#416: The MTL One-Day Course Plan on "Managing Your Boss Assertively"

Introduction

In today's "People Skills" newsletter, we're returning to our popular series of one-day course plans which you can use for your own self-paced learning or, if you are a trainer, as the material for a one-day workshop for others.

The course today is on "Managing Your Boss Assertively" and is a crucial skill in helping you achieve success at work.

The course is structured around the resources you will need to gain a good understanding of this topic and includes worksheets, icebreakers, exercises, topics, quizzes, videos, and follow-up activities.

So, If you want to create a mutually beneficial relationship with your boss, then take some time out right now to see how this course can benefit you or those you train.

So, here is the suggested timetable for the MTL One-Day Course Plan:

Pre-Course Preparation

The first part of the MTL One-Day Course Plan is the "Pre-Course Preparation". This consists of notifying all course participants about the time, date, and venue of the course and providing them with pre-course preparation material.

Amongst other materials on the Pre-Course Preparation, you can send all your trainees the course "Self-Assessment" worksheet so that they can think about how well they know the topic already.

Session 1: Welcome!

The "Welcome" session is the first session on the day of your course. In it, trainees will get to know one another a bit better, find out what's planned for the day, and deal with any housekeeping issues.

You can also hand out the following "Course Details" worksheet. On this worksheet, there are 5 course targets which you can read out to your trainees and explain that they will be used at the end of the course to see what trainees have learned.

The "Welcome!" session lasts 20 minutes; eg 9.30 am to 9.50 am.

(Total course time so far: 20 minutes)

Session 2: Icebreaker 01: "Before and After"

The icebreaker is aimed at getting trainees to have a bit of fun and, at the same time, find out more about their colleagues.

There are 100 icebreakers you can use in the "Trainers' Resources" category of MTL which you can view and/or download for free here: https://www.managetrainlearn.com/#/category-view/5915.

For this particular course, we've picked the icebreaker, "Before and After", which you'll find in the "Figuring It Out" icebreakers set on "Trainers Resources".

The "Icebreaker" session lasts 20 minutes; eg 9.50 am to 10.10 am.

(Total course time so far: 40 minutes)

Session 3: Discussions

The Discussions session gives trainees the chance to think about the course and what they want to learn from it. They can also discuss with others what they already know about the course topic.

You can also hand out the following "Group Discussion" worksheet, so that trainees have questions to talk about.

The "Discussions" session lasts 35 minutes; eg 10.10 am to 10.45 am.

(Total course time so far: 1 hour 15 minutes)

Coffee Break

The "Coffee Break" lasts 15 minutes; eg 10.45 am to 11.00 am.

(Total course time so far: 1 hour 30 minutes)

Session 4: Presentation

The Presentation session is the session in which you, (or a guest presenter), can present new information on the course topic.

For the "Managing Your Boss Assertively" course, you can use the following ready-to-run presentation from our Professional Development Programme.

The "Presentation" session lasts 45 minutes; eg 11.00 am to 11.45 am.

(Total course time so far: 2 hours 15 minutes)

Break

The "Break" lasts 5 minutes; eg 11.45 am to 11.50 am.

(Total course time so far: 2 hours 20 minutes)

Session 5: Exercises

The next session is the first Exercises session which gives trainees chance to practice one of the skills in the course. You could use your own visualisation exercise, a role play, or a skill walk-through for this.

Alternatively, you could use any of the exercises in the "Managing Your Boss Assertively" exercises set, such as "Who Let's Me Be Assertive?" below.

The "Exercises" session lasts 40 minutes; eg 11.50 am to 12.30 pm.

(Total course time so far: 3 hours)

Lunch Break

The "Lunch Break" lasts 1 hour; eg 12.30 pm to 1.30 pm.

Session 6: Icebreaker 02

The afternoon icebreaker is aimed at getting trainees to have a bit more fun and, at the same time, find out more about their colleagues.

There are 100 icebreakers you can use in the "Trainers' Resources" category of MTL which you can view and/or download for free here: https://www.managetrainlearn.com/#/category-view/5915.

