For true learning and transformation to take place, your learners need to remember what you teach them. Here are 5 secrets for increasing the retention of your learners:
1. Analogies: I went through a sales training program a while back with a trainer named Greg Bennett. Greg had us imagine a situation where we went to a doctor for help with an injury. However, instead of telling us how to fix our injury, the doctor asked us what we needed. Greg then compared this scenario to a salesperson asking a customer what they need. More than 5 years later, I still remember this analogy. Kudos to Greg. As Chip and Dan Heath wrote in their New York Times Best-Selling book, Made To Stick, great analogies also also “generative.” In other words, they also teach your learners how to act in future situations. Greg’s salesperson/doctor analogy is an example.
2. Stories: There is perhaps no greater way to engage an audience and increase their retention than through powerful, relevant stories. As discussed here, this is why The Biggest Loser is so popular.
3. Concise, counterintuitive catch-phrases. Several years ago, I attended a presentation by a speaker who said “common sense is a superpower.” What are the chances this line would have stayed in my head if he had said that “common sense will help you be much more productive and much more successful throughout your life and career.” You can also make your catch-phrase even more memorable by making it rhyme. This is one reason why many cliches (i.e. “blast from the past” or “finders keepers, losers weepers”) become popular. Note: Rhymezone.com is a great resource for finding words that rhyme with each other.
4. Acronyms: The typical short-term memory of most learners only allows for 4-5 “chunks” of information at a time. However, acronyms allow you to pack an exponentially greater amount of material into each chunk. For example, consider the acronyms for “SWOT” analysis or “SPIN” selling. These 4-letter acronyms (which only take up one “chunk”) can help learners remember the key ideas behind an extensive volume of content. Note: To help you remember the ideas in this article, the 5 ways to increase the retention of your learners form the acronym “ASCAP.”
5. Powerful pictures. Clip art does not count! For an image to be truly memorable, it must elicit emotion. For example, one of my friends recently posted a picture on Facebook (see below) of her cuddled on the couch, resting peacefully with her newborn baby. It was an absolutely beautiful picture that truly captured the essence of “what life is all about” as she posted on her page. However, what are the chances I would have remembered her Facebook post if she had simply written “Life is all about family” and not attached the photo? A powerful picture is not just worth 1,000 words. It’s something people can remember forever.