As I’m sat here, working at my desk, I look out of the window to see my neighbour walking her dog down the road. The same old, same old; it barely registers and it’s not something I’ll think about again. I certainly won’t remember if she was wearing a hat, yet alone the colour.
My brain has received the information, gone ‘not interesting’ and that’s it, forgotten.
But what if tomorrow, when I look out, my neighbour is walking a kangaroo? She’ll barely be able to hold it of course as it bounces off down the road – she’ll probably be flying part of the time, and I’ll hear her screams through the double glazing as her pink bobble hat flies off and gets caught on the overhead power lines.
Now, THAT I’ll notice. And that I’ll remember.
The fact is, we are pre-programmed to forget stuff that is mundane or ordinary. Think about it: We’re bombarded with information from every direction, every second of the day and we disregard most of it without really processing it at all.
What does this mean for training professionals? Quite simply this: If your content is mundane and ordinary, if it doesn’t jar, shake or excite your learners, it’ll barely register, and your chances of achieving change back in the workplace will be slim.
This doesn’t just apply to junior staff either. I get very disheartened when professional trainers say things like, “I love that activity, but could we make it more boring for senior groups?”
Of course, they don’t use those exact words – they’ll say things like ‘academic’, ‘less creative’ ‘more theory-based’ or ‘more intellectual’.
But they mean the same thing.
Here’s the thing – the way our brains and memory work doesn’t change as we’re promoted; we don’t suddenly acquire an insatiable appetite for hearing PowerPoint slides read to us in a monotone.
But it’s often all that’s on offer.Fun isn’t the preserve of those on the lowest grades and the need to be emotionally engaged in learning doesn’t change. And if we ignore this, and make the training we deliver to senior groups boring, we risk disengaging those we most need on our side if we’re going to ensure learning, training and development are as valued as they should be.
Here at Trainers’ Library, when we design training, we work with a simple model – Retention, Inspiration, Action.
When we put fun into our training activities and materials, it’s not just because we believe learning should always be fun (though we do). It’s because we’re paying attention to the scientific evidence and one of the tools available to us to make learning sticky and memorable.
Of course, we’ve probably all been on courses, where the trainer, noticing that half the audience are asleep, suddenly discards their PowerPoint slides and gets everyone on their feet and involved in some wacky energiser.
And we’re left wondering, “What was the point of that?”
Fun isn’t about taking people away from the learning or injecting a moment of energy. It should be an ingredient that’s integral to the whole learning experience. It should help create lightbulb moments that inspire learners.
In short, fun matters. It’s one tool in our expansive toolbox that helps to ensure people not only remember learning but are inspired by it to make real and lasting change back in the workplace.
Now, what colour was the kangaroo lady’s hat?