Picture the scene.
You're at a
mandatory training session. Or a conference session that isn't in your
area. Or a research seminar.
You sit down. You get ready to take notes.
Your speaker[s] welcome everyone. And they start. And maybe after 10
minutes, maybe after 15, you think 'oh god: this session is irrelevant....and I'm stuck here until it finishes.'
It
happens. It may be that the session doesn't match your interests. Or
that you don't gel with the speaker's presentation style. Or maybe
you're already familiar with the topic. In any case, you can't really
leave. As I see it, you've got three options:
1) Sit there, silently fuming at this poor speaker, and hating anyone who asks a question because they're prolonging the agony.
2)
Ignore the speaker. Browse the internet, check twitter, send emails.
Try not to feel guilty when the speaker catches your eye.
OR
3) Focus on making the session useful for you.
So, before I adopt 1) or 2) and make the speaker very uncomfortable, I try 3). Here's how.
Wait Before you Check-Out
If
a session starts off with information you already know, or on a topic
you aren't that interested in, it's tempting to disengage and save
yourself the trouble. But, if you've given papers, or delivered sessions
yourself, ask yourself some questions. Do you always introduce your key
points at the start of every session? Every time? Do you sometimes take
a while to warm up when you start a session? Perhaps days where you
don't feel up for it? Do you sometimes remember a relevant point when
you're in mid-flow and add it in?
From
experience, I know that the best part of session I've delivered are
very seldom the first 5-10 minutes. I know that I'm guilty of all of the
above. Because of this, I try to give the speaker the benefit of the
doubt. And very often, there is at least one nugget of useful,
thought-provking information somewhere in there.
Take Part!
This
is particularly useful for sessions where you already have quite a lot
of knowledge in the area. Retention rates are highest when individuals
are asked to teach someone else what they've learned. If the session
invites small group discussion, don't hang back. Share your knowledge
with the people you're talking with, ask them questions.
A
while back, I went on a mandatory training session which replicated
training I'd had elsewhere. Although I went in sceptical, when we got to
group discussions, the people in group actually challenged me on
something. And I realised I didn't know the answer. Apart from being
humbled by this, it challenged me to go and read up on that particular
area, and fill the gaps in my knowledge.
Don't Focus on What They're Saying...
...focus
on how they're saying it. If you're a PhD student, the odds are you'll
one day be giving a conference paper, or delivering a lecture, or a
seminar. Every example of public speaking is one you can learn from, and
this session is no exemption. Is the speaker [over]using power point?
How do they introduce their points? Do they look and sound confident?
Why? How are they providing the right background without boring those in
the know? Are they using notes? Flashcards? Are they winging it?
At
my first ever conference, I went to a session that was completely
irrelevant to my research. But the person giving it had the most
natural, authentic and knowledgeable manner I'd ever seen. I spent the
entire 20 minutes taking notes on how they did it. I still refer back to
my notes if I'm presenting a lot of complex information.
Not
every session you ever go to is going to be relevant. But since I
started trying to engage with every session I attend, I spend a lot less
time feeling grumpy and resentful.
How about you: have you been to any sessions that turned out to be surprisingly useful?
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