I can’t believe we’re wrapping up 2025 already! My professional highlight by far was gathering in person with our certified community in Houston, Boston, Orange County, Seattle, and Jersey City for Crucial Learning Live. We built on 2024’s Trainer Tour to create a longer lunch-and-learn format that opened the floor to our attendees during the second half of the event, asking for their input on best practices. I loved learning from our certified trainers and certified facilitators—they shared so many helpful insights and actionable ideas!

“Combine Human and Artificial Intelligence.”

“Is Your Team Ready for AI?”

“No Tricks, Just AI Treats for Business.”

If your inbox looks anything like mine, it’s overflowing with AI-themed emails. The world can’t stop talking about artificial intelligence—and sometimes it feels like the robots really are taking over.

Talking about physical space might feel quaint after years of obsessing over virtual training. But when you’re face to face with learners, how you use the room can make all the difference. Here are a few quick tips that have helped me

Did you know only one-third of our brain functionality is predetermined by genetics and biology, while two-thirds is shaped by lifestyle, diet, rest, stress management, etc.?

“Okay, I hear what concerns you in this video if you’re Anya. But tell me—if you’re Anya here, how do you feel?” We were debriefing the first video in Crucial Conversations® for Mastering Dialogue, and this group seemed more comfortable talking about thoughts over feelings. The room was so quiet you could have heard a …

At Crucial Learning, we equip people with the skills to navigate life’s most pivotal moments. As trainers, we often meet learners during those moments—at emotional, vulnerable, and transformational times.

As trainers and facilitators, it’s our wheelhouse to help people gain the skills and abilities they need to excel in the workplace—especially the ones with high impact. But what are those behaviors? And how can we make a case to our organizations in favor of what’s often dismissed as “soft skills”?

As I reflect on the trainer certification programs I lead, I notice a common theme among new facilitators: fear. More specifically, fear about how to respond when a learner brings up a challenge that doesn’t fit neatly into the course material.

It’s the moment facilitators dread. You look into the glazed eyes of your participants and wonder, “Are they really getting it? How can I make this more interesting and relevant to them?” So we try to jazz up our delivery by bringing more energy or taking a break, or we just plow through the content …

Combining the relationship intelligence of the Strength Deployment Inventory® with the framework of Crucial Learning courses seemed like a natural fit to Kate Abshier, a seasoned trainer of both the SDI and Crucial Conversations® for Mastering Dialogue who helped test the new Crucial Teams® course last fall. “Every time I facilitate the SDI, I mention …