Playing with the big girls

05 Dec 2011 3 Comments

by Sheena in Business growth, IITT, Small business, success, Training Tags: Awards, being fabulous, business, confidence, networking, success, Training

Well, it’s done. Wonder how I got on? Should I have taken more ‘stuff’? Should I have done a different topic? Who cares! I made it to the finals of Trainer of the Year, TRAINER OF THE YEAR!!!!! and I’m utterly thrilled to have got there.

I gave it my best shot. I did what I do best – delivered a great session I believed in, with passion, humour & energy.

And it got me thinking about WHY I do what I do, and why I love it so much.

I was never what you would call naturally ‘gifted’ at school – clever, yes – but I had to work at it. I responded best to teachers who recognised I needed to ‘get it’ and find relevance in a topic to do well. Sadly not many could be bothered. But the few who did still stick in my mind every time I get up in front of a room of Learners.

As do the many who couldn’t be bothered. Who just went through the motions. Who had no interest in whether I understood what the hell was going on. Who ridiculed me often and with relish.

I often hear trainers in my field of expertise moan – ‘not another Excel intro’, ‘I hate teaching basic level’, ‘apps training is really dull’……

Needless to say they don’t work for me.

I want to be bothered. I want to pass on the passion I feel for learning. I want the Learners I engage with to be energised and excited by the new stuff they can do after a training event.

I get a chance to do that every time I step into the training room, put my headset on to deliver online learning, take a booking from a client and get my butt out out there to make it happen.

I love that moment when it all clicks for a learner and their face lights up with knowledge. Because I know how good that feels.

I work hard to be good at what I do, so – rather than think I’d never be able to rank alongside the really big training companies, that I should rest on last years Freelance Trainer of the Year award, I thought about it, then I gripped it, ripped it, and put a submission together…

How cool is that? To get the chance to stand up and be judged alongside some serious competition was a fantastic opportunity.

Whatever happens now I am so proud of what I have achieved, ably assisted by TDB, chums & the lovely trainers who work with me and share my passion to show people that they can do it. After all, I have.

So – why do I do what I do?

Because learning is fun. Because helping people learn is fun. Because it picks me up every time I see someone’s light bulb come on. Because its wonderful to change someone’s mindset from ‘I can’t do it’ to ‘I bloody well can’.

Now – the awards dinner is in Feb 2012. I have the most fantastic pair of shoes. I’m a winner already on the shoe front. This time I can wear what I want without worrying about chemo related nonsense. This time I wont have to wear a stupid beanie hat. This time I won’t have to have chemo the day after.

This time, I can really, really enjoy it. Bring it on!