The Caveman Guide To Training and Development

By Jack Shaw

From when it all began, learning and experimenting was simple. “I learned that if I sharpened my spear and kept it sharpened I was more likely to kill the first time I threw it and struck my prey.” Sharpen your quest for a perfect training solution! Whether a novice or experienced trainer, or a manager, you will find insights that will change the way you look at training and development forever!
Some days I long for the days of just knowing and doing my part for the cave, but that was a long time ago. It was more basic then. I taught myself. Not really. I observed and modeled the behavior of others, my elders. They knew what to do. Sometimes I saw what they did and thought another way might be useful and tried it. If that new way worked better, I kept doing it that way. If not, there was no point to keeping it.

I looked outside for the best ways to do things, and found others who had already discovered very good ways and copied them. It was simpler that way and saved time. I learned that if I sharpened my spear and kept it sharpened I was more likely to kill the first time I threw it and struck my prey. I already knew where the vital organs were; my father taught me--or was it my uncle? I taught my brothers.

Later, when game was scarce I had to do what the others who couldn't hunt did. I gathered roots, herbs, berries, fruits and vegetables--anything edible--even bark for medicine. Who taught me...I can't remember, but she was old and wise, experienced in the ways.

The approach is a little different by today’s standards. The training know how is all around us, waiting for us to take advantage.

The survival skills we learned in prehistoric times are still valid--only we have labels now.

Training is not just part of a job; it's part of life and survival of the fittest. The fittest are those who keep learning when you don't have time to wait millions of years for evolution to kick in. Sorry, Darwin.

Specialists are great, but thinking outside the clichéd box belongs to those specialists and others who are always willing to learn, always looking for connections; they are the Cave Man learners of today.

What exactly is Cave Man training? As if from a natural point of view some things make sense and others are missing some primal elements. This is a take on modern training as I see it from this Cave Man perspective.

You probably know it as non-traditional training, which is essentially bringing in outsiders, people in related fields, to train in the areas and can provide our company with skills and methods that necessary—and perhaps better—but can be applied to our company for a positive effect.

Traditional training is more about bringing in the trainer who is in our field (in our company) with years of experience and wisdom to teach us the best way to do our jobs. It seems to me the non-traditional trainers should be the Cave Man trainers, those who did it first. They went outside the cave looking for innovation and brought it back, or brought individuals back, training Cave Men or Women to train the tribe.

The fact training is handled the other way around in the modern world should tell us something. A couple obvious points: one is that we have become a world unto ourselves and two is that we are big and have a lot of answers in-house. So, if we’re so smart, why are we afraid to look outside?

Remember, it is the weak cave that is taken over, not the strong cave that seeks to learn from others. The Cave Man equated efficiency with survival, while we worry about the competition.

What I do as a trainer-for-hire is Cave Man training (non-traditional training or coaching) because I apply the techniques of any field that I find applicable in the training environment.

In spite of degrees in English, psychology, speech and theatre, I am and always will be a Cave Man. Talk about roots...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jack Shaw
• Release date: Oct 6, 2011
• ISBN: 9781466137790

Jack Shaw

Jack Shaw brings real world experience to whatever he writes. Not many can claim a background in two military services, enlisted in the Marines and an officer in the Air Force, followed by government service. But that's not all. His creativity goes beyond writing books.He is the author of four books, including his best seller, The Cave Man Guide to Training and Development. His novel, In Makr's Shadow, the first of Harry's Reality series of science fiction adventures, dramatizes what happens when the world gives an evolving artificial intelligence free reign to save the world from its human inhabitants.Jack received Bachelor of Arts degrees cum laud in both Psychology and English, and dual Master’s degrees (Speech/Dramatic Art and English) focusing on performance criticism from the University of Missouri in Columbia.

Book preview

The Caveman Guide

to Training and Development

Jack Shaw

The Caveman Guide to Training and Development

Shaw, Jack

Published at Smashwords.com

Copyright 2015

ISBN: 9781466137790

Second edition

Cover design by ebookcovers4u.com

(License notes) ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.

Dedication

To Bill Parks who inspired me from the beginning. He had a simple way of looking at life and everything was a learning experience -- so this is for my best friend who died way too young.

To my friend and colleague, Carter McNamara, who took a chance on me as his blog host for Training and Development for his online Free Management Library.

To my wonderful wife, Amy Keys Shaw, whose love and support for me surpasses her need to see perfect English and accept my informal and break-the-rules way of looking at things.

