The #1 rule for professional trainers ….

Engagement is key - and I am not talking about ‘student engagement’.

As professional trainers, we need to remain 100% engaged and in a constant state of professional development ourselves, if we want to remain at the front of the pack. 

Elite-level trainers need to spend as much time working on their own development as they do in ‘delivering’ to others. A highly-engaged, very excited, motivated and continually evolving trainer - is an effective trainer. Enthusiasm is contagious. At the other end of the spectrum, we find that trainer who merely goes through the motions, the ineffective trainer, the trainer who fails miserably when trying to engage his or her students.

The average professional trainer is outwardly focussed; with their attention focussed largely on content delivery. While intuitively, there seems to be nothing wrong with this paradigm, it is, in my view, the reason that most trainers fail to maximise their potential as educators. 

A little ‘inward focus’ can go a long way to becoming that unique breed of trainer whose enthusiasm lifts every class he or she takes, to another level. Merely going through the motions of teaching/coaching or operating by a ‘good enough to get by’ standard, will almost guarantee, not only mediocre and short-lived careers but sub-standard and disappointing outcomes. 

The first student we all have - is ourselves. Treat that student well; make sure they are engaged and fulfilled. Startling outcomes await.