Preparing Yourself

There is no worse feeling for a facilitator than to enter the learning environment unprepared. Three items that have been addressed include knowing as much as possible about the learners, knowing your course content, and knowing the leader’s guide with learning activities. Subsequent chapters discuss knowing your activities, sequence, and pace. And here are even more:

• Get a good night’s sleep before the learning event.

• Do some stretching exercises prior to entering the room.

• Walk around the room and make sure that everything can be seen from every seat. Check for loose cords on the floor and other hazards.

• Memorize the first few sentences you will say.

• Practice with the audiovisual equipment. (This point cannot be repeated too many times!)

• Choose comfortable clothing (especially shoes) that makes you feel good and look professional. A nice guideline is to dress one step above your audience. For example, if your audience wears work uniforms on a plant floor, you might want to wear khakis and a golf shirt. If your audience is business casual, you may want to wear a tie or pantsuit.

• Keep water with lemon available in case your throat gets dry.

• Breathe deeply before you begin talking; if your breath gets short during the first few minutes (hyperventilation), breathe deeply in through your nose and out through your mouth a few times. You can even do this surreptitiously while a participant is making a comment or asking a question.

• Keep your knees slightly flexed; if you lock your knees, your circulation may become impeded causing you to become light-headed.

• Smile, relax, and have fun!

Greeting the Learners

Be in your room a suitable time before the start of the course so you can greet learners as they arrive. Try to arrive at least a half hour ahead of the start time. On the first day, you need to arrive earlier to be sure the room is arranged properly and to distribute material, hang wallboards and posters, and check the audiovisual equipment, and make other preparations. Shake hands, welcome the learner, and introduce yourself. Show the learner where to sit, what materials are available, and where the refreshments are located.

Basic Rule 15

Always greet the learners as they arrive. If you are still doing some preparation, stop what you are doing to greet them, and then return to your preparation work. Plan to finish any final preparation work at least 10–15 minutes before the course’s start, so you can chat with learners and make yourself comfortable as well.

Your Physical Presence

Remember at the beginning of the book when the assumption was presented that you already possess basic presentation skills? This is where much of your physical presence comes in to play. Here are some things to focus on and remember:

• Modulate your voice by changing your pitch and volume appropriately. Monotone puts people to sleep. Also, watch out for the rising inflection some people put at the end of a sentence—it makes every sentence sound like a question!

• Use a physical stance that feels comfortable for you. Some tips: Place your feet firmly on the floor; flex your knees slightly; maintain erect posture; keep your hands away from your face and out of your pockets; watch out for distracting physical habits. You may want to videotape yourself and watch for distractions you may not be aware of (for example, playing with a marker or paperclip while speaking, too many gestures, not enough gestures).

• Take your time; don’t speak or move too fast. Use a pace that feels comfortable.

• Make eye contact with all the participants as you speak.

Learners will mirror your physical energy, sometimes at an unconscious level. Model the energy level you want to create with your posture, tone of voice, and physical movement. If you sit down or lean against a table, or in some other way model low energy, they will do it too, by leaning back in their seats, not participating, and so forth. Don’t allow yourself to droop physically—especially right after lunch. The learners will follow your example, and you’ll all be snoozing!

Basic Rule 16

Model the energy level that you want to create in the learners.