Everything I've written, and everything you've done over the last 7 newsletters is utterly pointless if...

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...you are still the only person who can handle phone calls, answer client questions, answer team questions or open and close the office.

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Hey there,

If you really do want to be able to take a short break from your business, you and your team, have to be confident that the processes you’ve defined and documented will actually be followed.

The only way to make sure of that is to get your team to do them before you go away.

So in this newsletter, I'm going to talk you through how to help your team learn and then practise using what you've defined.

We'll look at:

• how not to overwhelm your team with all this new stuff
• a simple framework you can use to teach people a new process
• how to give people the practise they need to create a new habit

Let's dive straight in.

How not to overwhelm your team with all this new stuff

Getting all of this knowledge out of your head - whether that's into a simple checklist, a process diagram, or a full-fledged process description - means it is much easier to for other people to learn what you already know.

It also makes visible a lot of detail. Detail that up to now you've assumed everyone knew, and didn't need sharing.

And all that detail can be overwhelming to begin with. People will need time to to take it in.

So, resist any temptation to bombard your team with training after training. That would be completely counter-productive.

Instead, follow these simple rules:

Tackle one process at a time.

You could start with training your team how to answer the phone.

Move on to training them how to use the FAQs list.

Next, train people to triage and answer client queries. This will inevitably involve learning how to use whatever system you've set up for sharing "where clients are in your process".

Then, train people how to open up the office for the day.

Finally train people how to close up for the day.

Give people time to assimilate.

As you'll see later in this newsletter, it is possible to help people get familiar with a new process quite quickly, but to get really comfortable with it, people need time to absorb what they've learned, using it as part of a 'normal' day. So aim to leave at least a week, preferably two, between processes.

Share the responsibility for each process:

It makes sense for everyone to answer the phone the same way. It also makes sense for everyone to be able to use your FAQs.

But for you to be able to take a break, there's no need to have everyone able to do everything. You just need to make sure at least two people in your team can do each process.

Why two people? Firstly, because a good way to help people get used to doing a new process is to have them practise doing it together, as a pair. Each person can take turns to run the process while the other refers to the process documentation and makes sure it's being followed.

Yes, this slows things down for a while, but people will soon get confident enough to do it on their own more quickly.

Secondly, because each pair member can be a backup for the other while you're away.

So, how do you actually train people? Here's what I use:

A simple framework you can use to teach people a new process

Step 1 - Read: get the trainee to read through the process/checklist so they get an idea of what's involved.

Step 2 - Watch: let them watch a more experienced person go through the process/checklist, following along with their own copy of the diagram/checklist, and making notes if they need to.

Step 3 - Have a go: get the trainee to go through the process themselves, following the diagram/checklist, under the supervision of the more experienced person - who is there to nudge and remind, not to take over.

Step 4: - Practise: allow the trainee to practise doing the process, following the diagram/checklist for as long as they feel they need to. Let them practise on the easy cases first. Then step up to practising the more difficult ones. And, as every astronaut knows, there is no shame in referring to a checklist or diagram every time you run a process. In fact having to complete a checklist every time fulfills a vital purpose: https://disciplinemakesdaringpossible.com/2019/04/second-nature/​

I've created a simple spreadsheet each person can use to track their learning: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AjbFpr0Rm4Ciroju6yBdtu3Kfct1Py3O8j_vyuYFwlA/edit?usp=sharing​

This framework works whether you're teaching one person, or many especially when it's part of a powerful system of training, you almost certainly familiar with.

How to give people the practise they need to create a new habit

Simulation is one of the quickest and most effective ways I know to learn something new. It's how pilots learn to land at an airport before they've ever been there. It's how astronauts learn to deal with weightlessness before they get into a spacecraft. It's almost certainly how you learned to drive.

Rather than throw you in at the deep end by getting you to drive straight out onto a motorway, your driving instructor gradually built up your skills, from nothing up to competent driver.

From starting the car, pulling out into traffic, using the gears, turning left and right, through reversing round corners, three-point turns, parking, roundabouts, emergency stops and filtering onto your local A road, a driving instructor gradually teaches a learner driver how to handle all the scenarios they are likely to come across, and makes sure they practise them once they've been learned. All the while having the option to take control of the vehicle if you panic, or something totally unexpected happens.

Drivers learn to drive by practising real scenarios in a safe environment.

And you can do the same thing with business processes.

Simulation is learning by doing, with intent.

It's a much more efficient way to train people than simply 'shadowing', because you can make sure people learn everything that they are likely to come across, rather than what simply happens to come up during the 2 weeks they are shadowing someone.

It can be much faster too. A few days can be all it takes to get new people really comfortable running every processes well as or better than you.

