What Great Trainers Do Differently

100 tips for trainers that work

Introduction
A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops . —Henry Adams

This e-book is based on my experience delivering training to thousands of people in 9

countries since 1996. I have conducted training workshops for corporations, both big and
small, schools, not-for-profit organizations and the public. Over the years, my workshops
have gone through numerous revisions and tweaking. It’s been a privilege to have trained
more than 84,500 people face-to-face.

Having trained nearly two thousand people to deliver transformative training programs, I
have researched and examined my own training journey to develop this book. I’ve been
pleasantly surprised to see some drastic improvements in the way my train-the-trainer
students conduct their workshops and their confidence levels. You may see what one of them
has to say over here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlWuq-uhFzI

Effective trainers not only master their subject matter but also understand the dynamics of
engaging the audience to have the most significant impact on their learning. Although I am a
Human Resource Development Corporation Certified Trainer and a Lead Trainer for the
Train the Trainer Program, I’m always in the learning/research phase to determine what is
working and what isn’t.

There are baseline concepts to stick to as you progress through your training journey. I have
distilled the lessons learnt into 100 simple points for your reference. These are some of the
things I have shared for the last 9 years since I first started coaching aspiring trainers to start
on a new career path. Keeping these basics in mind helps you ensure your bases are covered
in a comprehensive manner. Also, remember that this is not an exhaustive list.

It is divided into the fundamentals and my 3D approach, which stands for Discover, Design
and Deliver.

This book is not meant to be read as one would read either fiction or other nonfiction. The
content is to be read, studied, tried out, and read again to gain a deeper understanding and
then practised repeatedly.

Review and see how you can apply these techniques to your current efforts. They have been
proven to get great results by the masters in the game, and I am implementing many in my
own training business.

That said, I hope this helps you along greatly and be sure to leave me a comment on one of
my social or blog posts or email me any questions or comments.

After or while reading this e-book, should you have any doubts or suggestions, please drop
me a text via WhatsApp at +6019669349 or to my email – jeya@successedge.com.my.
I am also putting together my ‘Advanced Professional Trainers’ course for those who need
my personal help to get started or develop their training business. Just drop me a line for
more information

The Fundamentals
1. People do not come to you for information; they come for transformation. The
transformation happens with this formula:

INFORMATION + INSPIRATION = TRANSFORMATION

2. Inspiration motivates people to apply what they learn and go on a journey of learning
more about the subject.

3. You cannot change people with logic alone, you have to touch their emotions. In
other words, if you want them to move physically, you must first move them
emotionally. Learning anything is as much an emotional process as an intellectual
one.

4. Your trainees have only two reasons to attend your training:

• They have a problem to solve.

• They have a goal to reach

5. You have to consider what your audience knows, believes and does. Only by
changing those aspects does real change happen.

6. Start with the end in mind, focusing on what action you want them to take. Then,
work backwards on what you must do to change their beliefs and the knowledge they
would need to acquire.

7. Stop being an information dump. Give them only the right and needed information.

8. Have a story, example, illustration, exciting statistic, case study, etc., to make every
concept you teach come alive and meaningful.

9. Follow the ‘ARC’ Model in training. Catch it here https://youtu.be/ocB_4CNfTz4

APPLICATION

RETENTION

COMPREHENSION
10. Remember the 5 P’s – proper prior preparation prevents poor performance. Prepare
everything meticulously. There are 5 elements that determine the success of a
training session:
• Trainer – everything needed to be engaging.
• Environment – conducive, comfortable and appropriate for learning.
• Program – well-structured and high-value content.
• Participants – the right target audience.
• Resources – all your tools to present which are in good working condition.

11. 4 essentials for becoming an outstanding trainer

Mind set – The right attitude of

wanting to do your best for your
audience.
Tool set – All the necessary and up-to-
date equipment for effective training.
Skill set – Ability to engage and
deliver impactfully.
Set Heart set – Your passion for the
subject and which affects the other 3
‘sets’.
Skill Set

12. Be mindful of the 2 F’s of a trainer – be friendly and firm towards your audience. Do
not be friendly and weak or harsh and firm.