For this particular course, we've picked the icebreaker, "The Girder", which you'll find in the "Working as a Team" icebreakers set on "Trainers Resources".

The "Icebreaker 02" session lasts 15 minutes; eg 1.30 pm to 1.45 pm.

(Total course time so far: 3 hours 15 minutes)

Session 7: More Exercises

The next session is the second Exercises session which gives trainees chance to practice another of the skills in the course. You could use your own visualisation exercise, a role play, or a skill walk-through for this.

Alternatively, you could use any of the exercises in the "Managing Your Boss Assertively" exercises set, such as "Assertive Situations" below.

The "Exercises" session lasts 40 minutes; eg 1.45 pm to 2.25 pm. (Total course time so far: 3 hours 55 minutes)

Break

The "Break" lasts 5 minutes; eg 2.25 pm to 2.30 pm.

(Total course time so far: 4 hours)

Session 8: Videos from Snippizz on "Being Assertive With Your Boss"

In the Videos session, trainees can view any of the videos in the Snippizz topic, "Being Assertive With Your Boss", either on their on or with other course members. These videos include the following:

1. "How to Disagree With Someone More Powerful" from Harvard Business Review
2. "How To Tell Your Bosses They're Wrong" from MindTools
3. "Manage the People Managing You" from Ed Muzio
4. "Three Ways to Strengthen Your Relationship With Your Manager" from Jacob Morgan

These videos can be viewed here: https://www.snippizz.com/#/video-all/5089%3Ftopic&topic_ids%3D5089.

The "Videos" session lasts 35 minutes; eg 2.30 pm to 3.05 pm.

(Total course time so far: 4 hours 35 minutes)

Session 9: Quiz

The Quiz is a 10-question test of what trainees have learnt on the course. You can use the quiz questions as a team-versus-team game or an individual trainee game.

You can view and/or download for free all the quiz questions for the "Managing Your Boss Assertively" course here: https://www.managetrainlearn.com/#/slide/126

The following is the first quiz slide.

The "Quiz" session lasts 20 minutes; eg 3.05 pm to 3.25 pm.

(Total course time so far: 4 hours 55 minutes)

Tea Break

The "Tea Break" lasts 15 minutes; eg 3.25 pm to 3.40 pm.

(Total course time so far: 5 hours 10 minutes)

Session 10: Review and Close

The Review and Close session is the last session in the "MTL One-Day Course Plan". This session allows you to review the course, the new information in the presentation, and any issues arising from the skills practise.

There are 7 worksheets you can use in your "Review and Close" session. These include "Key Points, Do's and Don'ts; "Did We Meet Our Targets? - Questions", and "Did We Meet Our Targets? - Answers". You can view and/or download any of these slides for free here: https://www.managetrainlearn.com/#/slide/131

The "Review and Close" session lasts 50 minutes; eg 3.40 pm to 4.30 pm.

(Total course time: 6 hours).

Post-Course Practice

The last part of the MTL One-Day Course Plan is the "Post-Course Practice". In this part of the course, you can arrange follow up sessions with trainees to assess their progress. You can also hand out the following "Follow-Up Activities Worksheet" so that trainees can practise the skills of the course by themselves.

End of the MTL One-Day Course Plan

What Next?

If you are like the majority of businesses, you will have a workforce that is significantly lacking in the skills that the modern world needs today, in particular, what we call "people skills".

One of the reasons why this is a serious problem is that these soft skills are needed not by just a few of your staff but by all of them.

And, as a result, you may feel that this is an insurmountable problem.

However, it is not.

With simple approaches, such as the "MTL One-Day Course Plans", and the back-up content on our 6 websites, you can overcome the problem and build a skilled workforce that will do you proud.

Thanks for reading this edition of the "People Skills" newsletter and good luck with your ongoing learning.

Oh, and one last thing.

In the spirit of making the world a freer, happier and more enlightened place...

...please pass this newsletter on.

Thankyou!

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