And it's a far better way to learn than 'osmosis'.

It does take some setting up though.

First, identify all the likely scenarios you need people to be able to cover:

• get your team together live or online in groups of at least 3. Get each group to identify at least 3 common scenarios they encounter during the process you are about to practise.
• write up each scenario in one or two sentences that would prompt someone to behave in a way that fits the scenario. You can do this with a simple instruction 'do ', or 'ask '; or you can paint more of a picture of their motivation and let the person interpret it for themselves: 'You're a tourist in town, looking for a loo, and you've wandered into this shop for directions'

To help, I've created a spreadsheet template with some simple examples for you to use as a starting point for your own training: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eE1huWvS7sbBT92TNjyofIPhipRXvh8ITQccjOfXxYc/edit?usp=sharing​

Next, get people to role-play the scenarios (this is your simulation):

• again, get the people you are training together with as many of your team as you can spare.
• give one trainee a scenario prompt to act out as a client or customer
• give another trainee the process to follow as team member
• give everyone else the job of observing

The best simulation comes from full-blown 'acting it out', where people physically do the steps of the process for real. But if people are really resistant to role-play, get them to do a 'desk-run' to begin with, where they can stay sitting down and simply say out loud what they are going to do instead.

However you do it:

Start with the easy scenario when every thing goes right.

• Follow the 4 step learning process described above:
  • Step 1 - Read: get everyone to read through the process/checklist so they get an idea of what's involved.
  • Step 2 - Watch: let everyone watch a more experienced person (you?) go through the process/checklist, following along with their own copy of the diagram/checklist, and making notes if they need to.
  • Now get your trainees to take it in turns to do Step 3 - Have a go: get each trainee to go through the process themselves, following the diagram/checklist, under the supervision of the more experienced person - who is there to nudge and remind, not to take over.
  • After each run-through ask:
    • what went well?
    • what would have made it even better?
    • note down any changes you need to make to the process
  • Take it in turns to run through this scenario until all of your trainees have had a go at being a customer, a team member and an observer.

Then move on to a relatively straightforward exception (that they've probably already dealt with before):

• Follow the steps:
  • Step 1 - Read: get everyone to read through the process/checklist so they get an idea of what's involved.
  • Step 2 - Watch: let everyone watch a more experienced person (you?) go through the process/checklist, following along with their own copy of the diagram/checklist, and making notes if they need to.
  • Now get your trainees to take it in turns to do Step 3 - Have a go: get each trainee to go through the process themselves, following the diagram/checklist, under the supervision of the more experienced person - who is there to nudge and remind, not to take over.
  • After each run-through ask:
    • what went well?
    • what would have made it even better?
    • note down any changes you need to make to the process
  • Take it in turns to run through this scenario until all trainees have had a go at being a customer, a team member and an observer.

Repeat with as many likely scenarios as you can fit in to the session.

Once you're done, make any changes you need to your process diagram, checklist, or whatever you're using to prompt people to follow the process.

Then allow people at least a week to do Step 4: - Practise: following the diagram/checklist for as long as they need to.

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Now you know what's involved, you can put together a training timetable, to make sure you and your team are confident to run these processes before you go away.

Remember, you don't have to train everyone in everything before you go.

Your timetable could look something like this:

• Week 1: Train everyone to Answer Phone the same way.
• Week 3: Train everyone to use your FAQs.
• Week 5: Train two members of your team to Answer Client Question. Other team members can pass enquiries to them while you're away.
• Week 7: Train a different pair of team members to Open for Business.
• Week 9: Train another different pair to Close for Business.

I've put together a template covering all the processes I've written about so far: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1h9plMl25DmkiLeoBIx_Y5kiTn_h2wvxqetUu4tEm0yA/edit?usp=sharing. Just add the names of your team members across the top and check off when they get trained in each process.

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Following everything I've outlined here through won't get you away from your business tomorrow, but once you've worked through, you'll all feel much more confident about the boss taking a break.

Plus of course, you'll all know how to do it again.

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And that’s it.

Here’s what you learned today:

• 4 steps are all you need to learn a new process: Read, Watch, Have a Go, Practise.
• Learning by doing is by far the best way to learn. Especially if you make sure the learning isn't random. Identifying 'likely' scenarios up front then practising them in a safe environment is quick and effective way for everyone to learn. Including you.
• More haste, less speed. Overwhelming people is counterproductive. So structure your training and give people time between training to assimilate and practise in their everyday environment.

Have you mapped out any of these processes yet for your business?

If so, have you got anyone else doing them yet?

How has it been going?

I'd love to know.

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Thanks for reading!

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