13. There are five levels of trainers. Ask yourself where you are now and strive to get to
the top.
• Exceptional – Inspirational and engaging
• Good – Subject matter expert and deliver well
• Expected – Can deliver the content and make the audience understand
• Bad – PowerPoint reader, no engagement
• Criminal – Poor communication skills, unprepared, disrespecting audience

14. Trainees come in 3 levels. Do your best, but don’t get disheartened if they are
unwilling or unmotivated to learn. The levels are:
• Positive – Excited and ready to learn
• Neutral – Without any expectations
• Negative – Reluctant or forced to attend – ‘prisoner’.

15. Always think of giving a fresh, unique approach to your teaching subject. People
will pay you more if you solve a specific problem and share a new perspective on the
topic. Journal your ideas and constantly improve them so you become outstanding.
Discover – your best niche

I learnt some fundamental life principles from my mentor, Peter Ng. In essence, they are:

The bigger the problem you solve for people, the more money you make.
The amount of money you make in any field depends on 3 factors:
a. The demand for what you do
b. Your ability to do it
c. The difficulty of replacing you (most important)

16. What to consider when choosing your niche

What you can teach – all the skills

and knowledge you have.

What the world wants to learn but

unwilling to pay to learn it.
A B What the world is willing to pay to
learn.

The best is in the middle – the

convergence of all three factors.
C
Your sweet spot

17. Here are the major areas that people are willing to pay to learn:

• Money – some topics include investments, sales, social media marketing, video
editing, content creation, interview skills or any skill that helps people earn an
income.

• Health – a huge and diverse area. Possible topics are diet, alternative medicine,
fasting, exercise, stress management, yoga, etc.

• Relationships – applicable for both corporate and personal. Some of them are
leadership, team building, conflict resolution, communication skills, networking,
handling teenagers, counselling, customer service, etc.

• Technology – An ever-expanding field – IT, robotics, AI, hardware and software,

Microsoft Office, data science, programming, etc.
 • 3 crucial factors in selecting your niche are passion, competency and market.

18. Find your passion – you must feel some excitement for the subject.

Questions to ask to find your passion:

• What don’t you mind teaching for free?

• What do you love learning more about?
• What has helped you in your life? You have personal stories to share.
• Why do people seek you out for advice or help?

19. Competency – What can you do well and comes easy for you which can solve
people’s problems.

There are 4 levels of competency

• Unconscious incompetency – not even aware of lack of competency in something.

• Conscious incompetency – aware that you can’t do it
• Conscious competency – able to do it but have to think and perform deliberately.
• Unconscious competency – have a high level of mastery and can do effortlessly
without thinking, like brushing your teeth.

20. Market - Are people looking for this particular skill and willing to pay to learn it?

21. Types of markets:

• Popular – topics that are highly in demand. The advantage is that you will not
have to look hard to get people who want to learn these skills. On the other hand,
you will be competing with lots of different trainers for the business. It would be
‘red ocean’. However, if you can bring a fresh perspective or your unique ideas to
the subject, you could still stand out. An example is Ron Kauffman, who speaks
on a common topic – customer service. Coming up with your frameworks could
be one way. (I’ll share more on this later in this book)

• Discovered – sharing something that has helped you in your life and could also
help others. It could be a topic tailored to a particular segment of the market, e.g.
NLP for parenting, Mind mapping for problem-solving (my topic).

• Anticipated – if you are interested in something new and trending and have done
sufficient research on the subject, it could be a good choice. The latest AI tools
could be one for now.

22. Putting it all together to get your niche – You could give a rating of 1-10 and then
total the points for each topic to get an idea of what to specialize in.

Topic Passion (1-10) Competency (1-10) Market (1-10) Total

Below is a list of topics I can teach and my ratings.

Topic Passion (1-10) Competency (1-10) Market (1-10) Total

 Speed Reading 7 8 2 17
Public Speaking 8 8 7 23
Creative Thinking 7 7 5 19
Train the Trainer 9 9 8 26
Mind Mapping 8 8 3 19
Study Smart (Kids) 9 9 6 24

Based on my rating, Train the Trainer course would be my best niche followed by Study
Smart and then Public Speaking. Of course, these are not precise figures but estimates based
on your own judgement. As for the market, you could make an educated guess based on
search results, like the number of videos on YouTube on your topic and views.

Design – an awesome program

23. Be clear about the learning objective of your target audience before you start
designing the course. Ensure the objective is attainable given the duration of the
training and other factors.

24. Think about the results your trainees want when crafting your learning objective. The
more specific it is, the better.

