Why attention span isn’t the problem with your training program

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Attention. Is it true that our attention spans have become, well, less attentive. Smartphones, social media and other high-tech gadgets seem to be a constant source of fascination. Tech can enhance productivity, but it can have a negative effect.

Our phones and other technology make it easy to shift our attention to what we find more entertaining or enjoyable. This can make things more difficult in the classroom or at work.

It’s important to determine how long your drivers will pay attention when you are training them. You can sit them down all day or are you limited to soundbites that are on the level of TikTok? If the real issue is a social one (i.e. if everyone’s attention span is declining), it may seem that there isn’t much we can do about it except to make it shorter. But is this true? The answer is surprising simple.


Perceptions of training

“My drivers aren’t able to focus for that long.” “All they want is shorter learning.” There has been a long-standing perception that drivers dislike training and want to do it as little as possible.


What’s happening?

Has attention spans become shorter? Is that the real issue? Our total attention span in all contexts cannot be measured at once. It’s not the same as playing a game or doing safety instruction. Are there more distractions today than 10 or 15 years ago. For sure. Has this made it harder for us to focus on things that we are not as invested in (like Word documents or random internet videos),? Definitely. This doesn’t tell you much about the safety training that’s taking place.

Attention is a goal-oriented behavior. The amount and depth of our attention to something depends on the clarity of the goal, the desire for it, and the engagement of the process. If you can’t take your eyes off a movie, it’s likely because the story is compelling and you are invested in what happens. If you’re mindlessly browsing through social media, you’re probably not interested in the content for more than a couple of seconds and aren’t really invested.

If your drivers are distracted by their phones during a training session, it is unlikely that humanity has failed to pay attention. It could be that they are bored. It’s not a matter of attention; it’s about content, context, and goal.

You can tailor your material to be shorter, snappier and more engaging to grab their attention before they look back at their phones again. But all you are really doing is admitting your material isn’t engaging enough or that the goal isn’t ingrained in your people.


Takeaway

What’s the problem? I don’t believe it’s true drivers want less education. According to the latest Best Fleets to Drive For survey, more than 90% of respondents agreed, or strongly agreed, that ongoing training was important.

There are still some legitimate reasons why drivers might want to shorten their training. For example:

  • Pay It’s easy to understand why drivers would be reluctant to take the time to complete training if they are paid by the mile. Many companies have taken this issue head-on by offering bonuses or paying for training.
  • Relevance Drivers will naturally want less training if it is thin, irrelevant or condescending. It doesn’t need to be a constant stream of TikTok videos. But it should encourage the learner to use their brain in different ways at different stages. But it doesn’t mean that it has to be short.
  • Clear Goals Just as you would watch a movie to see what happens at the ending, or focus on a game because you are trying to win it, the goal for the training should be clearly defined. The “why do I do this?” problem can be solved by connecting the training action to a larger overall goal of safety. This goal should extend across all the driver’s activities and not just training. This is especially important because, as we have seen, attention is focused on a goal. Make sure that they understand the goal.

It’s less helpful to dismiss drivers’ requests for shorter training as a result of their waning attention span. Think about what else is going on. It’s possible that the real problem is how committed your drivers are to the training culture and how timely, pertinent, and contextualized the material is. (And whether or not they get paid.) Arguments that reduce the training issue to a society-level attention problem are not the issue. There’s something else that needs to addressed.

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