And, to all my kids who think anything Dad does is so cool.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1 -- Waiting for Darwin - Caveman Training Today

Chapter 2 -- What Would a Caveman DO? – How We Know What We Know About Training

Chapter 3 -- How We Learn–Six Points You Should Know

Chapter 4 -- Training Character

Chapter 5 -- Training for Survival: How to be the Fittest in Today's Economy

Chapter 6 -- When Did a Warm and Fuzzy Training Function Become a Strategically Aligned Business Unit?

Chapter 7 -- Three Things You Should Know About Communicating Credibility

Chapter 8 -- ABCs of Presenting-a Trainer Staple

Chapter 9 -- Training and Development: Differences and Priorities

Chapter 10 -- Why Isn’t All Training Like Training for Your Black Belt?

Chapter 11 -- The All-Important Needs Assessment and the Disconnect

Chapter 12 -- Training Every Employee to be CEO (Or Head Caveman)

Chapter 13 -- How to Make Training An Affair to Remember

Chapter 14 -- Training to Prevent Customer Service Disasters

Chapter 15 -- Seven Steps to Guarantee Great Training Results

Chapter 16 -- Icebreakers - The Who, What, When and When Not to Do Them

Chapter 17 -- How Many Steps to Continuous Learning? None

Chapter 18 -- Power of Gazing in Training, Love and Other Matters

Chapter 19 -- Beyond Constructive Criticism -- Methods to Evaluating Performance

Chapter 20 -- The Creative Leadership No-Brainer

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the world of Caveman Training and Development. It is my hope that this book is an exciting world of discovery, of re-thinking what we do, and getting back to the basics. To some this book may be filled with reminders, to others it’s a new way of looking at training, and still to others, an entertaining way to re-capture what was lost after years of training frustration. It may help you take control of your world and reaffirm the importance of your field, not only in your own mind but in the minds of others.

It is ironic that the most important aspect of working with people is a human resources training manual: a rather dull book no one really wants to read. It isn’t people friendly at all. I suspect in some ways these resources are archaic–in the same way we used to learn everything by rote. There are some great articles on the Free Management Library site where I am the Training and Development blog host. While a 500-word how-to blog that covers performance evaluation would be woefully inadequate as a complete source, you can still seek keys to success and starting points. This book tries to consolidate the keys of success and bring you those starting points.

For me in my self-proclaimed role as a Caveman trainer looking for roots in simplicity, I look at performance in a different way from typical trainers who come from human resources and work with those manuals. It’s still a people concern even though it can have business repercussions. Perhaps, it is too simple or naive to say Take care of your people and they’ll take care of you, but I do find that at the heart of my philosophy.

The purpose of the book is to help you simplify how you think about the job, the process of training -- and, how it can work easily with taking a common sense -- a Caveman approach to at the basics of behavior. I call myself the Caveman trainer because I learned like the Caveman did by looking at my world for connections and for solutions. Now, it’s your chance.

In this book, you’ll discover why you need to keep the training and communication basics in mind. Education is a fine thing, but combined with Caveman common sense you’ll motivate your audience or classroom to learn and retain what they learn. If you are struggling with your training assignment or find yourself disillusioned and frustrated, this book can provide just what you need to find your own perspective or motivate you to once again see the value and excitement of our wonderful profession.

You’ll learn how to stay on top of your game, how to guarantee training results, and, even perhaps, how to read the minds of your audiences. It will give you a new way to look at things -- a fresh perspective no trainer or communicator, or manager should be without. Don’t just train. Lead!

Effective communication is at the root of all training and education methods. My unusual approach I’m told is insightful and different. I hope it makes you think when I ask questions like, Why can’t professional development be like getting your Black Belt in Karate? The process makes perfect sense. I ask some other relevant questions and suggest answers that may seem odd at first until you read on. I can’t promise you’ll agree with everything I say, but I can promise to give you something to think about -- a unique perspective.

I have included in this compilation of writings, a variety of topics all related to training and development. My most popular training article, The All-Important Needs Assessment and the Disconnect, has been expanded here and I’ve included both parts of The Creative Leadership No-Brainer. My blogs are longer than the usual blog, but also a creative blend of content and commentary. My intended audience is the student of training and development and the experienced trainer or training manager, or anyone who wants to learn how we know what we know. I hope you enjoy the ride. It begins with a Caveman…

CHAPTER 1

Waiting for Darwin - Caveman Training Today

Some days I long for the days of just knowing and doing my part for the cave, but that was a long time ago. It was more basic then. I taught myself. Not really. I observed and modeled the behavior of others, my elders. They knew what to do. Sometimes I saw what they did and thought another way might be useful and tried it. If that new way worked better, I kept doing it that way. If not, there was no point to keeping it.

I looked outside for the best ways to do things, and found others who had already discovered very good ways and copied them. It was