Children on a long road trip can lose a sense of momentum rapidly and begin pestering their parents with the old question, \u201cAre we there yet?\u201d They\u2019re more concerned with arriving than going. Momentum in a good training session carries a satisfying sense of going and confidence that we\u2019ll be arriving soon enough at each lesson objective.<\/p>\n

Momentum is mostly about keeping a rhythm. You can easily put rhythm into your lessons by thinking in terms of directional signs and changing landscapes on a good road trip.<\/p>\n

Posting Signs Along the Way<\/strong><\/p>\n

A detailed lesson outline is like a list of mile markers that indicate specific locations on a highway. The instructor is the only one who needs to see that much detail. Attendees just need to see occasional signs that indicate meaningful movement. Many instructors make the mistake of dumping all their mile markers into slides and handouts and having everyone read every point in unison. This creates several problems.<\/p>\n

For one thing, attendees probably won\u2019t stay in intellectual unison. Text is a powerful stimulus and sends people\u2019s minds in multiple directions. If you limit the amount of text you display, you will control the focus.<\/p>\n

Second, some people will read the points faster or slower than you do, and not hear much of what you\u2019re saying.<\/p>\n

Third, some attendees won\u2019t feel a need to listen to you if you give them a handout containing everything you want to say. They can read it on their own time. (I mean, surely you have more to say than what you put on a handout or slide.)<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll hold attention better and keep a more unified rhythm by revealing only the most important points. These are like the signs we appreciate on the highway: \u201cWelcome to Ohio,\u201d \u201cLeaving Morgan County,\u201d \u201cMammoth Cave 125 mi,\u201d \u201cFood next stop.\u201d They tell us we really are making progress.<\/p>\n

Suppose you\u2019ve been assigned to train welders in certain metals your company uses to meet a big client\u2019s specifications. You can easily convey a sense of momentum by means of clear divisions in the lesson plan, and then sticking to them. For example:<\/p>\n