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The
Workshop Workshop |
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Discussing Workshop Tips and Techniques |
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Traveling Light |
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More travel related thoughts. I’ve discovered the public library
is a great place for Internet access. I don’t always carry my computer with
me (this last trip involved 3 rides on a “small” regional jet). Some meetings
just don’t require a laptop. So traveling light, even for a 2 or 3 day
meeting, is a welcome opportunity. That isn’t the case, of course, if
I’m teaching a workshop. The laptop is a vital tool. Business centers are OK, though
pricey. The majority of libraries that I’ve visited, for one reason or
another, had public Internet terminals. Great for checking my email. And the
walk from the conference center is usually a pleasant break from sitting all
day in hotel chairs. |
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Déjà vu |
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I was sitting in a conference
breakout discussion and taking notes. I suddenly had this feeling of déjà vu.
Why did I feel like I’ve written these major talking points before? It turns
out that I had listened to this presentation before, and copied the same
major points, a year ago. This started me thinking. What do
you do with your conference notes? Bring them back home and then file them?
Do you ever take them out and review them? They probably have some very
useful ideas that you underlined at the time. If your memory is like mine,
I’ll bet you’ve forgotten some of those gems. Since I go to the same conferences
each year I’m going to start reviewing my notes and plan some specific
questions for the next discussion. |
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Alphabetical By Height |
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I was scanning the library shelf
the other day and ran across an interesting book by C. Leslie Charles and
Chris Clarke-Epstein called the “The
Instant Trainer.” It was brought out in 1999 by McGraw-Hill. The material
was organized in short Q&A style, like a newspaper column. The appendix had some suggestions
for choosing groups, like you would use for breakout sessions. The usual
suspects were mentioned, colored dots, colored pipe cleaners, and colored
paper clips on the handouts. But the insight was the
observation that a method can be used more than one way. Take colored dots
for example. The first breakout can be of the same color, the second requires
one of each color, and so on. |
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Snail Mail |
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There are situations where email
is not the fastest means of communication. We aren’t all slaves to checking
our email every 30 minutes. Some times a phone call is the only sure way to
know you’ve reached the person. When you’re planning for your
workshop communications remember that all delivery mechanisms add delay.
Surface mail, even in the same city might take two days or more. Some email systems let you mark a
message so you will get a return message when the note is opened. But that’s
verification that it was opened, which might be a week or two after you sent
the message. Your target audience for the note might have been on vacation. So think about how vital your
communication note is and plan accordingly. Don’t wait to the last minute to
send out an email or snail mail notice. |
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No WiFi and No Network Connection |
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Just because you don’t have a live
network connection, it doesn’t mean you can’t give demonstrations. I develop my own web pages. The
majority of the development is off-line. Most browsers are perfectly happy
reading html pages from your hard disk. And if your links are relative to the
directory and not completely specified (i.e. the whole http://path) the
navigation and links will work. It would be possible to
demonstrate my entire web site with just my laptop and an LCD, no network
needed. |
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Daffodil Days? |
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Holidays and days off from work
aren’t always just the National Holidays. One of the tricks in planning a
multi-day workshop is to account for the special (but not National) days. This is where local knowledge is key. That local knowledge is probably your client’s
project manager. He or she has access to the Company Calendar. You’ll
need to be sensitive to plant closings and community service days. Wouldn’t it be easier to schedule
a break and enjoy the cake and ice cream they always have on the company
founder’s birthday? Or be aware that everyone dresses in western style the
Friday before the big football game, and then dress appropriately. |
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Can We Still Get Coffee? |
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My clients are frequently in the
manufacturing industries. On site workshops, at the client’s facilities, are
the norm. So is the company cafeteria. We will leave catering to another
time. This tip concerns refreshments. Timing your breaks and lunch times
to take advantage of the company cafeteria is a good way to save on the
operating expenses. In effect it is out of the attendee’s pocket, but they
probably grab a morning coffee or afternoon snack anyway. But to take advantage of this you
must know the operating hours for the in-house cafeteria, particularly
when it closes. Your Pre-Workshop Facilities work should get those hours of
operation. |
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Attendance List |
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One of the nagging, necessary,
administrative tasks is maintaining an attendance sheet. You wouldn’t think
it is that important, but it is. Even internal workshops, within a
company, will have occasional no-shows, or have someone substitute for
someone else. You need to have that new person’s email address and department
information. After the workshop, when the
Thank-you notes go out to the attendees and their management, you want
to thank the additional folks too. And, send a different letter to the
no-shows. The computer makes the sending
easy. The attendance sheet makes the computer generated communication more
accurate. |
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Surfing Checklist |
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How about a checklist for surfing
the web? Most browsers let you manage your bookmarks. So why not create a
folder for sites to visit before you travel to a workshop. For example, Do you know where the
local office supply store will be in the town you’re traveling to? Does that
store have copy facilities, or do you also have the location of the nearest FedEx Kinko’s? How about the big box stores in case you need some
personal items? Most commercial sites let you
search for the nearest location. Even if they don’t supply a map, the address
is enough to fire up MapQuest or Yahoo Maps. Bookmark the sites. Then visit
each one in your folder a couple of days before the workshop. Take notes and
printout a few maps. |
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Tote Bag Collection |
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If you’re like most professionals,
conferences and trade shows are a common part of your activities. Over the
past 30 years I’ve accumulated fabric briefcases and tote bags by the score.
Seemed like any one week training class ended up with a tote bag to store the
course materials. I’ve found two great uses for
these things. The first is personal. Doing genealogy research means trips to
libraries and archives. I’ve got two or three of these briefcases pre-loaded
with materials for various libraries, i.e. pens, paper, notes about that
library’s resources. Sort of grab and go. The second use, particularly for
tote bags, is to store extension cords and other misc. wires. I just leave
the tote stored next to the projector. They’re usually brightly colored (mine
is Choo-Choo Cherry), so when I grab the projector I automatically grab the
tote with the spare extension cord. |
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Even Adults Need Toys. |
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I went to my niece’s wedding a
while back and was pleased to see that the reception had a table in the
corner with a number of children’s toys. Someone had thought about the number
of children coming to the reception and had decided to find a way to “keep
them contained.” I’m not advocating keeping your
attendees contained, but long discussions and sometimes tough questions can
lead to stress or fidgeting. Many trainers bring some stress
relief toys with them. These might be small toy cars, transformer-robots, or
modeling clay. As long as they aren’t disruptive (police sirens and whistles
would fall in that category) they give the attendees “something to do with
their hands.” |
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Copyright © 2004 Piquero
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