The Priorities of a Trainer

I was talking to one of my colleagues this week about the roles and responsibilities that trainers have. Trainers and learning professionals all have a very dynamic job that requires them to have several different roles at any given time. We are trainers, facilitators, instructors, teachers, coaches, supervisors, subject matter experts, instructional designers, entertainers, copy editors, QA's, graphic artists, programmers, janitors, mediators, IT, HR, counselors and everything in between. While consistently wearing more than one hat at a time, it can be a challenge to keep track of what is most important to a trainer.

This brings up the question; With all of the responsibilities that a trainer has, what are a trainers priorities?

Many folks from all walks of the have a different philosophy of what a Trainers priorities should be, and where our involvement with things ends. However, over the 15 years of my career as a Learning Professional, it has been my experience that the Trainers Priorities no matter what they are, fall into these three categories.

The class.

The team.

The trainer.

The Class

As trainers, no matter what is going on in our day, the class ALWAYS comes first. At the end of it all, it is not about us, our ego, what we are going through, or our daily challenges. Our class, whether it is one or many, comes first every time. It is what separates us from everyone else, right? As trainers, we have an obligation...nay, a commitment to our learners to provide them with the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities that they need to fill the role or qualify them to sit in the seat they've been hired to fill. We are passionate, skilled professionals, and must put the needs of our learners ahead of our own.

The Team

After the class, our next priority is the team. We are only as strong as the team we are on. Our team, whether it is the specific individuals who support us or those that we support, are the next priority. These people are your support mechanism, the folks that we rely on to assist us when things do not go right. Our team can help fill in the gaps when there are challenges. They can be our colleagues and peers, supervisors, learning network, or co-workers. We have to back them up, just like we would want them to back us up.

The Trainer

Finally, we can speak about the trainer. We have to speak about the trainer. You are important too! Self-care is one of the most important and beneficial things that a trainer can do for themselves. Regularly we become entangled in supporting a new learning initiative that has occurred at the last minute, and everything becomes a scramble for resources. During this time, our stress levels rise, we neglect things like breaks and going to lunch (yes, trainers get them too!) If we are not sleeping enough, eating correctly, exercising enough, or are unprepared it shows. Lack of self-care affects our delivery, performance, content creation... it impacts everything. It may be on the bottom of the list of priorities, but it certainly is important. We must take care of ourselves, so we can take care of those around us.

Again, this is my take on what is important as a trainer. Every learning professional that I have the great pleasure of during my time as a trainer has heard these "priorities" from me. It helps create context, and develop a framework of understanding so they know what (again my take on it) should be most important to us as trainers.

I am sure that there are items that I have not covered specifically, like curriculum, learning environment, tools and resources, but those can be broken down into these categories.

If you are beginning your training journey, or are already on the path; take a look at what is important to you in this role and compare that to what I have found to be important in my career. Perhaps we are aligned, perhaps not. But, by reading this, you are now part of my team too and maybe I have helped you a little bit on your path. Everyone is new at least once, even you.

Remember; The class, the team, the trainer. In that order.

Learning is a journey, there is no need to walk it alone.

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