🎙Today I’m joined by Dr Carrie Graham, who has a PhD in adult and workplace learning. We share a similar mission: helping business owners reduce stress by getting what’s in their heads into the heads of their team so they can do the work effectively and efficiently.

Carrie brings an academic and highly practical approach to building training that actually works—engaging people so they complete it, understand it, and implement it. This isn’t about boring PowerPoints; it’s the opposite - it’s about using stories and smart instructional design.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

💡 Design Training Around Real People: Stop building training to cover everything in your head. Focus on who’s doing the work – their job, opinion and how they have to work and live their lives. This gets their attention—what you teach lands fully, is remembered and drives better performance.

💡 Build Confidence, Not Just Knowledge: Information isn’t enough. Use small wins, feedback, and reviews to move people from “I understand this” to “I’m confidently doing it.”

💡 Use Questions and Silence as Tools: Ask better questions, then shut up. The quiet moments are where people process, connect dots, and ask for clarification.

💡 Use the Right Stories So Lessons Stick: People remember what they learn when the story feels like their world - relatable stories tie emotion to ideas, so they stick and get applied.

BEST MOMENTS

00:40 - 💬 “How to communicate in a way that engages people, so they actually do the training and then implement it because they've understood it .” — Steve Day

07:09 - 💬 “When you make the content about the user, you've automatically grabbed their attention.” — Dr Carrie Graham

09:39 - 💬 “Once they get it, the goal is to not stop - help them apply … build their confidence.” — Dr Carrie Graham

42:05 - 💬 “Document everything - every step that you take. ” — Dr Carrie Graham

58:39 - 💬 “Success to me is a point when I have peace… peace of mind and peace about the work that I'm doing and the people that I'm helping, and peace in my home, so I can be my true self.” — Dr Carrie Graham

TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW

00:00 Intro—Organizational Training and Culture Expert

05:30 Tailoring training to your audience

35:38 The ERA method

50:43 “Effective Training Boosts Productivity”

VALUABLE RESOURCES

Dr Carrie Graham's Training Assessment: https://www.drcarriegraham.com/take-training-assessment-quiz

LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE GUEST

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drcarriegraham/
YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@drcarriegraham

ABOUT THE GUEST

Dr Carrie Graham has spent 25+ years helping small business owners build high-performing teams without corporate-sized budgets—her ERA Training Method has delivered 90% improvement in training outcomes for entrepreneurs who need results fast.

LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST

Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com
Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/
Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42

ABOUT THE HOST

Steve moved to Sweden in 2015 and transformed how he ran his businesses—switching to a fully remote model. A former NHS doctor, with a background in computing and property investing, he now helps overwhelmed business owners systemise and outsource effectively. Through his courses and coaching, Steve teaches how to automate operations and work with affordable virtual assistants, freeing up time and increasing profits. He runs his UK-based businesses remotely with support from a team of UK and Filipino VAs, and is passionate about helping others build scalable, stress-free companies using smart systems and virtual support.

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

Why Your Staff Training Isn’t Sticking—and How to Make It Actually Work with Dr Carrie Graham, Founder of COG Learning & Solutions, LLC | Ep 262