What do you do when a training session isn’t helping you do your job? Name the gap between the session and the work, ask for a specific change, and agree how you’ll check whether it helps.
A short elevator ride brought that question into focus for me. I was on my way to the gym before running a session for a group of sales executives I hadn’t yet met. I pressed the wrong button, apologized to the woman next to me for adding a stop, and heard a response that stayed with me.
When the Break Feels More Useful Than the Training
She told me that every minute in the elevator was a minute she didn’t have to be in the conference room. I asked whether it was her last day in the session. It wasn’t. She and her colleagues were booked in there all week.
Why Speaking Up Can Feel Risky
As we got to my floor, I suggested to the woman that she might not be alone in feeling this way and could ask for something better. Her answer was honest: “They pay my bills.”
Her answer matters. A participant can see a problem without feeling able to challenge the person paying for the session. If you’re leading the training or sponsoring it, don’t mistake silence for agreement. Ask for specific feedback and show what you’ll do with it.
How to Raise a Training Concern Constructively
- Describe one gap. Connect the part of the session that isn’t helping to a real task you need to do.
- Ask for one change. Suggest something the facilitator or sponsor can act on, such as working through a situation your team actually faces.
- Agree a follow-up. Decide when you’ll check whether the adjustment helped and what you’ll look for in your work.
Here’s an example you can adapt to your situation:
I understand the goal is [work outcome]. I’m finding it hard to apply [part of the session] to [real task]. Could we work through an example from our team and practise it? Then we can check [observable change] in [timeframe].
Choose a setting where you can raise the concern constructively. That might be a question during the session, a private conversation with the facilitator or your manager, or the feedback channel your organization provides. Describe the experience and its effect on your work; avoid guessing the trainer’s motives.
Three Questions to Ask Before the Next Session
- What should we be able to do differently in our work after this session?
- Where will we practise that using a situation our team actually faces?
- When will we review what we used, what changed, and what still gets in the way?
If you’re choosing or redesigning the program, Don’t Waste Your Training Budget explores how to connect the learning to your team’s context and business outcomes.
What Leaders Should Do With the Feedback
If you’re the leader receiving that concern, thank the person, ask for a concrete example, and agree one adjustment. Tell the team what will change, who owns it, and when you’ll check back. If you can’t make the requested change, explain why and discuss another way to support the work.
A better conversation is the starting point. The follow-up is whether people can use the learning in their work. Pick one practice to try, make room for it, and review what helped or got in the way.
For a way to make the behavior specific enough to practise and observe, see How Do We Shift From Old Behaviors to New?.