Training for KSA

We often listen of KSA; knowledge, skill, & attitude. Knowledge comes through education; formal-informal, direct-indirect inputs received, processed and stored by our minds. It provides answers to questions such as what, when, why, where, who etc. Whereas skill is the ability to translate such knowledge into action or performance. The answer to how leads to skills. We all have capabilities, the inherent potentials to do almost anything. The knowledge acts as trigger and enhancer to these capabilities. Once, we start actually doing something, then over a period of time we hone a particular skill such as speaking in English or playing football or even chess. And ultimately we convert a capability into a capacity thus a skill.

Competence is the advanced level of particular skill/skill-set. Skill entails the ability to successfully perform something; competence allows one not only to successfully perform but also yield a similar output repeatedly. For example, one may learn how to cook Biryani, this means he/she is skilled at cooking Biryani. But one may be considered competent at Biryani cooking if she/he is able to produce to same taste, aroma and effect every time. Professional cooks and moms are competent in this art. Perhaps that's why many married men initially struggle to accept the fact that their wife's and mom's cookery skills/competence are different.

So far as training is concerned, we can train for knowledge or skill or attitude or all. training for knowledge enhancement may be done through presenting some set of PPTs or may be through using audio-visual media.

Whereas training for skills necessarily requires trainees to be given sufficient time for actually doing or practicing those tasks/acts which are sub-sets of desired skill/s. For example, if we are training executives in tele-calling. Then PPTs on do's and don't or lessons on how to do tele-calling must always be supplemented with ample mock sessions on tele-calling. Simply put,. one learns only when one actually does.

Training for attitude is basically behavioral training and educating the mind should be coupled with lots of interactive exercises with fellow trainees such as we do in T-Groups. Group Discussions, case studies followed by in-group discussions, brain storming and many more such techniques may help trainees adopt desired behavioral changes through self-realization.