The zest, energy, emotion, and
clear communication of need, value, and WIIFY (What’s In It For You) in many
courses is often compromised before the project ever fully kicks into gear as a
result of one simple Analysis question – Is
the course required? Knowing that
the targeted audience has no options regarding enrollment or completion of the
training can risk putting the Design team in a complacent position. If you know you have a captive audience, the
perceived need to work to keep them engaged can quickly fade.
I propose that the quality and
effectiveness of future training would be improved if we designed with a
mindset that considers the threatening possibility that the moment the audience
becomes bored, confused, or doesn't see the direct value of the content to
their lives/jobs, they may walk away (or exit). We should design as if all
training is optional.
Out with the tired “tell ‘em what you are going to tell ‘em /
tell ‘em / tell ‘em what you told ‘em” bookend structure that sandwiches dry
facts/figures/processes and does little to establish motivation and
relevance. Goodbye to the lean-back,
page-turning instructional models that spoon-feed bite sized nuggets of data,
immediately followed by obligatory exercises that test for short-term recall
(rather than deeper understanding).
Adios to letting the content drive the design because the audience’s
physical attendance is a given (even if their hearts and minds are a million
miles away).
In with capturing the learner’s
attention so firmly within the first 60 seconds of the course that they lean in,
wanting to know what awaits them on the next screen, ignoring the myriad of
digital distractions that are a mere mouse-click or screen-touch away. Hello to
positioning content in such a compelling fashion and with such personal
relevance that the learner cannot help but understand and retain the
information long after the post assessment has passed. Welcome to a learning experience that causes
the audience to desire ‘more’ and momentarily lose track of time because their
curiosity has been piqued and they crave closure to the conflict within the
situational story that’s been shared.
We need to design courses with the
expectation that without a strong and motivational opening, a satisfying and
memorable closing, and relevant and engaging information/activities every three minutes,
our learners will simply direct their limited attention and time towards
something (anything) else that seems more important or interesting. We need to operate with the constructive
pressure of being only a boring slide or overly complex sentence away from
losing our ‘customer’.
How would your designs change if
you knew that your course was totally optional, and the only people who would
complete it are the ones that you managed to keep interested/curious/motivated
enough to choose your instruction over all other options competing for their
time and attention? What would you do
differently if success was measured by how many people completed your course because
they WANTED to, not because they were OBLIGATED to?