25. Consider the target audience's knowledge, skill level and beliefs.

Steps in Designing Your Course

26. Brainstorm – Write down everything you know about the subject. A mind map would
be good for doing this. https://youtu.be/IgMpdY3r3Y0. When you brainstorm,
consider these:

• Go for quantity
• No editing
• Build on existing ideas
• Keep asking what comes next
• No bad ideas, suspend judgment
• Take risks
• Stop making excuses

27. Categorize the sub-topics by color coding and determine what necessary things you
should include.

28. Look for gaps in your knowledge of the essential content you must cover.

29. Do your research. Use Google, Amazon, YouTube and Answerthepublic.com to see
what other subject matter experts in your field are talking about and what your target
audience values. Read the comments and reviews on these portals.

30. Organize the information and think of examples, stories, statistics and activities for
each idea.
 31. Design the course by sequencing the content. It’s vital to make the content clear,
simple and progressive. Some of my favourite content-structuring methods are:

• Sequential – step by step, e.g. how to close a sale.

• Problem-solution – ask them for a problem and then provide the solution
• Compare and contrast – like two different approaches

32. Pilot the course before rolling it out. It is so easy nowadays with so many online
platforms like Facebook, Zoom, YouTube live, TikTok live for you to test your
content. Testing out your material before charging people for it has many benefits.
They include:

• You get to see the flow and timing of topics.

• Get feedback on what was most useful and what wasn’t.
• Build your confidence.
• Refine your content.
• Get testimonials which can help you market your course in future.

33. Prepare your handout. Tips on writing handouts:

• Write in simple spoken language.

• Use standard fonts and sizes.
• Include illustrations.
• Leave space for taking notes.
• Have blanks for participants to fill in.

Using Visuals

A) PowerPoint slides
I believe PPT is both a blessing and a curse for trainers. If you design it well and,
most importantly, use it effectively, it can truly enhance your presentation.
Let’s explore the mistakes made by presenters in using PPT.

34. Do’s and Don’ts of PPT design

Do’s

• Use easily readable fonts like Calibri, Arial or similar fonts.

• Limit the number of font types to two.
• Minimize the amount of information on your slides.
• Practice the one idea, one slide philosophy.
• Use one or two images per slide.
• Be mindful of using clear images with high resolution – which can be found on
sites like pexels.com, pixabay.com and unsplash.com.
• Ensure there is a good contrast between background and fonts.
• Use simple graphs and illustrations.
• Standardize animations.
• Keep transitions standard.

Don’ts
 • Overcrowding with too much text.
• Use too many colours.
• Use of blurred images.
• Irrelevant images
• Use too many font types.
• Choose random transitions.
• Too many bullet points.
• Meaningless or too complicated graphs/charts

35. Don’t read from the slides word-for-word. It will make you monotonous and reduce
engagement.

36. Put only keywords instead of long sentences for people to follow easily.

37. Blank your slides when they have done their job, or you have moved to the next
point. (You can press the B button on your laptop keyboard to blank your slide).

B) Videos

Videos are great for adding variety and holding your audience's attention. However,
They can also backfire if not handled well. Here are some tips to keep in mind for videos.

38. Keep videos short of 1-2 minutes only.

39. Inform the audience what to look out for before showing it.
40. Preview the video yourself before showing it.
41. Download the video from YouTube or any other app to avoid ads and buffering.
42. Check with trainees what lessons they got from watching the video.
43. Don’t show too many videos.

C) Whiteboards or flipcharts

44. Use a variety of colors to write and highlight keywords.

45. Draw some simple diagrams – you can use stick diagrams to capture attention.
46. Use 80 gsm paper for flipchart and not any thinner or it can bleed.
47. Always keep spare unused whiteboard markers in your bag wherever you go.
48. Write clearly and legibly.

Deliver – like a pro

You could have the best content and ideas, but if you can’t deliver properly, your whole
presentation is a failure.

You must understand your audience's needs, interests and knowledge level to tailor your
presentation accordingly.

49. The cardinal rule is to aim for connection, not perfection, when delivering. You can
connect with your audience with discussions, questions or interactive activities.
Learning is not just an intellectual process but also an emotional process. To ensure
full participation, they must be emotionally, intellectually and spiritually involved.
 50. Use real-world examples and anecdotes to make the content relatable. Minimize
theory and make every point as practical as possible. You can include an example,
story, reflection question, discussion or role-play to every idea you share.

