Do you feel safe?
When providing a training environment, it is essential to make sure those in the room feel psychologically safe. (We can cover physical safety another time).
Clients need to feel they can relax and safely take risks in asking questions and exploring new ideas in order to learn.
Top tips to help create a safe training environment in a group setting:
Lay down clear guidelines at the beginning for respectful communication (eg we listen to each other, even if we don't agree with their point of view, we avoid talking over each other etc).
Encourage questions and listen well to both the question and any answers people give.
Thank clients for their answers or contribution, even if you don't agree with it.
Ask the whole group for any answers to more difficult questions, and only ask individuals questions you think they can answer.
Think about your verbal and non-verbal feedback to learners. Are you encouraging them with a smile, or is a frown dissuading them from contributing?
Recently I was doing some training and a person told me beforehand that they don't like to contribute in a group. I asked them if I could involve them by asking one question. I told them when I would ask them the question and told them what the answer would be. They agreed.
I kept an eye on them to check they were ok, then at the right moment, asked them the question. They gave me a big smile and answered. Then they continued to volunteer answers after as they felt safe enough to take the risk in that group.
