by R.M. Tubelonia
OMG. Oh, my God!. Internet parlance when you come across situations that surprise, exasperate or shock you. Seasoned OSH trainers come across such situations at least a few times during their practice especially if they go out of their home turf where they have little control over certain situations. The following three incidents are the most memorable ones in my case.
First incident. Arriving at the venue only to find that a post (“poste”) is in the middle of the room impeding the vision of the participants in the middle and back rows.
Second incident. Finding out that the venue lights are yellow in color. OMG, The participants would be on their way to Dreamland as early as 10 am of the training.
Third incident. Finding that your training was over-subscribed and that the reserved room could not comfortably accommodate them all. In addition, the other hotels near-by were fully-booked and no chance of transfer at all.
Of course, one must not be overwhelmed with the OMGs. Quick thinking on one’s feet is needed in such situations. So, how did I cope with the three OMGs?
The first incident really floored me as I was a new trainer then. I had to exert extra effort to keep the participants focused on the topics and not engage in side conversations! But in succeeding trainings, I prepared a checklist for our provincial counterparts on what to look for in a possible training venue.
For the 2nd incident, I had to request the hotel management to change the light bulbs from yellow to white or fluorescent bulbs. The management agreed to do so.
The 3rd incident was the most difficult and required a lot of tact and delicacy in handling people. The earliest who came were not pre-registered at all. Most of those who pre-registered and already paid the fees either came just before opening time or were a little bit late. The earliest came from the near-by provinces and had to wake up at dawn and travelled a long distance to get to the venue. So, asking them to attend the BOSH for the next schedule was not an option. Besides, they only came to know they were to attend the training the Friday or Saturday before the BOSH (usually starts on a Monday). They had no prior knowledge that they needed to pre-register for a sure slot. Or they had assumed that their superiors made the notifications.
I asked the pre-registered to get inside the training room. Next, I asked the hotel management if a bigger room is available. They said that there was, but only the afternoon of the 1st day, the 3rd and the whole of the 5th/last day. Since the 4th day were mostly workshops and group discussions, I calculated that the times of comfort can offset the moments of discomfort. Armed with the proper information, i went inside to talk to the pre-registered and discussed the problem with them. Fortunately, Filipinos being considerate (“maawain sa kapwa”) and forbearing (“matiisin”), those inside the room said that they can stand the crowded room just so those outside can join the training. The spirit of Bayanihan was alive on that day. Suffice it to say that feedbacks after the training were mostly favorable!
For my next blog, I will discuss some tips on how to avoid OMG moments in training. In our grandmother’s time, they say, “Que horror” rather than OMG.
Rosanna “Anna” M. Tubelonia counts on more than three decades of experience in the design and delivery of various OSH trainings, for both local and foreign participants, including those with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the International Labor Organization (ILO). She was the former Head of the Training & Public Information Division (TPID) of the OSHC of the Department of Labor & Employment and currently the Director for Training & Education of People360 Consulting Corporation.