Communication strategies

Never be careless in your communication. – Jim Rohn

The above statement is nowhere more relevant than in the field of training. With effective
communication strategies, you can bring out the best in your audience. You will be able to
convince everyone you train that they are capable and have the innate potential to achieve
excellence in their life.

Questions

51. Questions are one of the best ways to enhance the learning experience. Use them
well, and you will be greatly effective.

52. Uses of questions in training:

• Grab and hold attention. Using their names while asking the questions will further
enhance their attention.
• Make them think creatively. Pose open-ended questions.
• Easy way to interact by involving them in dialogue.
• Doesn’t take too much planning.
• Boost the self-esteem of trainees – especially the shy ones. When you
acknowledge or compliment them for their answers, they will feel more confident
and participate more.
• Gauge the participants’’ understanding of the material.
• Foster group discussions by posing thought-provoking questions.
• Ask reflective questions to encourage participants to connect the training content
to their personal experiences.
• Use questions to gather feedback on the training content, format, and overall
experience.

53. Types of Questions:

• Closed – those that have only one or yes or no answers. For example, what is the
capital of India?
• Open– questions that do not have a specific answer – those that start with how and
why. Encourage detailed responses and critical thinking. An example is – How do
you think this can help you in your work?
• Probing– follow-up questions to clarify any confusion or to delve deeper into a
topic.
• Leading – subtly influencing the audience to your point. This can be useful, but
using it too much could affect the objectivity of the responses.
• Rhetorical – these kinds of questions do not require an answer but can be powerful
in making the audience think as well.
54. Add enthusiasm and energy to your voice and expressions. Nobody likes to listen to
a half-dead speaker. Enthusiasm is contagious, and you want to make sure the people
you are teaching are also excited to learn from you.

55. Using a combination of these question types can keep the training dynamic,
engaging, and effective in achieving its objectives.

56. Debriefing is the most important part of any activity you ask them to do. Sometimes,
trainers make the mistake of telling people what lessons they can gain from the
activity they just did. In order to optimize the learning for an activity, you have to
make them think by asking questions. Here are some debriefing questions for you:

• What went well?

• How did that make you feel?
• What can you do to improve?
• What did you learn?
• What will you do next time?
• What happened and why?
• What didn’t go so well?
• How else could you solve the problem?
• What would you do differently?
• Can you tell me more?
• How did you feel when…?
• Why do you think that?
• What caused your results?
• What contributed to our results?
• What were you aiming to achieve?
• How well did you use your strengths?
• To what extent did we achieve our goals?
• What is important to remember for the future?
• What do I need to do less of?
• How can I apply this in my life?

57. Use various methods to hold your audience's attention – PPT, humor, stories,
discussions, role plays, gestures, vocal variety, questions, relevant games and
activities.

58. After completing a section and before moving on to a new section, always ask the
participants for their takeaways. Recall is needed to enhance memory. Remember
this 3R statement – Repetition Reinforces Retention.

59. The side benefit of this kind of reflection is that it opens up the opportunity to add a
fresh perspective or example to what is recalled. I have often done this to the
pleasant surprise of my audience.

60. One more way to encourage recall and reflection is to quiz them at this point. Apart
from testing them verbally, you could use interesting online quiz apps like Kahoot,
Quzizz, Mentimeter, etc. You will be reinforcing the learning as they recall and
reflect.
 61. Learn their names and use them throughout your presentation. Their names can be
used when asking questions or giving examples. It feels more personalized and
creates an emotional connection.

62. The best way to remember people’s names is by having an intention and an interest
to do so. Pay attention to the name as it is being said, and then quickly associate the
name with something you are familiar with, and it will be easier to remember. For
example, you could easily remember my name, Jeya, by associating it with Jaya
Jusco or Jaya Grocer.

63. Make your content easily remembered by creating frameworks for what you teach.
You will likely know the 4 Ps of marketing. I use frameworks in almost all the
courses that I teach. Similarly, you can create your own frameworks. Let me share
some of my own I have crafted for my train the trainer program:
3 D – Discover, Design and Deliver
ARC model – Application, Retention, Comprehension (done in the reverse order)
FROLL formula – First, Review, Outstanding, Link, Last

FROLL Formula

Keeping this formula in mind every time you run a training can help you make a huge impact
on your audience. They will be more engaged and more likely to see positive changes in
their lives.

