I listened to a talk where the speaker spoke about the “Cone of Learning.”

Here’s how it works:

They say people learn 50% of what they hear. So, if you hated listening to a teacher lecture when you were in school, it was probably because you weren’t learning that much.

Learning increases when you re-say it. Up to 70%. So, when you repeat what you hear, your learning increases. If you have ever had to teach or train someone else, you know that you incorporate learning a lot more when you must tell it to someone else.

The best effect is what you say and do. The learning result is up to 90%. As I was listening, it reminded me of the old training maxim. If you want to make training take hold, do the following:

• Hear one
• See one
• Do one

If you are a trainer, don’t let a verbal discussion about what needs to be done count as training. Improve your training by building a demonstration. Improve the training by building in a time where the trainee shows you what has been learned.

That’s the “Cone of Learning” put into practice.