I deliver training workshops from time-to-time. As anyone in this domain can tell you, one of the biggest challenges is to make the learnings of any workshop tangible, long-term and consistent. I also like attending quality workshops and think of them as a good investment.

For a lot of participants, I find that a lot of the times, a workshop is like seeing a very good movie. You enjoy the movie a great deal. You get all pumped up with the thoughts and feelings in your system. But slowly the effect drains off, and it fails to create much tangible benefit. Like when you saw a ‘Lagaan’ or a ‘Swades’ (bollywood movies). You feel all patriotic for some days, the first few days you’re just full of it, but later hardly any of it stays with you or fits into your life. Ofcourse the quality of the program matters a lot. But what also matters is how you deal with the information given to you, and the awareness created in you.

So here are my 5 tips on making most of such training sessions:

Introduce yourself to the speaker: It’s a great opportunity to stand out and create a relationship with the speaker. Let them know what you’re looking for and maybe they can help you. If the speaker is high profile, the association can only help.

Give testimonials: If you’ve enjoyed the program, give testimonials. It will not go un-noticed. Appreciate the positives in the program. Its the right thing to do, and again adds to your visibility.

DIY: Think of 3 things that you can take-away to implement in your life at the end of the workshop. Write them down as action sentences. E.g. Instead of ‘I’ll have a positive attitude towards work’, write ‘I take 5 min every morning to contemplate my work day and set my attitude’. Put this up on your mirror/ pin-up board for a couple of months. See if makes a difference. Most probably it will .

Networking: Go with an intention of building some high quality networks. Get to know the people around you, and see if you can find a fit that could work as a JV, client, or mentor etc.

Be there: Be involved during the workshop – speak up, volunteer, contribute. Even if you’re shy of face-to-face networking, this can be a workaround for you to create an impression. Its a great way to get people to notice you and create your place in the room. But be careful not to hijack the topics/ discussions.

Maybe see you arpund in one of my workshops ,

Aparna