64. First – Your introduction sets the stage and what your audience will expect from you.
It is crucial to open well so that your trainees open their minds to receive your
message. If you start your opening with a bang, like the start of a James Bond movie,
you will have a captivated audience right from the start. Here is my 5-step method
for how you can do it:

• Enrolling question – This is where you ask a question for which they would be
excited to say ‘yes’. Rather than asking a rhetorical question, it is much better to
encourage some form of physical show of buy-in. You could say, “Raise your
hand if you like to….” The enrolling question should be a desired outcome your
audience would love to have. This takes some practice and refining.

• Quick win – In the second step, you share a strong credential about yourself to let
people know you are qualified to speak on the subject at hand. Only one
statement is enough here.

• Greet, welcome and thank you – You are the host, and your audience are your
guests. As any good host, it’s good manners to make our guests feel welcome and
at home. You will be creating a quick bond with your audience.

• Introduce yourself – Just mention your name here. You may want to poke fun at
your own name to break down barriers. People like those who are not so serious.

• Your credentials – You want them to have trust in you, and mentioning 3 relevant
credentials will help you to create that trust. However, be humble when you share
your credentials, or you might come across as arrogant. Using words like ‘I’m
honoured to have.., By God’s grace, I managed to…, etc.
 65. Review – Don’t expect people to remember what they hear just because you have
explained it. Any important point has to be reinforced for better retention and recall.
You need to make them recall their takeaways when you have finished a section and
move to the next and when they return on the next day or after a break.

66. Outstanding – There are two strong characteristics that will make you stand out from
your competition – content and delivery. How to make your content stand out?
Don’t be afraid to be different. The world doesn’t need another piece on ‘‘left-brain
vs. right-brain thinking’’ or ‘‘the six thinking hats approach to brainstorming.’’

67. Link – People will pay attention to you and be more compelled to apply what they
learn if they feel it is tailored to their needs and situation rather than a ‘canned’
presentation. You need to use examples, stories, case studies and other activities they
can relate to. If you are doing sales training for a car distributorship, do not use
examples from the insurance industry.

68. Last – Your closing is just as important as your opening. It’s an opportunity to touch
your audience and to inspire them to walk away with the determination to apply what
they have learnt. Do not waste this change to impact them.

69. Steps to close effectively:

▪ Summarize – Highlight some of the key points you covered during your
workshop. You don’t have to go through everything again.

▪ Reiterate the opening statement – If you had made a promise to them in the
opening, this is the time to loop back to it and inspire them with the possibility of
achieving their goal or solving their problem.

▪ Call to action – Give them 2-3 steps they need to take immediately or within a
day or two for them to change their results. People may not be clear about what
to do next, and you must give them a roadmap.
The Power of Stories

70. Storytelling is arguably the most powerful form of communication we have. Stories
are more fundamental to persuasion than facts, data, and other bits of information.
Your job as a trainer is to persuade your audience to change their actions

71. When you tell stories and include actual conversations, it would be very easy for you
to add vocal variety and natural gestures into your presentation.

72. Includes stories for greater impact and memorability. Here is a simple 5-step process
to tell compelling stories. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoFF2It8q-Q

73. The best stories are your own, followed by those of close relatives and other people’s
stories.

74. When you tell your own stories, one advantage is that you don’t have to memorize
the facts or the circumstances and it would be more authentic.

75. If telling other people’s stories or those you read somewhere, always quote the
source.
76. The worst thing to do when telling stories is claim someone else’s story as yours.
You will definitely lose the trust of your audience if they find out.

77. Follow the 3 S structure for stories.

• Struggle – a problem or conflict you experienced in life.

• Solution – how you overcame the unpleasant situation.
• Sharing – a lesson you learnt that you are here to share.

78. Inspirational stories can be divided into 7 themes or types. You can get them here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQRakj33K8M

79. Adding humor to your presentation is like spice. I came up with 5 strong reasons for
using humor. They are based on the word HUMOR

• Happy – your audience are going to be happy when you make them laugh. You
must heard the common statement in sales – happy people buy. So, by making
them chuckle, they will be more willing to buy into your ideas and apply them in
their lives.

• Understanding - You can break down complicated concepts by sharing a funny

anecdote. I have often done that to help them comprehend an abstract concept or
idea.

• Memorable – They won’t just remember the point you’re making if it is mixed
with some humor; they will not forget you easily either, which will be great for
repeat business.

