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The Magic of a Great Debriefing - Infographic

1/18/2018

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Debriefing is definitely one of the most important parts of any training session or any learning experience.
If done right, debriefing is where the learning really happens - where conclusions are done and where participants form their experience into valuable lessons and learning. 
But it is also one of the most difficult parts to structure and facilitate, because it requires the trainer to be skilled at navigating the discussion without getting stuck in loops, but also the flexibility to deal with any strong emotion, unpredictable groups dynamics (being it too active or too quiet), unusual conclusions and learnings, or concern from participants. 
It requires the ability to build a strong trust within the environment, ask the right questions in the right moment and to balance allowing participants to draw their own learnings while still sticking with the learning outcomes for the session and keeping the discussion on track. 

In this "Training Activities Debriefing" visual we tried to present the most important aspects of debriefing to keep in mind, using active reviewing model by Roger Greenaway, through what we like to call the "4F model". 
The important thing to add is that the review process should be done in an active way - the active reviewing cycle is intended to move people away from all-talk reviews.

A good review is far more than a recap of what has already been learned - so in the findings phase it is important not to stick just to the potentially rigid "What did you learn?" question, but use the review phase to bring out learning during the review itself, and even create new learnings within the debriefing activity. 

According to Roger Greenway, there is an important aditional aspect to keep in mind: "Since creating this model, I soon found that people were using it in a routine way, which was a long way from the spirit of the model which was to encourage an active and creative approach. To emphasise this I introduced the joker at the heart of the model representing "Freedom". This is intended to encourage trainers to be more responsive and to introduce more variety and life into their reviews."

So, dear trainers, check out the active reviewing model, see how to use it within your debriefing (preferably in an active and creative way - let's not forget that joker :)), or, in case you are using it already, take a moment to reflect how you can use it in even more creative and flexible ways and play with this basic framework and enrich it with your own experience and tools. 

Wish you a bunch of successful debriefings in your future trainings :)
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About the authors of the article
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Herve Tunga is an IT Development Engineer, Life Coach and Freelance Trainer with broad experience in managing IT technical projects, strategic development and organisational transformation initiatives in international environment.


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Mirna Smidt is the founder of Trainers Toolbox, trainer passionate about learning,  getting things done, creating great training content and delivering it in an enthusiastic and energetic way.  Being trainer since 2008, Mirna developed rich knowledge in positive psychology, NLP, evidence based training, coaching, and many other innovative trainer's tools and techniques. ​Next to Trainers Toolbox, she is also a founder of Happiness Academy, project aimed at educating and inspiring people to lead happier and more fulfilling lives. Read more about Mirna at www.mirnasmidt.com. ​​​​

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Best books on coaching

12/27/2017

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​Many trainers make a wise decision of complementing their training skills with coaching techniques.

There is a lot of value in such an approach: developing coaching skills means one will become proficient at asking great questions, facilitating thought processes, developing a strong structure of the conversation and practicing really powerful listening skills, and these are all very valuable skills for trainers.
Coaching can also be an impactful way of following up on a training, ensuring that participants really practice the skill that was the topic of the training and deal effectively with any obstacles that might come up on their path of learning.
 
If you are one of those trainers eager to sharpen their coaching skills, keep on reading – here are some great books that might help you do exactly that.
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1. The Complete Handbook of Coaching by Cox, Bachkirova and Clutterbuck
The name says it all – we can absolutely recommend this book as the most comprehensive book on coaching that is out there. It covers diverse coaching styles and diverse contextual niches. Different chapters cover many narrowly-focused subtopics, from cross-cultural coaching to wellness coaching and many more. Balancing theory and practice, the book contains many questions for reflection as well as concrete examples. It also leaves the reader with a long list of references to check out, in case one would like to dig deeper into any of the topics.
2. The 7 steps of Effective Executive Coaching by Dembkowski, Eldridge and Hunter
​The main value of this book is in the very useful ACHIEVE structure for coaching sessions that the book presents. It is an upgraded, broader version of the basic GROW structure that many coaches are using. As such, the framework might be a bit too comprehensive for fresh coaches, for whom it might be better to start with the more simple GROW until they become more comfortable with that type of structure. However, for experienced coaches who wish to upgrade their structure or for anyone who wishes to gain a better understanding of the coaching process in its fullness, it is a great book.
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3. The Coaching Manual: The definitive guide to the process, principles and skills of personal coaching: The Definitive Guide to the Process and Skills of Personal Coaching by Julie Starr
​A very good book with an overview of the complete coaching process for anyone new to coaching. For experienced coaches, it provides value in presenting a list of really good coaching questions.
4. Co-Active Coaching: Changing Business, Transforming Lives by Kimsey-House, Kimsey-House, Sandahl and Whitworth
The co-active coaching approach is based on a strong partnership and collaboration between the coach and the client. This book goes deep into how to create such a partnership and build a coaching process on top of it. The authors broaden this approach from coaching and apply it to different relationships within organizations, through teaching the reader to build a transformative communication process based on the principles of co-active coaching.
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5. Nlp Workbook: A Practical Guide To Achieving The Results You Want by Joseph O’Connor
Although not directly focused on coaching, this book is packed with many great NLP tools and techniques that are priceless for every coach. Highly recommended!

6. Practicing Positive Psychology Coaching: Assessment, Activities and Strategies for Success by Robert Biswas-Diener
​In full honesty, this book lags a bit in comparison to other books on this list, in terms of developing coaching skills in general. However, its big advantage is that it provides a long list of tools from positive psychology that can be used in coaching. As positive psychology is the evidence-based side of coaching, it is definitely worth checking it out and trying out many of the presented tools.
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7. 344 Questions: The Creative Person's Do-It-Yourself Guide to Insight, Survival, and Artistic Fulfillment by Stefan G. Buche
​This book won’t teach you much new about coaching itself, but it is a wonderful source of inspiration, full of creative ideas and original questions. Check it out when you're looking for some fresh thinking, searching for an original approach and wanting to step out of the routine.
What are your favorites? Let us know, we would love to hear your thoughts in comments!
Action time
Don’t forget: as with any book, these books are a great first step in developing and growing own skills. But the key to learning (as all of us trainers know ;)) is in implementation and gaining experience!

Take a moment to reflect: how can you start practicing and exploring these techniques in your everyday world?
p.s. wish to be the first one to read out future posts? Make sure to sign up for our new Newsletter here :)
We promise no spam, and don't write more often than monthly. Aaaand, we take your wishes on topics for our next articles :)
About the author of the article
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Mirna Smidt is the founder of Trainers Toolbox, trainer passionate about learning,  getting things done, creating great training content and delivering it in an enthusiastic and energetic way.  Being trainer since 2008, Mirna developed rich knowledge in positive psychology, NLP, evidence based training, coaching, and many other innovative trainer's tools and techniques. ​Next to Trainers Toolbox, she is also a founder of Happiness Academy, project aimed at educating and inspiring people to lead happier and more fulfilling lives. Read more about Mirna at www.mirnasmidt.com. ​​​​


* this page uses affiliate links.
While Trainers Toolbox is a non-profit project, we do have expenses related to website hosting, domain etc. - therefore we would appreciate that if you decide to purchase one of the books that you discovered through these blog and if you found that recommendation valuable, to do so via our link :) thank you, and thank you for following Trainers Toolbox :)
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    Trainers Toolbox

    Mirna , initiator of Trainers Toolbox, is a trainer in love with training tools and innovative games, positive psychology, NLP, and everything that makes learning more impactful and engaging. 

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