a participant.

I guess I'm not surprised that I was chosen by them as the person to report back from the syndicates, but even I was surprised when I did so. I was in the group assigned to explore the policy on car usage as part of an induction program for a place where I am doing some contracting work.

The policy was easily divided into safe workplaces, safe drivers, safe vehicles.But I just couldn't help myself.

When I showed the butcher's paper with those written on them, I asked the whole seminar - "What do you think we meant by safe workplaces?"

Of course I wasn't surprised when the answers flowed.

The learning point?

With the right attitude it is impossible not to involve other learners and so make the training event interesting to them.

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How to turn on a projector without turning off the audience

PowerPoint has a bad name among training session attenders, and it doesn’t deserve to. But I was reminded of how it got that bad name when a team I was working with came up with this slide.
The learning outcomes are well thought out and well expressed. But should they be shown as a slide?
My answer is no, although I expect many may disagree. I say "no" because the right place for them is in the seminar promotional material, the early pages of the participant's workbook and firmly etched in the trainer's mind.
To me, it is not important to announce them at the start of the seminar, or even to show them in full at the end when it's time to confirm that the trainees have what they came for.
If you disagree, however, then there are better ways of producing the slide without sacrificing any information.

In this slide, I have conveyed exactly the same information in 27 words rather than 95. The first slide almost demands that I read it, or allow them to read it in full. The second slide gives prompts for a conversation with the group, about their expectations and the way that we are going to meet them.
Same information, just a different approach. Which would you prefer that the trainer used?
Perhaps, more importantly, which are you using now? Which will you be using in the future?
Please comment on this post, as I am keen to hear of your reaction.

A great one size fits all exercise

I am often asked for a quick exercise that demonstrates interpersonal skills, communication styles, team work, negotiation, creativity, problem solving, priorities ... the list seems endless, yet most times I find myself recommending The Last Cab, which is also one of the most visited pages on my web site.

What I like most about it is that it usually an exercise that everyone can visualize. Most of us have had an experience of wanting a cab and none being about. I usually start the exercise by asking people to list the times that they have really felt that they needed a cab. Brainstorming this list caters to those in the group who may have difficulty coming up with a reason during the negotiation. As others recall their experience the less reflective will also be prompted.

Of course there are places where a fight for a cab is not the norm. In one regional center, I was told that there is only one cab serving the town, and bookings are made up to a week in advance. The cab driver knows everyone and most of their business too. But a combine harvester - that is a different matter. Apparently the farmers have a whole lot of reasons for wanting the hirable harvester first or last. That negotiation was very real to everyone in that group, including the people from town.

This highlights something important about using exercises. The experience that is created must be relevant to the people in the group.

Does this fit your experience? Add your comments below.

The color you project - it's not all black and white

How do things look to colorblind people?

1 in 15 men and 1 in 200 women are born with some form of color blindness. More develop problems through injury, as a result of disease or just be growing older. For the vast majority red or green hues blend into the background.

This page from Webexhibits.org shows how a flower is seen by people with variations in the way that they see color.

Check your own images at this web site - you can upload an image, even a Powerpoint show and see how it will be seen by others.

A great experience with a style survey

In an earlier post today I was rather scathing about an attempt to do an instyatnt personality analysis with a simplistic tool. This doesn't mean that I discount the value of legitimate instruments.

I am working as part of a team on a project and the coordinator suggested that we do the Belbin Team Role survey to maximise our effectiveness. When I showed my wife the readout on the results, her comment was, "Why didn't you just ask me, I could have told you that!"

In our first meeting after the results of the survey were available, team effectiveness increased dramatically, because we adopted the recommended strategy, acknowledged each other's strengths and recognized our allowable weaknesses.

An introduction to Belbin's work is available at Belbin.com

His most recent book is available from Amazon.com in Beyond the Team

How to Build Successful Teams...The Belbin Way (CD-ROM) provides a more detailed introduction and provides a survey which will allow you to analyze your team.

As with all profiles, though, there is one caveat. The team analysis describes the contribution taht a fully functioning person would make, so there is an inbuilt assumption that all team members have equal energy, commitment and understanding of the team goal. These need to be worked on or differences recognized as appropriate.

Let's get real about ice breaking

About 20 years ago I used to use an ice breaker from Games Trainers Play which showed a square, a triangle, a circle and a squiggly line and asked people to select the shape that most reflected their doodling style.

Squares, I assured them, reflected conservative, solid, reliable;
Triangles were creative, analytical and saw both sides of a situation;
Circles were charismatic, team players and nice to be around.
Squiggles were preoccupied with booze and sex.

One of the main applications for me was to demonstrate progressive exposure of a slide on an overhead projector. First I would show the four shapes, then expose each of the first three "analyses" with a very serious explanation. I would then just pull the cover sheet away for the fourth explanation and wait for the room to burst into laughter.

It was good fun, or I thought so until someone asked me for a copy because he wanted to confirm that one of his team members was goofing off.

I haven't used it since.

To me it stressed the importance of using credible information rather than funny stuff to break the ice.

Now I see that a variation has appeared as Dr Susan Dellinger's Psychogeometric Test ... designed to help you understand more about the kind of person you are. You can also apply it to others. Although on first reading you may feel it's a bit flippant, it is, in fact, a very effective way to identify your own and other people's core characteristics.

From your responses to the test they can tell you whether you like to wear a tie, are overweight, watch TV, have a strong handshake or avoid variety.

HELLLLLLP!!!!!!!

No wonder Steve Salerno is making a splash with an expose of the self help movement with Sham : How the Self-Help Movement Made America Helpless You can preview or buy the book at Amazon.com

I agree that there is plenty of good stuff on Dr Dellinger's site, but unfortunately that pseudo test is so quick and easy to use that I can foresee it being used widely by people who don't know any better and they will be giving Steve more material for his next book.

I love energizers in training sessions, and the simpler the better, but there is a need to differentiate between simple and simplistic.

The lesson that I learned from that request for the squares, triangle etc ice breaker all those years ago was that a trainer has credibility and anything, nay everything he does has to reflect that credibility.

So please, no more instant personality tests. It is this sort of gimmick that is making fun such a dirty word in training rooms.