• Open mind – The mind is like a parachute and only works when it is open. If the
minds of your audience are shut, you will not get through to them at all. Humor
has an amazing power to open the minds of even the most sceptical audiences.

• Rapport – You will connect quickly and bond better with your participants when
you laugh together. People crowd around a funny person at a party. You don’t
have to be a stand-up comedian but adding just a funny story here and there will
make you likeable.

80. If you are wondering where to find funny stories to tell, just be more observant of
life. What was a frustrating experience for you 5 years ago can be reframed into
something humorous with a message.

81. Start journaling and collecting experiences of what happens around you, and you will
not have to worry about reading a joke book to entertain your audience.

82. There is a big difference between jokes and humor. Jokes are something you read
from a book while humor is more situational and from personal observation and
experience. Remember this as a trainer – amateurs tell jokes, and professionals use
humor.
 83. Some sensitive topics to not make fun of are religion, politics, race, religion, gender
and body shapes.

84. You will never go wrong if you say funny things about yourself, which is also called
self-deprecating humor. Your audience will see you as a cool person.

Getting Training Jobs

The Business of Training

Training is a 391 billion US$ industry, meaning more than 1 billion dollars are spent daily on
training! The question is how much of it would be yours.

Like any industry, competition is stiff, but if you position yourself right, are passionate, and
work smart, you can earn a decent income. Let’s explore what you could do differently from
those people who jump on the bandwagon just to fall by the wayside. It’s not just about
being able to speak and deliver well. You still have to get people who will pay to listen to
your words.

85. There are four stages in any business. They are:

• Research and Development

• Production
• Marketing
• Distribution or delivery

86. Research and development - Find out what are some of the challenges and aspirations
of your target audience. Unlike the times when I started 28 years ago, the internet
has made this process a breeze. You can search your topic on YouTube, Amazon,
Facebook groups and also answerthepublic.com.

87. Production – Based on your research, craft your content by personalizing the content.
The platform is simply a vehicle that enables you to transfer your own value—
gleaned from your past experiences—to the audience’s future.

88. Marketing – your value is determined by the value you bring to your clients. The
more of these that apply to you, the more valuable you will be and the higher the fee
you can expect:

• Your reputation in the subject area.

• Your skills in delivering effectively.
• Your unique approaches and frameworks.
• The visual aids or demonstrations you can provide.
• Your specialized ability to address a particular industry.
• The level of skills that you provide to the audience.
• Your qualifications, experiences, stories, anecdotes, and/or humor.
• The transformation that they will experience.
• The improvement in that will result in their business.
• The motivation that people will gain from your training.
 • Your personal achievements and results.

• Your credibility: are you a published author or content creator?

89. Focus on delivering these results to your clients, and you will not have difficulty in
getting training jobs:

• higher productivity
• higher morale
• improved image
• better performance
• greater market share
• greater profit
• more growth
• more innovation
• problems solved

90. When you are talking to prospective clients, practice these:

• Understand the value you bring to the table.

• Translate your value into long-term results for your client.
• Find the real decision-maker in the company.
• Educate the buyer so that he or she can see your value and reach the same
conclusions.

91. Get a good grasp of what the client wants before proposing anything. Ask them to
express their concerns and then offer your solution.

92. You could use the ‘NEADS’ formula when meeting future clients:
Now – Ask them about the kind of training they are doing for their people at the
moment.
Enjoy – Find out what they like about the training they are doing and the trainers they
are working with currently.
Alter – What changes or improvements they would love to see in their
people/organization.

Decision – Determine if they are the decision maker. Be sensitive, and you may use
a sentence like, “Mr. A, if we can put together a program that could solve some of the
greatest challenges you mentioned, other than yourself, would there be anyone else
who will be involved in the decision?”

Solution – Nobody likes a salesperson, so you must neutralize their minds to say
you’re a solution provider. You could say something like, “I am so happy to have the
opportunity to serve your company's training needs. You can consider me a solution
provider as I help companies like yours to overcome their challenges and improve
their performance.”

93. Create content - If you are serious about the training profession, you must create and
share valuable content. Reasons for creating content are:

• Enhance your visibility and credibility

 • Force you to continually generate new ideas and validate old ones
• Gain trust and reputation.
• Provide access to other media (radio, TV, Internet)
• Generate leads
• Form the basis for future books
• Form the basis for future courses/products

94. Give away some of your best ideas that can help people to solve their problems in
your niche. You can do it in any form – written, video or podcast. This is the best
way to develop credibility and trust in the marketplace.

