The holy grail of training, coaching and facilitation is to achieve behavioural change. Actually, it’s to change more than just the behaviour – the habits – of people outside the training room. Very hard to do, very hard to measure and very powerful if you succeed.
For the last two weeks, I have worked (as most of us have) 100% virtually. I have run a training session for six delegates, have observed and given feedback in nearly 20 roleplay sessions, and have supported colleagues in sharing best practice in using online platforms to facilitate meetings and training seminars. I have never been this virtual, this consistently, and for this long. I have to say, I had never wanted to.
The guilty truth is I am loving it!
New behaviours in a new world
I have always mentioned our virtual offering to clients, but (mea culpa) I have never really helped them understand how powerful it could be. They, in turn, have had a more local, face-to-face focus – we were aligned. Add to that the irreplaceable power of group interaction in person, and certainly for our business, Virtual was an add-on – a nice to have – a “once we’ve rolled this out, then…”. I’m sure a huge number of you reading this may be saying “we’ve been doing this for years!” – in which case, I salute you! This dinosaur holds his hand up in shame.
Now, Virtual is the single most important shining light in the middle of a global crisis. It’s absolutely necessary. It is changing our behaviour now, and will shape our behaviour long after we emerge.
I have positively charged through the Kubler Ross change curve in next to no time. After some momentary struggling, I relented to the kindness and expertise of Sun and Moon’s… what I will now call… Virtual Specialists (this of course suggests they are not quite real specialists – but trust me, they’re great!), who have refreshed our Virtual courses and refreshed our approach as a business. And I will say it again – not just for now, but for keeps.
So I am bathing in the refreshing waters of Acceptance, launching two virtual programmes with clients next week, and revisiting all work in progress to see how we can make the solutions we offer even better.
I’m also keen to share and swap ideas, so get in touch if you’re interested – my Zoom is always open!
David Solomon
Managing Director, Sun and Moon Training