{successful} volunteer training = actual implementation

last week, i met with one of my favorite children's ministry leaders. what? consultants aren't supposed to have favorites? that's like saying parents don't have favorite children, and teachers don't have favorite students, and companies don't have favorite clients. just plain silly.

we met just a few days after her volunteer training. she was elated! {not about meeting with me, that her training went so well}. people showed up! they connected with each other! there was enough food! they learned new information and skills for teaching children! it was a great training. 

and then i asked her the dreaded words -- how will you know this training was successful? 

shame on me. can't i just let a leader have her moment? especially one of my favorites? nope. 

for me, volunteer training meetings prove succesful when the information shared is implemented. 

the goal of training volunteers is to see the leader's behavior changed on sunday mornings. because the information shared at the training was applicable, relevant, and helpful, a volunteer is able to improve his leadership and teaching with children. 

the changed behavior doesn't have to be extreme, in fact, most times the change made is a small tweak. a 4th grade leader can't get his boys to sit down and listen to the lesson. he learns during the annual volunteer training that grade school boys are physical, and can listen and comprehend content while participating in a physical activity. so, the very next week he adds a physical activity to his lesson, a simple simon says game while asking children review questions, and suddenly his boys are paying attention. simple tweak, resulting from applicable content learned. 

it's important to identify simple goals prior to the volunteer training. ask yourself, what do you hope volunteers implement after training? make the goals as specific as possible: i hope volunteers recognize children need time for reflection, and allow for quiet reflection after the video. or, i hope volunteers realize preschool children are able to lead prayer, and offer children the chance to pray. 

whatever you do, don't lead a training unless you have goals and purpose for your training. stall. cancel. reschedule. it's a huge risk to gather volunteers together without a goal. wait until you see a need for change, plan a training that helps volunteers easily accomplish that change, and then encourage them when you see actual implementation. 

oh yes! final thing. when you see volunteers implementing something that directly came from a training, encourage them. better yet, in the immediate weeks following training, intentionally look for volunteers who are implenting their learnings. send a card, an email, shout it out on sunday morning. give them kind words and mention specifically the action you see being implemented. 

volunteer trainings. plan accordingly, with purpose and goals, and will full intention that what you say will cause change on sunday mornings. always, for the sake of children and their faith.