95. Distribution – There are two main methods of creating training opportunities for
yourself. You can either do in-house programs for corporations or conduct public
courses. There are pros and cons for each. In-house training is more straightforward
as you would deal with only one person from a company (usually the HR manager).
But to get people to attend your public sessions, you’ll have to speak to many people.
The good thing about public programs, though, is that you can make more money per
session.
The Power of Testimonials

96. Start to collect as many testimonials as you possibly can, as they will be invaluable in
helping you get more business.

97. Often, trainers ignore testimonials' value in gaining future clients' trust.
Always ask for how they feel about your training once you complete it.

98. The best medium to capture testimonials is video. One main reason is that video
can’t be faked whereas written testimonials could give the perception they are not
genuine.

99. Don’t be afraid to ask people to repeat the testimonial if they sounded stiff or it didn’t
feel right.

100. The way to use testimonials (also known as third-party endorsements) is to edit and
only show the crucial parts.

These are my 100 tips for your training journey. Some of them could be new, and some you
might have been practising yourself.

I would love to hear from you what you have found useful and what else you think I should
include. I will use what I have put into this e-book as a foundation for my published book.

Do contact me with your feedback by email or social media. You may reach me on

WhatsApp: +60196693497
Email: jeya@successedge.com.my
Facebook: facebook.com/jeyaraman.seenivasagam/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jeyaramanseeni/
FB group:facebook.com/people/Theprofessionaltrainer/100081546332507/
JEYARAMAN SEENIVASAGAM
Think Buzan Licensed Instructor, HRDC Certified Trainer, HRDC Lead Trainer & Certified NLP Practitioner

Jeyaraman Seenivasagam has been a professional trainer for the last 27 years
and his area of expertise is in Sales & Negotiation, Creative Thinking &
Innovation, Mind Mapping, Speed Reading, Teambuilding, Presentation &
Communication skills, Emotional Intelligence, Memory and Train the Trainer.
Jeyaraman has a versatile background having served in insurance, sales & marketing,
teaching, and training and development over 17 years with both local and multinational
organizations. Since 1996, he has trained and spoken to more than 84, 500 people in 9
countries, namely, Malaysia, China, Thailand, Singapore, Sri Lanka, India, Brunei, Cambodia
and Maldives on various topic to enhance their effectiveness in work and life.

He is passionate in the area of mind skills and would like to see more people exposed to such
skills that can help them bring out their hidden potential. He has had experiences in the
teaching and marketing area from the time he started his career in many different facets from
insurance to food manufacturing. Jeyaraman utilizes hands-on exercises, role plays and
humor to enhance learning that actually stick.

Some of the organizations that have benefitted from Jeya’s expertise are Petronas, Bank
Negara Malaysia, Shell Sarawak, Sarawak Energy, Sapura Kencana, Universiti Malaya,
United Overseas Bank, Tourism Malaysia, Malaysian Institute of Accountants, Institute of
Engineers Malaysia, Phillips, Siemens, La Farge, International Construction Consortium (Sri
Lanka), Aptech Computers (India), Speakout International (Singapore), Mitsui Sumitomo,
Askap Gold (Cambodia), Male Airport Authority (Maldives), Overseas Assurance
Corporation, Great Eastern Life, Honda Malaysia, Multimedia University (Malacca),
National Science Centre, Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers, Malaysian Employers’
Federation and Malaysian Airlines.

As a speaker he has won several international speech and humor competitions including the
first South East Asian “Articulate Speech contest” and Immediate Past President of USJ
Toastmasters Club. He uses a hands-on approach in his presentation with lots of examples,
anecdotes and real-life applications. This enables participants to immediately apply the
techniques to improve their efficiency in their work and personal lives.

Watch what our past participants say about his train the trainer course.

https://youtu.be/63WZzxF00Go

What others are saying about Jeya’s TTT..

The TTT by Mr. Jeya is amazing! Terence Chee, CEO, Almacrest College, Kota Kinabalu

You are a life-changer and have taught me what exactly a trainer is all about. Pramila,
Trainer, Top Glove

This is the best 5-days of training in my life! Thank you. Mohd Saufi Sofyan B Mohklas,
Training Manager.