<span style="font-weight: 400;">Something I always encourage my learners to do is challenge everything, even what I tell them. I suggest they do not simply accept what people say as being fact but that they should gather enough information to come to a conclusion that THEY are satisfied with for their own conceptualisation, logic and application.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Having been a teacher for 25 years in various forms from delivering exercise classes to teaching PT’s and physiotherapists about biomechanics to helping podiatrists understand how to prescribe exercises I know one thing is for sure, we all learn in different ways and at different rates. Communication is key when passing on information, which I know I have written about before, but I cannot stress this point enough. The WAY we say things or even deliberate silences can have a huge impact on a learner receiving new information, which for some can be a daunting time. </span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">There seems to be such an emphasis on ‘level’ in the sense that a hierarchy of intelligence exists and I am sure this is correct in some form. However some of the </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">smartest</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> people I know are not naturally ‘academic’ and some cannot even read that well or write grammatically correctly (me included!!), does that stop them, us, me being intelligent? Clearly, it comes back to how you </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">measure</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> intelligence.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">So with so many educators out there let's consider who we should be guided by when it comes to intelligence. Let us consider how we are </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">measuring</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> this ‘hierarchy’ of intelligence so to speak.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">or </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">More to the point how SHOULD we measure it?</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Well, I guess that would depend upon the industry or relevance. So let's take our industry since this is the one that has inspired me to write this article. </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Now I meet a lot of people as I travel and many are what would be classed as very intelligent when it comes to qualifications and/or experience. </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Yet it stuns me how badly some of these really smart people communicate that intelligence.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Let me give you a couple or simple examples and you tell me..</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">(This is simply an example to make a point by the way):</span>

&nbsp;
<h3><strong>Which Personal Trainer is the <i>INTELLIGENT</i> one?</strong></h3>
&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Example 1:</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The PT with LOADS of qualifications, piles of certificates, loads of books and the ability to cite research papers left right and centre. This guy is often so busy taking courses he barely covers costs with what he makes from his clients. He KNOWS a lot but scrapes by and wonders why.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Compared to;</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The PT who is not as well read or so extensively qualified but has AMAZING communication skills and makes ALL their clients feel fantastic while in their company. This means they achieve client adherence and this PT is extremely successful commercially. </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">He is financially doing really well and has a great sense of job satisfaction.</span>

&nbsp;
<h3>Which Teacher/Presenter Is The INTELLIGENT One?</h3>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">The presenter who delivers fantastically complex information of their thoughts and ideas and concepts so mind-boggling it </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">‘blows your mind’ </span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">but while you’re impressed you are struggling to work out how YOU can apply the awesomeness you just heard.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Compared to;</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The presenter who uses an economy of words, offers very simple concepts with more audience interaction, while delivering possibly less information overall BUT they give you ideas to allow you to apply what they are sharing with you</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">My point here is that intelligence can be measured in several ways and is way more influential when it is communicated well. Lack of clarity or specificity is not helpful to others.</span>

&nbsp;

<i><span style="font-weight: 400;">“If you can't explain it simply you do not understand it well enough”</span></i>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Albert Einstein </span>

&nbsp;

<i><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication”</span></i>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Leonardo Da Vinci</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">“</span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Complexity is the enemy of execution</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">”</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Tony Robbins</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Is it good enough to simply hear smart people telling us what they know?</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Or is it enough simply having loads of knowledge, information packed away in your head if you are unable to apply it, communicate it and utilise it to your advantage?</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Of course intelligence can be measured by taking an IQ test or passing exams but TRUE intelligence is surely being able to use it, express it and pass it on right?</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Now back to my classroom where I do my very best NOT to answer questions raised by my learners. (Yes it is true, ask them!)</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">When I qualified with QTLS (Qualified Teacher Learning &amp; Skills Status) one of the primary things I came away with was that a </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">‘Learner lead’</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> classroom should be how we deliver content. The learners take priority over the teacher in the way the content is discussed, facilitated and therefore delivered. Clearly, there is a lesson plan but with much scope for tasks and discussion so that the individuals present can facilitate themselves to a level of understanding appropriate to their individual experiences and areas of knowledge. Peer discussions are extremely healthy where opinions are permitted with justifications for those opinions. It would be unfair to tell someone else they are wrong when the subject matter is presented based upon that individuals experiences, opinion and alongside a justification for the way they have presented it, don’t you think?</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">So back to my point; </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Surely it is also healthy to accept that we may not agree on certain views or opinions due to our different experiences and backgrounds, right?</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">We form views and attitude from our previous experiences and interactions with others right from being babies through to children and on to adulthood. The amount of variables make us individually complex and this is what makes meeting new people so fascinating and interesting.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">In my experience many people in our industry are not necessarily ‘academic’ types, certainly I myself and a lot of my learners are generally more kinesthetic learners who process information better through doing, rather than reading or writing. So when faced with technically challenging information we often take a while to develop ways to put information into practice. The skills we ALL require are theory, psychological and practical based to be best placed to help improve clients physicality and health. But in my opinion predominantly practical and psychological for exercise prescription based work. </span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">My learners, the professionals I meet are REALLY intelligent people, who interact smartly, consciously, with care and thought for those they come into contact with. Just because for many of us, our learning style is such that we have to take a clini-band to a skeleton to really understand what muscles do while we ‘work it out in our heads’ or because we have to get up and move our legs to workout which is the agonist, which is the antagonist and which muscles are synergists doesn’t make us </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">less</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> intelligent people.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Communication is key to success when passing on information. Having some empathy for those listening to us while we deliver information (knowing our audience) is also key for learning and development to occur.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">We should accept being challenged as a compliment that someone is seeking our ideas and input but we should also </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">respect</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> their response when asking for it!</span>

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

<hr />

<h2></h2>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Would You Like To Be Able To Reduce Your Clients Risk Of Injury, &amp; Help Them Get Even Better Results?</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">Want to be able to help your clients move better, move more freely and get even better results on their programmes?</h3>
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