Teaching: An Underrated Skill

Bad teachers are a dime a dozen – I’m sure you’ve encountered a few yourself. Most of my experiences come from my time in school: a professor who berated me on the first day of class for not knowing something (I never asked a question in that class again), a presentation so dense and boring most of the audience dozed off (myself included), and a professor so poor at explaining the material it was easier to teach myself from the textbook.  These experiences made me truly appreciate the skill it takes to be a good teacher.  

Think of a good teacher you had; what made them special?  

Maybe you went into a lesson thinking it had no relevance to you, and you left with a newfound appreciation for what you just learned. Perhaps you didn’t understand the material and the teacher took it in stride by changing their approach to help you learn. Or did the teacher design the lesson such that it held your interest?  

These three tactics: tailoring information to your audience, understanding the different ways people learn, and keeping your content/approach engaging can be applied not only in the academic environment, but the project controls field as well. While opportunities to teach may be less formal in the workplace, consider your reports and presentations as teaching moments.  

Tailor Information to Your Audience 

The best presentations are tailored to the audience. When developing a report or presentation, keep your audience in mind. They are the heart of the presentation. You could present the same topic in three different ways to three different audiences. Consider the goals and concerns of your audience and why they are in attendance; are they there because they want to be? Or because they are required to be there? This will affect how receptive people are to your message. Tailoring a presentation to a specific audience makes your message feel more relevant. As a result, they are more likely to engage and retain key messages. The better you understand your audience, the greater your chances of achieving your objective and desired outcomes.  

Apply it now: the next time you need to email a report to someone, consider why they need the info. Will the graphic version of the report be best, or do they need quick bullet points in an email? Would a call with this particular person to review be beneficial?  

Understand Learning Styles 

There are three main types of learners:  

• Visual 

• Auditory 

• Kinesthetic 

Visual learners take in information with maps, graphs, diagrams, and charts – forms that visually show patterns and relationships between different ideas. Auditory learners take in information when it is heard or spoken and are more likely to understand something by discussing it out loud and benefit from group discussions. Kinesthetic learners are hands on, and learn best through personal experience, practice, and simulations. A good presenter should try to incorporate elements that benefit each type of learner into their presentation. For example, you might include a visual representation of a report, read through the results and key points of the report out loud, and give those you’re presenting to the chance to run hypothetical reports based on various changes you can implement moving forward.  

Apply it now: Pull up one of your past presentations and consider what type of audience you tailored it for. If only one audience type was considered, jot down a few ways it could have been tweaked for the others and use that to guide your next presentation.  

Be Engaging 

Create an engaging presentation by giving your audience a reason to listen and make the time they are spending with you worth their while. Guide your audience through the content by stating the goal and providing previews and summaries, ensuring they can follow your message. While it is important to provide enough information to make sure that everyone is on the same page, too much information may overwhelm and bore your audience. With each piece of information included, ask yourself, “what value does this add?” Let your passion for the subject shine through. If you find it boring, your audience likely will too. And finally, practice, practice, practice. Practicing a presentation is just as important as the content itself, and it can determine whether your audience focuses on how often you say “uhm” or truly comprehends your message. Put yourself in the shoes of your audience and imagine yourself witnessing what you have to say. Would you enjoy sitting through your presentation? 

Apply it now: During your next in-person or video team update call, try a new way of sharing information, even if your updates are small. What’s the story underneath your checklist of updates?  

Whether it be in an academic or workplace environment such as the project controls field, being able to teach others is a valuable skill. When I started at MRC I was introduced to the company’s modus operandi: “lift everyone around you,” meaning that your personal growth and accomplishments are tied to the support and encouragement you provide those you work with. The success of this requires humility – there is no room for ego when teaching (or learning). Consider each teaching moment as a personal learning experience and use it to further your own teaching skills.