Why Many Nonprofit Trainings Don’t Stick
One speaker and one training is not enough to meaningfully change anything. I know that feeling. I have felt it. I have experienced it. It can be true.
And honestly, I get it. I’ve sat through a training that felt good while I was in it, but by the following Monday it’s gone. The speaker was lit; they were thought-provoking and, in the moment, felt eye-opening. But putting what they said into practice felt like a stretch I did not actually have capacity for. I’ve had plenty of notebooks overflowing with all the gems from the workshop, and once that notebook closed, it was like burying the treasure and losing the map.
I’ve learned that the gap between learning and doing is a design problem. The gap exists because the workshop didn't give you a chance to apply what you learned.
We say it to our young folks all the time: practice makes progress. To shift the actual conditions in your organization, you need the chance to practice what you’re learning. The content can be crystallizing and inspiring, but in order to use it on a daily basis, you need to practice.
Every speaking engagement or workshop I design has to answer yes to all three of these questions:
Do people leave having actually tried using the practice?
Are they using the practice in a scenario that is true to what they actually experience inside of their organization?
Do they have enough context and engagement with the practice to start using it tomorrow?
Looking back at feedback I’ve received from folks over the years, a few things keep showing up. The sessions felt specific to what the organization actually needed. People felt safe enough to show up honestly and engage with each other in ways they hadn’t before. And they left with tools they could use to address what was happening inside their own teams and organizations.
That’s the goal every time I curate group learning and practice engagements.
Even in a one-time engagement, the goal is always to build capacity. Building capacity requires practice.
When you look back at workshops or speakers who actually changed how you do something, what did they have in common? What made that one different?
If your team is planning a workshop or speaking engagement and wants it to build capacity, take a look at speaking engagements. Or book a 30-minute vibe check. We’ll talk through what you’re after, see if we’re a fit, and if so, talk next steps and pricing.
