To Teach Effectively, Show and Tell


Here is another valuable Management Tip of the Day from Harvard Business Review. To sign up for a free subscription to any/all HBR newsletters, please click here.

How many times have you trained a colleague in a task, only to have that person come knocking on your door every five minutes with a question?

People learn by watching others, so instead of telling people how to solve a problem, show them.

Take them through each step, explaining the reasons behind each.

Then allow them to ask as many questions as needed.

This will not only give them the foundation they need to do the task, but will prompt you to master the task more deeply as you provide a justification for each step.

Today’s Management Tip was adapted from “The Best Approach to Training” by Richard Catrambone.

To read that article and join the discussion, please click here.

Also, you may wish to check out the new book Management Tips from Harvard Business Review, based on HBR’s Management Tip of the Day by clicking here.

Richard Catrambone is a Professor in the School of Psychology at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He has consulted on instructional design and human-computer interaction topics for various organizations. His teaching and mentoring has been recognized by multiple teaching awards.

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