DESIGNING YOUR META-TRAINING

As a trainer, whenever you train, you simultaneously train at two levels. You train at the content level (the information and experiences that you present) and you also are meta-training (Framers #2). Whether you are aware of it or not, you are training both levels although most of your meta-training occurs at an unconscious level— unconscious to you and to your participants. But it doesn’t have to. You can become conscious of your meta-training, in fact, all highly skilled trainers do. They develop a mindfulness about what they are training at a meta-level.

The amazing thing is that as you become conscious of this aspect of training, you can learn how to design many of the aspects of meta-training. In the previous post I mentioned two things—attitude and premises (assumptions and presuppositions). Now you can mindfully design your meta-training regarding these.

“What attitudes do you want to convey as you train?” “What attitudes do you especially want to avoid presenting?” “What attitudes would be especially impactful given the particular content of your training?” “What assumptive beliefs would you like to convey to (and meta-train in) your participants?” “What assumptive decisions, identities, permissions, understandings, etc.?”